1. Play along with your child.
If this feels like another item in an already overwhelming list of parenting ”shoulds,” consider this science-proven fact: playing with your child isn’t only good for them. It’s good for you too. Just a few minutes of play a day can release the hormone oxytocin — which reduces stress, anxiety, fear, and blood pressure levels. What’s more, oxytocin is known as a relationship-building hormone. So when you have genuine fun with your child, you’re helping to create a bond that grows with every game of peekaboo or pretend play.
2. Appreciate the funny moments.
As they learn how to make sense of the world around them (and how to maneuver their lil' limbs), kids get up to some serious shenanigans. So the next time your toddler dances in their pull-up, barks like the neighbor dog, or stomps around the house in your shoes, take a moment to appreciate your budding comedian.
3. Get silly.
We want to make sure our kids have room to be their goofy, toothy, silly selves — but that’s a right that grownups have too. When you let yourself be playful, parenting can feel less like a job and more like a second chance at childhood. Especially during those trying moments (like the end of the day when everyone’s cranky and crotchety), take a moment to cut loose. Dance and sing with your baby. Ham it up by landing a stuffie on your head. And enjoy the laughter and adoration of your number one fan.
4. Be as curious as a kid.
Research shows that new and diverse experiences help elevate people’s moods — which may explain why kids seem so happy. For them, the sights, smells, and sounds of the world are all brand new. So from time to time, try and get down on your baby’s level (literally and figuratively) to share that sense of wonder. Lay down next to them to watch the mobile bobbing over their playmat. Take a good long look at that rock they handed you (it’s pretty cool). Experiment with which toys float and which don’t. When the trials of parenting get you down, there’s nothing like a little vinegar-and-baking-soda volcano to pep you back up again. Just add food coloring.
5. Don’t get mired in the milestones.
It’s easy to think of childhood as baby boot camp — full of must-meet milestones and motor skill mastery and all the other things your kid is supposed to learn or surpass by age X. But as GreatSchools founder Bill Jackson notes, “Childhood is not just training for adulthood; it’s important and valuable in its own right.” Recognizing this can help us enjoy our children as they are, at this very moment,instead of rushing from babyhood to toddlerhood and beyond. As parents, we’re understandably anxious for our child to take their first step and say their first word. But the time before that — when they’re giggling over the goofy face you made — is just as important. And building a fort or throwing a tea party with your toddler isn’t only good for strengthening their social-emotional skills and honing their hand-eye coordination (although psst — it does that too!). It's about building a bond with your one-of-a-kind child — just the way they are.
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