Your toddler: 35 months old

I know how you feel To grasp that others have different emotions, a child needs some understanding of her own. We can encourage the stirrings of empathy when we help toddlers understand their feelings and show empathy towards them. We can acknowledge that she's sad when her toy falls apart or that it's frustrating when she can’t put her shoes on herself.

Help her put a name to her feelings and let her know you understand. Encourage her to talk about how she feels — whether she's happy or sad or mad. This kind of support helps her learn that feelings matter and that others also have feelings like her own. She will, in time, learn to read those feelings in others and react to them with empathy.

Read more: Kids and kindness: Can you teach compassion?>

Potty regression and night training Once in a while, a tot will pull on his superhero Underoos, start using the potty and never look back, but most kids — about 80 percent! — have a few lapses along the way. There are dozens of reasons why children who are doing well with toilet training suddenly backtrack on the road to success; here are five of the most common and how to handle them.

And even if your child is doing well at staying dry during the day, it may take considerably more time to be dry through the night. It is a maturation process that takes longer for some children than for others, but it's not uncommon a child to be four years old before she is reliably dry at night. And even after five years (and sometimes well beyond) lots of kids have occasional accidents.

Read more: Is your child ready to stop naptime?

Getaways for mom and dad Whether it’s an overnight stay in the big city or a two-week dream trip to Europe, your first adults-only getaway can be nerve-racking for both you and your kids. But with the right planning and a positive attitude, you can ensure the trip is a fabulous adventure on both sides.

Read more: A kid-free vacation>

Lice! There's no doubt, some aspects of parenting are more pleasant than others. This is one of the less pleasant aspects. Lice are tiny insects that live on human hair and eat blood. Toddlers don't tend to get lice as often as older kids, but it can happen any time a group of children is together. It's important to remember that lice do not cause serious illness — just some itchiness — and they aren't a reflection of poor hygiene. In fact, they like clean hair. Consult our guide to getting rid of lice for the best treatments to clear your toddler’s scalp.

Originally published on Oct. 23, 2011.