Welcome to Alpine Pediatrics.   Our Pediatricians provide excellent healthcare to children from birth through adolescence.  We serve Northern Utah County with offices in Lehi, Saratoga Springs, and Pleasant Grove.  Come Grow With Us! Also serving American Fork, Eagle Mountain, Highland, Alpine, Riverton, Draper, and Lindon.

  

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2-4 weeks
2 months
4 months
12 months
15 months
18 months
2 years

3 years
4 years
5 years
6-9 years
9-11 years


3 Years

Development:   Has adequate vocabulary to express needs but not all consonants are pronounced well. Speaks in 3-4 word sentences and uses 1000 words. Knows own name, age and sex. Shows early imaginative behavior. Copies a circle and a cross. Able to feed and dress self. Can ride a trike. Remember to always wear a helmet. Can jump in place, kick a ball and balance on one foot.

May still be somewhat apprehensive when separated from parents. Enjoys playing with peers, but has little interaction with them. Plays well by self and often prefers it. Loves to hear same stories over and over as well as short rhymes and songs. Attention span is only a few minutes long.
     
Nutrition:  

Feed your child at family mealtimes and give 2-3 nutritious snacks a day. 3 year olds should feed themselves. Offer nutritious foods and let them decide how much to eat. Their list of acceptable foods will increase as you serve a variety of foods and model how to eat them. Enforce desired mealtime behavior not forced eating. 3 year olds may eat a lot at one meal and very little at the next. Make serving small. One tablespoon of each food for each year of age or one quarter of an adult serving is generally an appropriate serving size.

     
Oral Health:   Continue to brush your child’s teeth twice a day with a fluoridated toothpaste. The manual dexterity to clean their own teeth is not present until the age of 4 or 5 years. Schedule regular dental visits every six months.
     
Sleep:   3 year olds sleep 10-12 hours a night and have one nap or rest period a day. Dreams become real as the 3 year old develops magical thinking. Occasional bad dreams are normal and are usually related to monsters or the dark. Reassure your child. Talk about the dreams during the day and do not expose them to violent or frightening movies or TV. Children may experience night terrors anytime after the age of 1. During these the child is frightened but cannot be awakened or comforted, and may scream or talk wildly. Speak calmly to the child to reassure them that they are all right and protect them from injury. These episodes usually last 10-30 minutes. The child cannot remember it the next day.
     
Toilet Training:   Toilet training is possible only when the child is developmentally ready. Training should be delayed until the child is dry for periods of about two hours and knows and can let you know when they are about to have a bowel movement. You may let them practice with a potty chair, with or without diaper on , letting the child indicate when ready. Avoid a power struggle. Many children have daytime control at the age of 3 but nighttime control may not come until later.
     
Behavior:   They are more relaxed and flexible but will constantly test limits, still crying and hitting at times. Demonstrate acceptable behavior by giving more attention to desirable behaviors instead of concentrating on the undesirable behaviors. They seek approval from adults so praise them for good behavior. Anticipate and avoid unnecessary conflicts. Although you should have fixed limits on acceptable behaviors, sometimes it is wise to give in on some of the small things that don’t really matter. Too many rules are confusing. Limit the number of rules and enforce them consistently and promptly. Spend most of your time rewarding good behavior. Limit disciplining at this age by using structure, routing, distraction, gentle restrain, removing the object or child from the situation, and “time out”. “Time out” establishes who is in charge and provides a chance for the child to think about the misbehavior. A good rule of thumb for length of a time out session is 1 minute for every year of age.
     
Injury Prevention:   Continue to use a car seat at all times because they protect your child from the major threat to his health. Helmets should be worn at all times when riding a bike or trike, even when in a seat on the parents bike. Most injuries on bikes involve falls not cars. Children at 3 years of age need to be within sight at all times; they are too young to be roaming the neighborhood alone. Reexamine the hot water temperature to ensure that it is below 120 degrees. Provide constant supervision whenever the child is around water, buckets, toilets, bathtubs or pools. Use life jackets for boating or swimming. Young siblings should not be left alone to supervise a 3 year old. Continue to empty buckets, pools and tubs immediately after use. Close bathroom doors. Obtain a bottle of Ipecac to have on hand should your child ingest a harmful substance. Obtain instructions from the poison control center or other health care professional before using.
     
Safety Tips:  
  • Use plastic plugs for outlets and safety latches on cabinets and drawers.
  • Keep poisonous substances out of reach or behind locked doors.
  • Keep sharp objects out of reach.
  • Guns should be stored outside the home if possible. If not, lock them in a cabinet and keep the ammunition in a separate location.
  • Latex balloons can cause choking if pieces are swallowed after popping.
  • Turn handles of pans on the stove inward. Avoid placing hot liquids where they can be tipped or on surfaces with tablecloths that can be pulled off.
  • Use smoke alarms and change the batteries yearly. Never leave a child alone in the house.
  • Never leave a child alone with a pet and teach them to use caution when approaching an eating or unknown dog.
  • Keep your child away from moving machinery, driveways and streets.
  • Use safety locks on windows.
  • Teach your child not to talk to strangers.
  • Always use sunscreen with a SPF of 15 or greater.
     
Immunizations:  

At this visit your child has the option to receive the Hepatitis A vaccine. This is a two dose series. If you choose to give your child this vaccine, he will need the second dose in six months. You should also make sure your child has received all other recommended vaccines for his age.
     
Next visit at 4 years: No vaccines are needed unless the child is behind on his/her immunizations.
 
Please call your insurance company before your next visit to find out if they cover vaccines. If they do not, it will be much less expensive for you to have the vaccines done at the Health Department. We can give you more information about this if you call us at 492-1999.