Toddler 1–2 Years: Development, Nutrition, Sleep & Behaviour
Your baby was a baby, and then one day, pouf…
It does not happen at the first birthday. It happens gradually and then suddenly, the walking that turns into running before you have adjusted to the walking, the words that arrive one at a time and then in a rush, the opinions that appear from nowhere about which cup, which sock, which spoon, which specific food your baby will accept and which one they will not.
The toddler years are the loudest, most surprising, most exhausting, most genuinely funny season of early childhood and the one that most parenting resources treat as an afterthought between the baby guides and the school-readiness content.
This hub exists because the year between one and two deserves more than an afterthought. It is one of the most neurologically significant years of your child’s life, language is exploding, independence is asserting itself, sleep is shifting, nutrition is becoming complicated in ways it was not before, and the relationship between you and her is becoming something categorically new. You are no longer caring for a baby. You are beginning to know a person.
Everything on this page is written for that specific, extraordinary, occasionally maddening year.
Explore the Toddler Year 1 to Year 2
Toddler Nutrition
Iron, calcium, the fussy eating that arrives from nowhere, finger foods, family meals, and why your toddler ate the same three things for three weeks and then refused all of them.
Toddler Sleep
The nap transitions, the sleep regression at 18 months, early waking, bedtime battles, and the connection between overtiredness and the tantrums that follow.
Language and Development
Typical language development at 12, 15, 18, and 24 months in a multilingual Mauritius household. When to pay attention. When to wait.
Behaviour and Big Emotions
Tantrums, biting, hitting, throwing, the word “no” used more frequently than any other word. What is behind each behaviour and what actually helps.
Milestones and Play
Gross motor, fine motor, social-emotional, cognitive. How to support development through play without turning every moment into a learning activity.
TODDLER NUTRITION
RELATED READ:
Articles Coming Soon:
My Toddler Used to Eat Everything — Why the Fussy Eating Arrived and What to Do
Iron-Rich Meals for Toddlers Using Mauritius Ingredients
When Your Toddler Stops Drinking Milk — What to Do About Calcium After One Year
Three Iron-Rich Toddler Meals Ready in Under Twenty Minutes
TODDLER SLEEP
RELATED READ:
Articles Coming Soon :
The Nap Transition: How to Move From Two Naps to One Without Losing Your Mind
The 18-Month Sleep Regression — Why It Happens and How to Get Through It
Toddler Bedtime Battles — Why Baby Suddenly Won’t Stay in their Crib
LANGUAGE AND DEVELOPMENT
RELATED READ:
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How Many Words Should My Toddler Have? Language Development From 12 to 24 Months
Raising a Trilingual Toddler in Mauritius: Creole, French, and English in the Same House
Screen Time and Toddlers: What the Evidence Says and What Works in MauritiuS
BEHAVIOUR AND BIG EMOTIONS
RELATED READ:
Articles Coming Soon :
Toddler Tantrums: What Is Actually Happening and What to Do in the Moment
Biting and Hitting in Toddlers — Why It Happens and How to Respond
Setting Limits With Toddlers Without Constant Battles — What Actually Works
MILESTONES AND PLAY
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How to Play With a One-Year-Old — Ideas That Actually Work Without Buying Anything
FAQ GROSSESSE
My toddler is 18 months and only has five words. Should I be worried?
The milestone range for 18 months is typically 6 to 20 words for monolingual children, and often slightly lower for multilingual children who are processing two or more languages simultaneously, which most Mauritius toddlers are. Five words at 18 months in a bilingual or trilingual environment is not automatically a concern, but it warrants a conversation with your paediatrician at the next check, particularly if comprehension also seems limited, because understanding language typically develops ahead of speaking it, and a toddler who understands instructions and points to communicate is on a different developmental path from one who does neither. Our language development guide covers the full picture.
My toddler ate everything until about 14 months and now refuses almost everything. What happened?
What happened is entirely developmentally normal and has a name: food neophobia, which is the instinctive wariness of new or unfamiliar foods that peaks between 18 and 24 months in most children. It is thought to be an evolutionary protective mechanism, toddlers becoming mobile and independent need to be cautious about what they put in their mouths. It is not a permanent state and it is not a reflection of your cooking or your parenting. Our fussy eating guide covers what the research shows actually helps, which is mostly continued offering without pressure rather than intervention.
What should my 18-month-old be eating in a day?
At 18 months, your toddler needs three small meals and two to three snacks daily, built around iron-rich proteins, calcium sources, complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, and a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, in theory. In practice, most 18-month-olds are in the middle of food neophobia and eating a narrower range than you would like. The priority at this age is iron, calcium, and total calories. Everything else is a bonus. Our toddler nutrition guide covers the specific nutrients that matter most at this stage and which Mauritius foods provide them.
How do I know if my toddler’s tantrums are normal or something I should be concerned about?
Tantrums between 12 and 24 months — and well beyond — are entirely normal developmental behaviour. They are the result of a toddler having emotions they cannot yet regulate and language they do not yet have to express them. Most tantrums at this age are triggered by frustration, transition, hunger, overtiredness, or the collision between their growing autonomy and a limit they did not want to encounter. The frequency and intensity of tantrums vary widely between children. Tantrums worth discussing with a paediatrician are those that are extremely frequent, extremely long, involve self-harm, or come alongside other developmental concerns. Our tantrums article covers what is happening neurologically and what helps in the moment.
My toddler stopped sleeping well at around 18 months. Is this a sleep regression?
Yes. The 18-month sleep regression is real and specific, driven by the language explosion happening at this age, the peak of separation anxiety in the second year, increased assertiveness around bedtime, and in many babies the arrival of first molars which are significantly more uncomfortable than the front teeth. It typically lasts two to six weeks and resolves as the developmental leap consolidates. Maintaining the bedtime routine consistently through this period is the most evidence-supported approach. If the sleep disruption has lasted longer than six weeks or is significantly affecting your family’s functioning, a sleep consultation can help identify whether there is more going on.
When should my toddler move from a cot to a bed?
Most developmental guidance suggests keeping a toddler in a cot for as long as possible, typically until at least 2 years and ideally closer to two and a half or three, unless they are climbing out consistently and creating a fall risk. The containment a cot provides is genuinely useful for toddler sleep. Early transition to a bed, before the developmental readiness is there, frequently creates months of bedtime difficulty that the cot would have avoided. Our toddler sleep articles cover the transition question in full.