If you had a 'spirited' baby, what were they like as a toddler??

[BotBotticelli]

DS1 is a highly spirited baby....he is 5-and-a-half months old and is a bit of a handful: bored easily, shouting/singing at the top of his voice all the time, kicking like mad all the time, trying to sit up,pulling himself up on the bars of his baby gym, already trying to crawl (and failing so just lies on his tummy screaming till i roll him back over, repeat ad nauseum, a million times a day!).

He is delightful as well, laughs his little head off if you tickle him, loves his bath etc, but my god by the end of the day with him I am a sweaty, exhausted, frazzled mess. He never just chills out like I see other babies doing, just lying on their mats.

Anyone else had a DC like this?? What were they like as a toddler??? More of the same, or did they calm down a bit once they could crawl/walk/get around? I feel like he is v frustrated at the moment...

Can't sit still, can't shut up, spirited 9 year old jumping naked around the front room as we speak. Likely you will get to know all his teachers really well. He is hilarious though, unabashed, feisty, demanding, loving, my mum calls him 'high maintenance', she's right.
Couldn't live without him.

my DD is 2.6 and such a cool lil dude....she is very "spirited", certainly knows her own mind and is not afraid to use it. she can make me laugh so much, but in equal measures can make me tear my out with frustration. she is soooo funny, loves dancing and running around, making animal noises and randomly shouting "mini" at cars going past she has very few words, but is slowly getting to grips with her speech and not a day goes by that she doesn't amaze me with what she can do, her zest for fun and total lack of fear when faced with something she doesn't know!

on the other hand, her lil friend (same age, grown up together) can hold a conversation better than some adults i know - but in all her little life i have never heard her properly belly laugh, never seen her run around just letting her self have fun, i have NEVER seen a speck of dirt on her face/clothes/hands etc....would i change my darling nutty little girl, not on your life x

Spirited baby - chilled out toddler and grumpy but chilled out 11 year old now!

He was exactly as you describe as a baby (and my almost 6 month old is exactly the same too). At 10 months old he walked. And that was that. He was happy. Happy, calm, settled, no more frustration!

Was bliss. We never had the terrible twos, or temper tantrums. He's never had a tantrum. He prefers to sulk if it comes to it!

I'm hoping DS2 will go the same way... or I'll go nuts!

When expecting DS we asked for a spirited child. And we were listened to because at 5 yrs he most certainly is that! When pregnant with DD we didn't make any wishes … (other than her being healthy obviously!)

Spirited

Really naughty.

My restless baby calmed down quite a bit once he learned to walk, around 12 months. He was so frustrated before!

Hm - mine was a 'spirited' baby in that she was v. intense - easily bored, demanding, didn't sleep well, didn't settle with anyone besides me and DP. She was better once she could sit up at 5months and she was an utter monkey once she could crawl and then walk. She's still a monkey - very busy and into everything, nothing is safe - but, like girliefriend's DD she has thrived on routine.

I'm not necessarily a routine kind of person but it has been v. interesting to witness. She is an amazing sleeper, both naps and night-time sleep. Has slept through the night every night from about 12.5/13 months which I think is pretty good going. My mother describes her as 'calm' but I think she means that DD is a thinker. I still wouldn't describe her as 'placid' but she has become so biddable.

Hopefully if your DS is so energetic he'll tire himself out and sleep fabulously in a few months' time! it doesn't always work like that though

Oh, just thought of something else. I was saying to DP just there that I think a big part of how easy DD now is is to do with the fact that she sucks her thumb - so can self-soothe on tap. If thwarted she'll protest (nonononono!) and maybe cry but then the thumb goes in and she calms down enough to be distracted.

It's handy for us, but probably not great in the long term!

Hi, my son was the same and it was HARD WORK - my mum reminded me the other day of how he would just lie there and scream at the top of his voice, probably through frustration/boredom. And yes, i was frazzled and exhausted running him around from swim class to sing and sign to baby sensory - anything to keep him occupied and engaged...

Now he is nearly two he is still spirited but it's a delight. He sings and chatters away all the time to anyone who will listen, and if no-one's around he lines all his teddies and diggers up and talks to them. He loves to dance and run and would live in the playground if we let him, even in the pouring rain. He goes to nursery 3 days a week and he loves it, loves playing with the older children but has learnt to be gentle with the babies.

You know i wouldn't have it any other way, much more entertaining than a quiet introverted child.

OP, I could have written this. I used to wonder why the other babies in my NCT group used to lie about placidly cooing on their rugs, while my DS was always squawking and curious and restless and lively, very difficult to get to sleep. He's almost 14 months now, and very funny, clever, sociable and stubborn - a real character. He's still demanding as hell but it s easier as he is better at communicating, and gets tireder now he's walking, so naps are much better, and sometimes he even sleeps through...

@ colditz!

My "spririted" baby was a nutter toddler, but is a reasonably placid teenager.