Toddler Troubles

So Keegan is two and a half. He is a very smart, out-going, and funny little guy but like any toddler he has been having a few problems.

The first we have been struggling with the last couple weeks is he likes to take off his jammies and diaper and pee in his bed. He doesn't want to pee in his diaper and he doesn't want to get out of bed to use the potty (I am with him on that, especially in the middle of the night) so he pees in his bed.

So, of course I am concerned. Thank goodness for the internet. Apparently tons of toddlers do this. That didn't make it a whole lot better when, last Thursday night, Keegan pooped in his bed (minus diaper) and smeared it all over himself and his bedding. I guess it could be worse, one of my friends at work said her niece actually smeared the whole room (toys, dresser, etc.) with poop. But, still we were kind of irate about it. Keegan got in trouble and had to give up a toy (you must understand this was the third night in a row we had dealt with the peeing in bed thing and he had been forewarned). Keegan couldn't believe we actually made him put his toy in the trash.

After that he tells me every night he won't pee in his bed. So that is good. We have also got a full plastic enclosure for his mattress (he was pulling off the waterproof mattress pad) and he wears a onesie under his jammies to make it harder for him to get his cloths/diaper off. So, far so good. Keegan even thinks the onesie is cool; he calls it his special super hero bodysuit. Just like Spiderman. So, check, peeing in bed problem temporarily nabbed in the butt.

Now there is problem two. Which we are trying not to make a big deal about. About a month ago Keegan started stuttering. It gets really bad when he is tired or excited. For example, this weekend he hardly stuttered at all. Then when we went to pick him up from daycare today he was tired and excited to see us. He was trying to tell us something to Look at something and for the life of him couldn't get past that L; it took him four stuttering attempts to get through it.

So a couple weeks ago I looked up some info on stuttering. Apparently it usually starts between the ages of 2 to 5. It affects a large percentage of toddler/preschoolers and about 90% of those kids outgrow it within a year. Kids don't start stuttering until they are talking really well; then the stuttering usually starts as they try to talk to fast.

As a parent the best things to do are to let them get out what they are trying to say no matter how long it takes, repeat what they said back to them when they are done, and don't make fun of them or interrupt them. If the stuttering continues for more than 6 months or is really upsetting the kid they should get some speech therapy.

So in general I am not too concerned. The only thing that is concerning me is that Keegan is starting to get frustrated and angry when he starts stuttering. This has just started over the last week or so We talked to his teachers and they are all great and have been really encouraging him.

Then today he started doing something even odder. When he starts stuttering he stops talking and covers his hand with his mouth. Then he slowly says the beginning of the word without stuttering and is able to quickly complete the rest of the word. It is actually kind of cool. Then he has a big smile on his face, and we tell him "Wow, you really said that well!"

I was curious as to where he learned this odd behavior. I mean really it is pretty smart. It makes him stop, calm down, and then he feels how his lips are moving as he slowly says the word without stuttering. He did this numerous times tonight and each time it stopped his stuttering and allowed him to speak slowly and clearly. I finally asked him where he learned how to do that. He told me that his teacher at daycare taught him. Well, I have to say it is not something that I would have thought of and thank goodness for the great teachers at our daycare. It is awesome that they are spending some extra time to help him get through this.

On top of that I am happy to see that tonight Keegan seemed calmer and is starting to deal with this stuttering thing without getting upset. He really is a smart kid and if we can get him to slow down and be calm; then I think he will nip this stuttering thing before it gets too bad. And, well, if he doesn't then we will deal with that when the time comes.