Kids may say the darndest things—but toddlers seem to have the market cornered on defiant expressions of opinion. Your once sweet—but inarticulate—baby turns into a fountain of “No!” Sometimes, it may sound as if your two-year-old doesn’t like you much anymore: “No.” “Go Away!” “Mine!” “Stop!” But toddlers aren’t looking to make you mad. They’re just not yet fully fluent—at 24 months they only have...
Many parents, in an effort to give their baby the best head start in life, purchase educational DVDs such as Brainy Baby and Baby Einstein. Although the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children should not watch television until two years of age, countless parents rationalize contradicting this standard pediatric advice, seduced by the promise of a smarter child, or maybe at least by...