Your Child Won't Always Be Little, Pay Attention To Them

Childhood is a phase in your child’s life that you shouldn’t miss out on, as it goes by very fast. When we have our little one at home, sometimes we don’t realize how lucky we are.

Even though the first months are full of changing diapers, preparing porridge and doing laundry… one day you’ll have to take them by the hand and drop them off at school. That’s when you’ll realize your child isn’t so little anymore.

When did this happen? When did they suddenly grow up?

That’s when you start to miss all of those moments you shared. You even start to miss the moments that used to overwhelm you. Sadly, there’s no turning back.

Childhood is just a phase, your child will not be little forever

How fast children grow

Growth is the biological process that characterizes childhood. In the first few years of life there is a rapid increase in a child’s weight and height.

In the first year, the child triples in weight in comparison to their birth. They grow about 25 cm, that is more than half of their height at birth.

This exorbitant growth will not happen again for the rest of their lives. During the second and third year, they grow approximately half of what they did the previous year.

After the age of 4, children start to grow in a more stable manner. The growth rhythm reduces progressively. It becomes a slow but continuous process.

Finally, the last stage of growth begins at around the age of 12. This is when puberty begins and the child begins to experience rapid growth again.

This period is also accompanied by important maturational changes, including the process of sexual maturation.

They also grow emotionally

The growth of our children is not only physical, their emotional development is key to their future as an adult. We should be present in order to help them.

Children’s emotions develop progressively as they grow; this development is also programmed biologically.

Little by little, cognitive development occurs and the child starts to become conscious of their own emotions and the emotions of others.

Self-esteem is fundamental at this stage of their development, as it also affects how our children’s other emotions form.

Fortunately, children start to become aware that their emotions and actions should have certain limits in some situations. For them, shame is the main repressive feelings.

What you do with them will influence their future

You will always be their role model, for better or worse. You hold their future in your hands. It is all about the little details that influence children to take a certain path or another. This is why we should keep them in mind every day.

We should also teach them to learn from their mistakes and change their behavior when they do something wrong, while never forgetting to congratulate them for their achievements. This will all help them to become successful adults.

Our examples will mold their lives. When our children tell us something we should always listen and be tolerant. They should know that they can always trust in us.

The best gift you can give your child is your time.

It is all about getting organized in our day-to-day activities. We should always allocate time to spend with them. The key is transforming all of the time we spend with our children into time for enjoyment.

We can include them in our daily activities such as going shopping, cooking or simply organizing the clothes that have just been washed.

Of course we should also make time to help them do their homework, to read to them before they go to sleep or simply to smile with your child.

This time is priceless for both of you. Remember that time passes quickly. Who are you going to spend your time with better than your own family?

Save little memories of their childhood

There are memories that we cannot store in a box, memories like a specific smell or a flavor. However, most of the other significant things in our children’s childhood can be stored.

We should remember to take pictures of all their important moments, their birthdays, school performances or just a spring afternoon playing in the park.

Some nostalgic parents also keep their baby’s first hair clump, first milk tooth or the first doll that the baby always slept with.

And the best part of storing all of these memories? It is very simple. When your child grows older and sees them again, you will have many stories to tell them, providing yet another space to share time together.

Final advice

Get the most out of every moment, be present in every phase. Enjoy the little moments as this will all prevent you from waking up one morning in a couple of years to discover that you didn’t live it to the fullest.