Our daughter is quickly approaching 2.5 years old, and with her half birthday a new series of milestones will be on the horizon for her. I’ve struggled with what order we should tackle these in, as I want to handle them one by one so as not to rock her world so greatly and hopefully ensure success with each one.

Toddler bed

We’re tackling this one first, mainly because we have a bit of a deadline. My sister and her husband will be using our daughter’s crib when their son arrives in January, so I’ve been readying the nursery for the big switcheroo. I may or may not have also chosen this milestone first because decorating a little girl’s room makes me so happyyyyyyyyyyy.

I’m being stubborn and waiting on the rest of the items of her room to arrive (I did all my shopping online) because I want to make over her room all at once and surprise her with a finished product. Hopefully the transformation is exciting for her and not traumatizing that it looks very different from what she’s used to (because we all know toddlers are creatures of habit!).

Nursing

Because yes, we are STILL NURSING. I’m very ready to be done at this point but am reconciled to the fact that I will wait until after we switch to the toddler bed. I’m a big advocate of extended nursing but never imagined I’d be doing it myself, and for such an extended period of time. While I do pat myself on the back for being able to stick it out for so long, I definitely have started feeling like, for us, she is just too big to be nursing still.

Potty

My daughter has been showing interest in the potty for some time. She seems to understand what it’s used for, she doesn’t like the feel of a dirty diaper against her skin, and she has shifted from announcing that she has pooped to warning us that she will soon poop. When she alerts me to this fact, I continually offer use of the big girl potty, but in nearly every instance she has refused. Only once has she let me get as far as pulling her pants down and diaper off, but didn’t like the feel of the potty seat against her skin when she went to sit down. Still, I took this as a minor success and didn’t push. This milestone will remain third on my list.

I’m hoping my master plan works. We are currently working through some two year molars and a temporary altered daily schedule, so that has set me back a bit on my timing. Still, I’m hopeful that we’ll all be ready to make these lifestyle changes soon! How did you manage major milestones with your children?