Ten Things Your Toddler Should Hear Every Day

Drafting a list of the top ten things your toddler should hear every day is necessary early on in your parenting journey. Once you become a parent, every day requires some sort of google search. From researching health concerns to getting ideas for activities or various necessities, the internet is an endless resource. We are constantly researching how to better parent our children and how to provide them with everything they need in order to thrive in their world. By affirming them from the start, we hope to ingrain into their very being that they are cherished, significant and respected.

Raise a child that knows their worth. They will be confident in their abilities and always know that they have people that love and support them throughout their journey. I compiled a list of ten things that I make sure to tell my daughter everyday to plant this seed. At the toddler stage, she may not understand everything that I am telling her, but I know that she will in time.

Affirming your child is much like teaching them the alphabet or numbers. They do not understand these concepts at first. You utilize repetition until eventually the right synapses fire and ideas start making sense. This is why words are so important and why how you choose to speak to your child will remain important into adulthood. Encouraging your little one on a daily basis enables them to build confidence and promotes healthy self-esteem. Words of Encouragement for littles are absolutely necessary and extremely simple to fit into your daily routine.

Ten Things Your Toddler Should Hear Every Day

1. I love you so much. Tell your children this many, many times throughout the day. Have focused conversations about all of the great people and animals in their lives that love them. When I put my daughter to bed, we sing a goodnight song that involves all of the names of our family and friends. If she is not in the mood for a song, I whisper everyone that loves her as I rock her to sleep. We talk about how much our animals love her and even how much every single zoo or ocean animal loves her. As you can imagine, these can be pretty lengthy discussions.
2. Thank you. Genuine gratitude should be a part of every single day. We teach our children this by exemplifying gratitude. There are so many ways that you can model gratitude to your children, the easiest way being a simple “thank you” to them or those around them. Thank your child for picking up his toys. Thank your spouse for taking out the trash. Thank your dog for cleaning up that milk spill. Thank the guy that held open the door for you at the library. Thank the lady at the grocery store who bagged your groceries. Recognizing and saying thank you to those who make your life easier in your day to day is not only part of being a decent human, it is a way to show your little one that those people and their actions are appreciated.
3. You are creative. Creativity is fluid and toddlers are the most creative individuals on the planet. Why? Because everything is new to them, and they are creating from solely their own experience. How toddlers play, speak, learn, move, produce art, exist – everything is in a constant state of creativity as they grow, change, and develop. I am consistently amazed at how my daughter does just that, and I am sure that you are often surprised by your little one as well! Let them know when you see their creativity shining through.
4. You are going to have a great day. I started saying this to my daughter after I read “I Really Needed This Today” by Hoda Kotb. In the book, she mentions that her mother would “wake up determined and happy, no matter what” (#momgoals). She discusses how her mom taught her to be optimistic at sunrise, and now she can do the same for her daughter. That really spoke to me, as I witnessed the force of intentional optimism. If you know anything about Hoda, you know that she is an extremely accomplished, positive, strong, and confident woman. I would wager that her mother did many things right! By letting her know that the day was going to be great before she even left the house for the day, Hoda’s mom was putting positive energy into her little girl’s heart and into the world. What an amazing way to start your toddler’s day. Instead of complaining that it is raining or snowing again, try putting some optimistic energy out there!
5. You are amazing. Toddlers ARE amazing. If you think a compliment, say it! The importance of letting our children know when and how they amaze us is never going to lessen. Let your little one know all of the reasons that you are amazed by them. Talk about their skills and attributes. Discuss something that they created. Recount how they performed a specific task. You will not have a difficult time coming up with a list of ways that your toddler amazes you!
6. Good job. Praise is beneficial for people of all ages, but especially for toddlers. They are learning what behaviors and actions are appropriate as well as feeling pride in themselves and their work. Make sure that your praise is specific so that your toddler is aware of why he or she is being praised. Your acknowledgment will ensure their motivation to learn new things and bolster confidence in themselves. I know that there are a lot of articles circulating right now about the horrors of saying “good job” to your child. If this is something that you find concerning, find another way to praise them. They deserve it.
7. I am proud of you. Your toddler needs to feel your unending support and be given the foundation to support themselves. This one really has two parts: 1) Let your toddler know that you are so proud of their accomplishment and 2) Let them know that they should be proud of their accomplishment as well. We all know how great it feels when someone is proud of us, so why not pass that feeling along to our children? Imagine how amazing it would be if our littles validated themselves as much as they sought validation. I hope to always express my pride in my daughter while letting her know that she also has space to be proud of herself.
8. You are important. Children are the most important aspects of our lives to which we will ever commit our time, love, and energy. Trying to explain just how important your little one is to you would really be out of the realm of understanding for a toddler so keep it simple. Letting them know that they are important and that you value their place in your family is enough. I make sure to use the word important when discussing anything essential, in hopes that eventually she will understand the significance of the word. For example, I let my toddler know that food is important because it nourishes us.
9. You are helpful. Toddlers love to help out and when given the opportunity, they thrive in this area. Your little one is aware that they are helping you but most likely unaware of the vocabulary. By voicing that they are helpful, you are introducing and or reinforcing the vocabulary describing their actions. By affirming your child’s efforts to be helpful and identity as a helpful person, you are likely to witness repeat behavior.
10. You are perfect. Okay, I get it, no one is perfect. Hear me out. How are children ever supposed to be confident in their imperfections if they do not have someone to tell them that such imperfections are perfect? That they are perfect? Perfect means something different to each of us. To me, perfect is my daughter and I will let her know that every single day. I always say, “you are perfect, and I am so grateful to be your mommy” multiple times a day.

Many nights I lay in bed, thinking about my sweet girl, absolutely overcome with gratitude. Who knew such bliss was possible? If she makes me this happy, my goal is to make her happier, now and always. I believe that by continuing to let my daughter know how special she is every single day, she will believe it as well and live her life in a way that reflects that belief. If you need a reminder, l have attached a condensed list of the ten things your toddler should hear every day. Save it to your phone or write them on a post-it and pull it out whenever you need a little inspiration!