Parenting Contents Archive

Having a baby soon and my parents won’t get vaccinated for anything

So I’m due in 2 weeks. My father is 100% antivax, only within these past few year due to him falling prey to internet misinformation. My mother claims she isn’t antivax but that she can get vaccines because of “ egg” allergies( eats eggs all the time anyway). She wants to come help me with the baby which I would appreciate but she’s putting my baby’s life at risk. I’ve told her months and months ago she needs the flu, mmr and Tdap and she said she would check with her doctor to see if she could get them but has done nothing. It’s hard for me to confront her in general but I feel like I’m going to have to. How have any of you dealt with this conversation?

That moment when you realize your struggle to teach personal responsibility worked!

I keep randomly bursting out laughing about this, so I hope some of you find it entertaining as well. I was just outside the kitchen while my 21 year old daughter was wandering around in there. I saw her grab a random cup from 'the wrong side of the sink' (you know what I mean, the side where everyone leaves their dirty stuff for Mom to take care of...). She then filled it with water and took a sip. And then she mutters to herself: "Oh my god, there was *something* in that cup." And then in a lower voice, "...I deserved that for picking it from there!" LMAO! As a little kid, she probably would have yelled at me over it. My work here is done. Hahahahaha!

Well this week the world around me got a whole lot brighter. Meet Lily.

Son hates playing outside

My son is 8 1/2 and acts like it’s a damn chore to go play outside. He’s very into Legos, Xbox, and hot wheels- which is fine- but I’m a firm believer in kids being OUTSIDE! He has a bike, scooter, electric scooter, a freakin go-cart and a hover board, and every time I recommend him going outside to do one of those things, he lets out a pouty sigh. I am over it!! How do I get him to engage in more outside play? Take away his Xbox? He only plays it about 3 times a week, maybe! Suggestions?

Kid remaining in activity (commitment) vs kid changing activity (new happiness)

How do you separate the two if a kid joined an activity and enjoys it at times, but started liking something else. I always hear about keeping your commitment to the team and staying in an activity through the harder times (when their progress has slowed). If a kid keeps changing activity then minimal progression will be had in anything. But if they don't find what makes them happy maybe they will be miserable. I know there is not one answer because the complexities of any person is hard to interpret, but I thought I'd hear different perspectives. ​ Thanks

What are good books for 3 year old's about grief?

As the title says, I'm looking for good books for a 3 year old boy that are about grief, mainly about losing a loved one. I don't know how else to explain it, does anybody have any good suggestions?

Anyone else super excited to show their little ones shows or games they play??

Just feeling super blessed right now and wanted to share somewhere. I have 1 year old twins (b/g) and I absolutely can’t wait to share old shows like Pokémon with them or get them into Minecraft and other pc games with me!! I know they may not be interested and I’m prepared for that but idk I really can’t wait to show them these things :) I want to be the very best

And just for fun, let's throw in a pandemic where you can't hang with anyone even if it wasn't so damn hard in the first place. ⁣ ⁣ Via psychedmommy

"When I get a dog, I'll never let it get in our bed, that's gross - I won't be one of THOSE people!" Is just one of the many unrealistic things I've told myself over the years with the aim of obtaining an ideal vision of life. Unsurprisingly the sausage dog crew now have more bed real estate than I do. We're all guilty of having these ideas about how we'll shape our future, only to find that many of them are either unobtainable or simply suck the fun out of existing - Other that's have fallen by the way side include "my kids won't watch TV all day - they'll be outdoorsy, we'll never eat at McDonald's - we'll make wholesome home cooked food instead, I'll take a year off work before I'm 35 to travel with my family, we'll make arts & crafts every weekend, I'll never should at my kids". All absolute nonsense. #sausagedogcrew #sunday #unrealisticexpectations #dadlife #fod #familylife #parenting

Dating as a single mom

Ok. So my son will be 3 in April. His dad isn’t really in the picture anymore. I recently started dating someone new and my mother has been very against “confusing” my son and getting him attached to my new partner. At the same time. I don’t have the time or resources to see my partner unless my son is present. I work all week, daycare isn’t open on weekends, and my family refuses to take my son for the weekend. In my mind, I don’t see the problem in introducing my partner as my friend and just hanging out with my son. Is this harmful? He’s not quite old enough to really grasp what’s happening but I don’t want to confuse him. Advice?

Mollescum Woes

My 2yo was diagnosed with mollescum contagiosum roughly 18 months ago. It's presents itself as pimples/ant bites that can pop and spread. Two pediatricians have seen it and pretty much said the same thing: it spreads through contact, but there's no real treatment and it will go away on its own. It can last for several years. I've been pretty low key about it, but the bumps are spreading to his face and neck it just makes me feel really weird. I don't want them getting around his eyes. I don't want him to have hundreds of bumps that just "go away on their own". Does anyone have anecdotal evidence to share? Is there a way to slow down the spread? Can I spot treat the bumps?

Had our first hospital scare last night

My 3.5 year old has always been healthy but yesterday he was pretty fucked up. Respiratory issue to where he was barely breathing and a 104.2° fever it was very scary, obviously it didn't show in me but I was more scared last night than when I was in Iraq. Hospital around midnight and 6 hours of tests later they couldn't find the cause. Doc swore it was covid but they took 2 tests that came up negative. Doc still thought it was a false negative though from how his lungs sounded. Pumped him full of roids and his breathing leveled off at least! Got back home at 7am and just spoiling him now. Been blessed to have healthy kids but last night got to me

My son is going through an attitude phase

He’s 8 and for the past couple of months he’s been having these explosive tantrums, talking back, being rude. And I’m not sure what to do. My BF tells me I should spank his butt but I grew up getting hit and don’t want to do the same for my son. Any advice?

Do big infants move less?

I’m sorry to ask probably a silly question, but do bigger babies move less? Our son is in the >99th percentile at six months and occasionally rolls from belly to back, occasionally pivots, and gets stuck from back to belly. He reaches, takes, and generally grabs things to his mouth. But he has a hard time sitting too. Is this anything to worry about or should we give him a little more time considering he’s just so big.

Why will my kids only listen to my husband?

My kids 4, 7, 11 & 13 will listen to my husband without question. Yet it’s like any request I have falls on deaf ears. My younger two just don’t listen and my older two will argue with me till we’re both blue in the face. We both work, although I was a SAHM for about 8 years and things were a lot better until I went back to work and I don’t know if they’re mad I can’t spend every waking second on them or what? I’m a nurse and work 3-4 days a week and so sometimes my husband is more consistently available in the evenings. Neither of us use corporal punishment or yell. I don’t think they’re afraid of him, they just seem to have more respect and I’m not sure why other than he’s a man. He is more stern but it seems when I try it’s not taken seriously. I follow through with consequences etc... I’m sure there’s an issue I’m missing but I’m over it all. I hate to pull the “do I need to call your father?” card all the time.