Did your difficult baby become an easy toddler?

[RainbowsandSnowdrops]

Wishful thinking and after some experiences...

DD is 14 months, she’s very advanced and always has been but basically cried non stop for 11 months and is still very hard work now.

Will she turn into an angel age 2? Then I can secretly be happy that other babies I know who have been ‘easy’.. are hitting the terrible twos? (Awful I know but I do honestly feel like DH and I have had it a lot harder that most).

Or is this not a phase and just her personality and she will always be a bit of a diva?!

I know there’s no way to tell but it’s been a long day and I’m just interested!

My easy baby turned into a difficult toddler and is still difficult at 3 and a half so hopefully it'll be vice versa for you

My very difficult baby turned into an easier than average toddler now at nearly 3, although I still wouldn't say really easy. We do have plenty of tantrums, but generally not the long, loud, public tantrums people talk about. She generally wants to please, although sometimes her impulses do get the better of her. I think she was very sensitive as a baby which led to a lot of her upset, and I would still say she is sensitive but it is easier to deal with now she can (sort of) explain when she is upset, and we can help her with coping strategies.

But most of all I think after a baby that cried her way through the first year, anything felt easy! So I feel just better able to cope with challenging toddler behaviour. Things other people complain about like always running after a toddler to me just seemed infinitely easier than dealing with an inconsolable baby. So I think your difficult first year will have set you up to breeze through whatever challenges the toddler years throw your way .

I don't know about "easy" but she's grown into her emotions, if that makes sense. As a baby, she was a screamer. At 3, she's sharp, articulate and knows her own mind. She still has a temper but she can be talked out of it. She's very sure of herself so she doesn't tend to go in for general whining or "I don't know what I want" tantrums. I have a hunch that she's going to be a nightmare teenager but I don't have to think about that yet.

My difficult baby was also a difficult toddler, but she’s just about to turn 4 and things are getting easier now.

3dc here. Easy baby, easy toddler. Difficult baby, middle of the way toddler, easy baby, difficult toddler. I’m afraid that’s not going to give you any hope for the future, other than to show you that they are all different and your baby will become whatever kind of toddler they are stained to become.

erm.... sorry, not my experience.
My difficult / non-sleeping baby turned into an incredibly challenging toddler.
My easy peasy, sleeping baby turned into a toddler that never really borthered with tantrums.

Sorry

My very difficult baby turned into a lovely but hard work toddler and eventually a totally easygoing and lovely boy and now teen.

Yes! Well, I must say he was only a relatively difficult baby in comparison to my DD.

He was a light sleeper and woke up a lot during the night and was a bit clingy, wanted to be held a lot. We never tried to discourage this and just gave him what he needed. He’s now a very happy confident little boy and is absolute pure sunshine!

My first born was a very difficult baby but the easiest toddler i think ever. She's 4 now and honestly she's just a pleasure.

My second born was a much easier baby and now 15m had started tantrums and I just don't know what to do

No my high needs baby became a high needs toddler, now he is s high needs preschooler.

Incredibly difficult baby - sounds similar to yours. Screamed constantly for most of her first year - almost every waking minute for the first seven or eight months - all day and most of the night. It made me quite unwell in the end. Very prone to meltdowns and still very very screamy until she was two. Got steadily better after that. By the time she was three she was brilliant - really quite laid back, rarely cried, could take her anywhere knowing there would be no drama. She's now nearly five. Eats almost anything, gets on with everyone, wakes up smiling and stays that way all day until she chats/sings herself to sleep. Pretty much only ever cries if she's hurt herself. Very easy going. No bad attitude whatsoever. She is so lovely that I wish I could freeze time and keep her at this age for another year.

I'm sure it'll all come back to bite me when she's a teenager.

There was no medical reason for all the screaming (despite involvement of many medical professionals and prescription formula/reflux meds). We honestly think she was frustrated and hated being a baby. As it turns out she is really rather clever (not just our opinion but raised on many occasions by preschool staff etc) and we think she was pissed off that she couldn't articulate what she wanted/disliked/whatever.

No, they became a difficult toddler, a difficult infant, junior, senior and adult.
I love them just the same.

High needs baby, hard work but ok if kept in a routine toddler, anxious preschooler and now delightful pre-teen who is able to articulate what’s wrong and (usually) deal with it.

The ability to go and ready quietly in her room when everything got a bit too much was the real turning point.

There's such a thing as an easy toddler?

Bobbie - everything is relative! As a toddler she generally slept through, and rarely cried for more than about an hour at a time. As a baby, she took an hour to feed every two hours, was very hard to get to sleep and appallingly easy to wake up again, and cried inconsolably for hours every day (and night).

Easy baby became nightmare toddler and hasn't improved much since.
Difficult baby became the sunniest natured toddler and school kid.

No, neither of them did. Bloody lovely teenagers though ...

@ChocolateBread dd is pretty great (almost 2) sleeps well, mostly eats well, very resilient and very sociable but I'm still exhausted. I know you shouldn't wish time away but I really can't wait until she's 7ish!

Yes!!!! As soon as we hit 18 months my life was a dream.

Nope. Devil baby, hard work toddler, now nearly 6 and he's as bad as ever. His brother, my first born was an angel in comparison at his age.

Awful screamy cross non sleeping velcro baby turned into an angel once weaned and in his own bed at 2.5. Never had a moment's bother from him since - he's 27 now (years, not months ).

My eldest was such a difficult baby. He didn’t sleep for more then 90 mins for the first 9 months. He cried in a buggy and car seats. He nearly drove me insane (I was hallucinating with sleep deprivation). Very advance and bright.

He was eventually diagnosed as lactose intolerant at age 4; however, from 18 months he became easier and by 2 literally the easiest child. Potty training a breeze. Pre school and school no issues. So well behaved, bright and incredibly kind. Other mums comment how lucky I am and I’m always like, “I earned this!!!”

I’ve told him his awful periods were all done in that 18 months so I expect no teenage drama.

I've just written a post about my second daughter (5 weeks) already displaying all the difficult behaviour that my first born had. She was very hard work and, although I love being a mum and wouldn't change it for the world, the first year with her was the hardest of my life. Super clingy, mummy baby and a terrible sleeper.
Having said that, she is and has always been a fantastic, easy toddler. Sleeps very well and goes to bed no problem, eats amazingly, toilet trained in 3 days, very few tantrums (never in public), social, confident, lovely manners. So, it can happen!

Whenever people tell me how lucky I am to have it so easy with her I look at them with dead eyes and assure them that I've earned it! Good luck!!

Yes, once I stopped force feeding her milk and gave her proper food she was much better.

Also once she could talk and communicate her feelings and needs she became much, much happier.