Hi everyone and welcome to Month 25 with your baby and Month 25 with my toddler Bracey.

How Old is a 25-Month-Old Toddler?

Your toddler is now 2 years and 1 month old. Wowsa!

Average Weight and Height of a 25-Month-Old Toddler?

When measuring growth doctors look at a baby or toddler’s individual growth trajectory, so don’t start worrying about averages until your doctor expresses concern. That said, for context, here are the average height and weights for this age. 

How Much Should a 25-month-old Toddler Weigh? 

The average weight for a 25-month-old toddler is 28.4 pounds for boys (12.9 kilos) and 27.1 pounds (12.3 kilos) for girls.

How Tall is the Average 25-month-old Toddler? 

The average height for a 25-month-old toddler is 34.5 inches (87.6 cm) for boys and 34 inches (86.3 cm) for girls.

Developmental Milestones at 25 Months 

25-Month-Old Speech Milestones 

What’s typical for a 25-month-old when it comes to speech and language? By this age, most toddlers are:

• Saying 50-100 words (some more, some less). The number of words your child is uttering should be increasing by this point on a weekly or even daily basis. 
• Using phrases with two or more words (some toddlers are using phrases of more than four words). 
• Blabbering a lot. Experts say you should understand about 50% of what your toddler says. I would say I understand about 30% of what Bracey says. 

Signs of Speech Delay with a Toddler

If your toddler is not uttering 2-word phrases (or you understand only a few or none of your 2-year-old’s words) — and new words are not popping up — check with your doctor. Your toddler might have a hearing issue or be showing signs of speech delay, for which early intervention is advised. 

Speech Activities for 25-Month-Old

Stick to the same language-rich activities, incorporating concepts, categories and rich vocabulary into your everyday activities and your child’s play.

• Narrate what you do (getting in the car, getting dressed, showering, washing dishes, getting gas for the car) while explaining why you do those things.
• Articulate categories (“Would you like a fruit, Bracey? A banana, apple, orange?… What kind of game would you like to play? What kind of means of transportation is that? A car, a train, a plane?).
• While your child plays, describe things out loud, explaining colors, forms, and numbers. Tell stories as you play with trains, dolls, blocks, or other toys. 
• Converse with your child as much as possible.
• Read, read, read and then read some more. 
• Sing songs and nursery rhymes 
• If you speak a foreign language, speak it to your child! Bi-lingualism is great for the brain as well as for sustaining your family’s cultural heritage. Although children who speak more than one language tend to speak a bit later, experts say they usually catch up just fine.

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Reading Tips for Toddlers

With each of my kids, I’ve had to come up with new ways to get them to listen to books. Sometimes I read to Bracey while he’s waking up in his crib. I read while he is in the high chair eating. Or I read while he is playing. I just try to keep the reading going, even if he is engaged in something else. That way, I know that there is a consistent flow of words going into his little brain. I’ve never figured that reading requires looking at the actual pages of a book. Think of this like books on tape!

Also, if you’re headed out to visit Grandma or go to the park, pack up some books and read them in the car. Put them in your toddler’s change bag. Try to make reading like drinking water, part of your everyday life and not a special dessert you indulge in once a week. One other thing. I’m a big believer in doing things in little bits. Short books are great. Get some books you can read in a minute. A few of those books is better than nothing, and soon, you’ll see your toddler leafing through the books and looking at the story and characters on their own. The page flipping is also a great fine motor activity. Try board books for a toddler, which are fun to flip, as are books with music. Frankly, it also doesn’t really matter what the books are about. Any books are great, even if they seem sort of silly or simple. The idea is that your child associates reading with fun, learning, and joy, and that hopefully reading becomes a habit that lasts a lifetime. 

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Physical Development Milestones for a 25-month-old Toddler 

What should a 25-month-old toddler be doing? Generally speaking, your child should be getting more fluent and agile in their physical activities. Keep them on the move at home and outside, and (just as you do with food, activities and language) try to vary what you do. If you’re short on time, try kicking a ball for a few minutes and playing hide and seek. Roll on the floor. Practice getting on and off of the sofa. Take a short walk or trip to the playground. 

Physical Activities for a 25-Month-Old Toddler 

To develop gross motor skills at this stage, encourage your toddler to:

• Play catch 
• Kick the ball back and forth 
• Climb on and off sofas, chair and beds (while spotting your child)
• Climb the play gym
• Go up and down the slide (hopefully, your child does this alone)
• Pedal a tricycle or use their feet to propel themselves forward on a bike 

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Intellectual Activities for a 25-Month-Old-Toddler 

Toddlers this age should be able to build towers that are a few blocks high, sort colors and shapes, scribble, and play with train sets and other manipulatives, while getting increasingly skilled at stacking, joining pieces together, and using basic, block puzzles. Try to get your toddler’s little fingers moving and active with finger painting, blocks, drawing, puzzles, and train sets

5 Block-Building Activities for Toddlers 

Here are five easy activities with blocks to stimulate your child’s fine motor skills and intellectual development while developing early math and logic skills. 

• Stack the blocks as high as possible, while counting the numbers and colors. Then, have fun knocking them down. 
• Build shapes, squares, triangles, and rectangles
• Do 2-block patterns – red, blue, red, blue, red … and then ask your toddler what comes next. These kind of patterns are great for developing early math and logic skills. 
• Trace the block with a pencil onto a piece of paper
• Make a form like a plane, house, or tower  (if you’re a good block builder) and then tell a story about this object using some figures.

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Your 25-Month-Old Toddler’s Social and Emotional Development 

How to Build a Toddler’s Sense of Self-Confidence

Toddlers are developing their independence and like to engage in defiant behavior through which they assert their autonomy. “No” often is the word of choice, and the start of nearly every sentence. Expert’s say that this is actually a crucial phase of your child’s emotional development. I’m a big fan of giving toddlers choices over small decisions that don’t matter: what socks to wear, what toy to play with, what book to read, and what vegetable to eat. Set up the alternatives and give your toddler the opportunity to peruse and pick. Your toddler will like the feeling of power and control and, in my experience, this cuts down on tantrums. 

Public Temper Tantrums

I’ve been there so many times. My screaming, crying toddler has a flat out fit in the middle of a store or public area, throwing themself on the floor, and passers-by sigh and shake their heads as if I am a horrible parent. I’ve learned that I can only control my own behavior, and give my toddler the time and space to collect themselves. My worst tantrums happened in an airport (where I had to carry a screaming 2-year-old in my arms with their arms and feet writhing like a fish). Stay calm (count, drink water, plan your next vacation) and whatever you do, try not to lose your patience. And shut out the noise: do not pay attention to what people say or think. You’re a great parent and you’re doing your best. No more pressure is needed and the opinions of the lady on the street whose child was perfect do not matter.

What Should my 25-Month-Old be Eating?

Continue to give your toddler an extensive variety of foods from the four food groups. By this age, many doctors suggest switching to low-fat milk and dairy products. Try to increase your child’s protein intake by mixing in milk to smoothies, and adding peanut butter (if there are no signs of allergy). For in-depth toddler meal plans and easy toddler meals, watch my Month 21, Month 22, and Month 23 videos.

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Schedule for 25-Month-Old Breastfeeding or Milk Feeding Toddler

Follow the same schedule as during prior months. Your toddler will need about 12.5-14 hours of sleep over a 24 hour period. Hopefully that means 11-12 hours at night and a 1.5-3 hour-long nap. Bracey sleeps 13-15 hours a day, 11-12 hours at night and takes a 2-3 hour nap, so we are lucky. Start this schedule when your child wakes up and use it as a loose framework to ensure your child has regular naps and healthy meals to keep energy levels consistent. 

• 7am feed* & breakfast 
• 10am snack
• 12pm feed & lunch (1-3pm sleep)
• 3pm feed & snack 
• 6pm dinner  
• 7:30 pm final milk feeding 
• 8pm bedtime

*If no longer breastfeeding, give milk or its alternative after the meal.

Bracey Update

During his 25th month, Bracey began saying two-word phrases like “No Mommy,” thank you very much. He loved bicycling around the apartment on his tricycle, which he pushed forward with his feet. Playing with his siblings and balls (in the house!) were other favorite activities. Thanks so much for watching and see you back next month for Month 26.