Mobility / physical development
Having walked, run and climbed all over your home, your toddler now has his immediate surroundings pretty much sorted. He'll know where to go to find his toys, books and clothes, and will probably have worked out plenty of places where you've hidden away all kinds of interesting things that you don't want him to play with. Having long since mastered the art of walking up the stairs under his own steam, he might by now be able to walk down on his own - or be set on showing that he can.
He's been busy working on his manual dexterity and can now open many doors, cupboards, bottles, lids and quite possibly a few of your baby-proof fasteners too, so keep a sharp eye out and update anything that's no longer effective.
He'll be getting better at undressing himself now and has most likely started trying to dress himself too - although that may seem a distant dream when you're chasing him around the playground trying to put his clothes back on for the umpteenth time.
If you have a small tricycle he may well be able to pedal it by now and in a related development he will probably be able to walk at least a few steps on tip-toes.
While many toddlers won't be interested in using the potty for some months yet, some toddlers will already be happily coming to you and telling you that they need to do a wee or a pooh - or whatever they call it - or asking for their potty. A few are already fully toilet trained by this age.
Communication / emotional development
Your many months of explaining to your toddler when things will happen are beginning to see results now as he's able to grasp concepts of time such as 'after lunch', 'tomorrow' and perhaps even the more ambiguous 'soon' and 'later'. And he may consequently begin to show more patience with the idea of waiting for something.
He'll be able to put names to many, if not all, of the objects that he comes across in his day-to-day life, including himself: As well as using his own name, he might refer to himself with 'I', both of which show that he fully understands that he is an individual - in case his determination to get his own way left any room for doubt! Having used two-word sentences for a few months, some 23-month-olds will be using three and even four-word sentences, though these might not be terribly easy to understand.
Your toddler will love the conversations that he has with you, even when you may find them a little limited, and he might have started ask ing you question after question, not particularly to find out the answers, but more to keep your conversation going.
At play
By now your toddler should be able to enjoy simple jigsaw puzzles with a few big pieces. If he's not showing the initiative to put together a jigsaw on his own then take a few minutes to see if you can gently engage his interest by showing him how the puzzle works and asking him where he thinks the different pieces should go. Soon he'll probably take the pieces off you and shuffle them around himself, but don't push it if he's not interested. Another kind of puzzle that he will be ready for is a matching puzzle where he matches cards of coloured shapes or very simple pictures onto a board.
Building blocks begin to come into their own about now as your 23-month-old is able to build a tower at least six or seven blocks high and starts to move on to bigger and more elaborate designs. His developing fine motor control may also be evident in changes in his scribbles if he's already started trying to draw circles and lines, albeit rather wonkily.
As he becomes better at dealing with his own clothes and ever more interested in pretend play, your toddler will be ready to enjoy the delights of a dressing up box. Fill a box or basket with clothes, hats and shoes that you don't need anymore and see if you can get a nice array of colours, textures and prints. Grandparents and second-hand shops are good sources if you haven't hung on to any of your old clothes and shoes.
While sharing toys still isn't an appealing notion to most 23-month-olds, many are very interested in other children of around the same age. Your toddler will also be naturally curious about other sets of parents and children together and might like to observe them closely or approach them and even try starting a conversation. If he comes into contact with slightly older children he will likely try to copy the things they do, the games they play and the thing they say.
What you can do
As your toddler begins to get to grips with jigsaws and puzzles he'll enjoy doing them together with you. This can also offer plenty of opportunity to talk about different shapes, colours and pictures. If you're playing with a matching puzzle it will help to talk him through the puzzle, show him the card with a triangle and as k him to find the other triangle and so on. Keep it simple at first, and when he shows signs of knowing the shapes you can make it more challenging again by introducing different colours, 'can you find the red circle like this one?".
As your child begins to be able express himself with more words and very short sentences you can have some delightful conversations, but it can also sometimes be a little wearing when your child gets stuck on a theme or you're finding it difficult to understand him. Do try to be patient, word fads will usually fade, or at least be supplemented by other fixations. If you're finding it difficult to understand him sometimes then first make sure that you make a concerted effort to listen, and ask him to repeat what he's said if you didn't understand it, rather than always fobbing him off with interested noises and 'oh really?" Think about the context as well as the sounds he's making and if you're not sure, then suggest what you think he's trying to tell you - he'll let you know if you get it right or not.
If you're facing the onset of temper tantrums as your toddler approaches his second birthday then take comfort from the fact that you're not alone: That woman behind you in the checkout queue is probably grimacing because she can remember being in exactly the same position herself. When handling a tantrum it's important to stay calm yourself - always easier said than done - and offer your child some comfort, if he'll take it, but don't give in to whatever it is he wants. After a time you may notice that there are certain triggers for tantrums so you can either avoid those situations, use distraction techniques or just steel yourself to handle them when they happen - here are a few ideas for calming down toddlers in a tantrum.
NB: All babies develop at their own pace and some will reach developmental landmarks more quickly than others. This time line is meant only as an approximate guide for parents. Premature babies will develop more slowly than full-term babies and can be expected to develop in line with their age calculated from their due date. If you are worried about your child's health or progress consult your doctor.
Choking risks at meal times - Even once your toddler can feed himself well several foods can present a very real risk of choking and should either be avoided or prepared the right way to minimise the risk.
What's a good age gap between siblings? - 
My daughter is 23 months old and we're thinking of having another but I just wanted to get an idea from you girls what you thought were good age gaps between kids?
Rachel asks on the baby forum.
Blogging your baby's development -
Keeping a diary of your baby's development is a great idea, on ThinkBaby you can keep an up-to-date online blog that you can email to your nearest or dearest or print out later for yourself, so why not start your own?
Intimacy and sex - There are times in most relationships when your sex life stalls for a while, but that doesn't mean that you should let the intimacy between you suffer along with it. Check out our pointers for staying intimate without sex.
Get support -
You can join in the discussions and share parental experiences and advice with other ThinkBaby members in the baby and toddler forum folders.
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