Toddler

Toddler is the second life stage in The Sims 2 and The Sims 3. It is the youngest life stage you can create in Create-A-Sim.

The Sims 2
Toddler is the second life stage in The Sims 2, and it lasts for four days. It is the youngest life stage that can be created in Create-A-Sim. All toddlers have the Grow Up aspiration and can start earning aspiration points, although they won't be able to redeem them until they are teens, unless the FreeTime expansion pack is installed.

The manual suggests this isn't possible, but it actually is.

When a baby turns into a toddler, most of its genetic traits become visible for the first time. Its personality and interests are visible, and it is controllable. Toddlers require the most attention of any life stage given their lack of independence. They depend on older Sims (Teens, Adults, or Elders) to feed them, place them inside and outside their cribs, carry them up and down stairs, bathe them and change their diapers when necessary. If unused, a Toddler will sometimes play in the toilet and is apparently good for their hygiene. They do this by themselves and players cannot choose to play in the toilet. Toddlers can be fed Smart Milk, which temporarily improves their learning abilities, or regular bottles from a refrigerator; if placed in a high chair, a toddler can also be fed solid food from the refrigerator.

Toddlers can be taught three core skills: Walking, talking, and potty training. Once potty trained, a toddler will be able to use the potty chair independently.

Toddlers can gain skill points in Charisma, Creativity and Logic from their toys. FreeTime also lets them gain Charisma by being taught a nursery rhyme from any older Sim - once learned the toddler can sing independently and gain enthusiasm for music & dance.

Toddlers' Wants usually revolve around getting attention from family members or friends, learning the three basic toddler skills, or gaining skill points. Their Fears are similar to those of older Sims. Toddlers can also earn Influence points and Influence other Sims in all the ways that older Sims can.

Like babies, toddlers can be removed by a social worker if certain motives are allowed to drop critically low. Other than that, as of FreeTime, there is no other way to take them off the lot.

After four days, toddlers become children. Optionally, a toddler can celebrate this birthday by being carried to a birthday cake by a Teen, Adult or Elder, who will then help the toddler blow out the candles.

The Sims 3
$$ Toddlers are included in The Sims 3. It is the youngest life stage you can create in Create-A-Sim. Toddlers begin with two traits if made in Create-A-Sim or they have the same 2 traits they were born with in the grew up from a baby, and take 7 days to progress to the next life stage: Child. Toddlers can now be held and carried. While older Sims are carrying them, the Sim carrying them can do different activities, such as talking to people or watching TV. They can also be brought into vehicles and brought to community lots. Toddlers are about 2-5 years old.

Toddlers have less options to do things than they had in The Sims 2. They can no longer ask Sims for food, attention or to be read to. They can, however, play with toys from the toy box, where they can learn skills, but it won't show in their Skills Journal until they grow up into children and they start to train in that skill (eg., if the toddler reached level one logic, it won't show in their skill journal until they start playing chess, using the telescope or reading a logic book). Older Sims also have the option to read with the toddler, provided that they have purchased children's books from the Bookstore.

Toddlers also don't need to be bathed regularly. Instead when their hygiene meter falls into the red, older Sims (Teens, Adults, and Elders) can use the 'Change Dirty Diaper' option to bring it back up.

This is also the age where Sims can start wearing clothes, although their choices are limited to Everyday, Sleepwear, and Formal.

In order for The Sims 3 Toddlers to age well and to allow the player to choose the new child's traits, the toddler must be taught to walk, talk, and be potty trained.

Things that Toddlers can do that lower life stages can't:
 * Learn some skills
 * Learn toddler skills: Walk, Talk and Potty training
 * (Once skills are learnt) Walk, Talk and use potty

Player Tips for The Sims 2

 * Keep a close eye on their energy levels and make sure you put them into the crib before it hits rock bottom or things can get difficult. If they've just had a nap on the floor you might find picking them up is difficult as they tend to wander around randomly, cry, and throw tantrums. And if they're tired they won't eat, won't play (so they don't learn skills, socialize or have fun) so their lives become difficult in their opinion, and you might get a visit from the social worker.


 * As well as maximizing hygiene, giving them a bath will maximize social, as toddlers seem to think bath time is the height of the social calendar. However, it takes a lot of time. To deal with hygiene issues quickly, don't potty train them and just use the changing table when they fill their diapers -- after a few seconds they will have full hygiene again.


 * Wait until your toddler gets tired before you feed them, then put them in the high chair and give them a bowl or a bottle. They won't fall asleep in the high chair no matter how tired they are. They will throw a tantrum and refuse to eat, so select the toddler and click on the high chair where you will see "consume food" and that way you force them to eat. Once they've eaten, put them straight in the crib. This way you deal with hunger and energy together.


 * Toddlers can also sleep in pet beds, and may enter them without the assistance of an older Sim. This is very useful when the parents are otherwise occupied and cannot attend to the toddler.


 * One way to get them to potty train easier/quicker is to wait until its red. It will fill the bar quicker in the long term.


 * Toddlers like to splash in toilets, so a good way to prevent messes is to put the bathroom upstairs. If you only have one floor, when you catch a toddler about to splash click on his/her thumbnail and cancel the action. When you mop up, they will try to splash again. Putting them in their crib or highchair will stop them.


 * Toddlers in the Sims 2 will eat out of a pet's dish if left hungry. And if one Toddler has a bottle and another hungry Toddler is nearby they will attempt to take the bottle for themselves.
 * There is a great cheat called Maxmotives (type it just like that) which will boost a Sim's needs into a full green bar (hunger, energy, bladder, etc.). This is especially helpful for toddlers because they're always yelling for something whether it's being hungry, tired, needing a diaper change, etc. Just click on the toddler's thumbnail, bring up the cheat bar with Ctrl+shift+C, type Maxmotives, and all your problems are solved. You can use this cheat as many times as you want. This way, mom and dad won't have to constantly be getting up for little Johnny's late night bottle and can focus more on teaching him how to walk, talk, and potty train (they'll also be able to get some sleep and enjoy their lives).This cheat is also very useful for the toddler if the nanny is coming (because older Sims are going to a community lot) just in case you get a bad nanny, your toddler's needs won't get low and the social services van won't be pulling away when you come back.

Using Smart Milk
Skills are essential, but are hard to raise due to the fast motive decay for toddlers. Toddlers learn moderately slow, so the only way to improve this is by the assistance of either cheating or use of aspiration awards. The player can make use of either/both the Smart Milk and the Thinking cap to additionally enhance the skill building rate for toddlers, both for themselves as toddlers and in later life. If the player buys a Thinking cap and wears it with gold aspiration or higher, they can activate the Smart Milk reward while wearing it to enhance the skill gain present in the milk higher. This benefit carries on after the effect has worn off, and so is useful for the toddler in later life in activities such as skill building for scholarships or careers.