Parenting Contents Archive

I finally told the truth

After again waking up with the baby at 2 am, as he has been doing for weeks now, and trying for over 2 hours to get him back to sleep I finally told my husband that I am not okay. I'm not okay getting 4 hours of sleep every night for the last 6 months. I'm not okay with trying to work 40 hours a week in a mentally and physically demanding job on basically no sleep. I'm not okay having little to no time for myself to unwind. I'm not okay carrying the mental load for household. I'm not okay watching the baby every weekend so my husband can fuck around doing yard work. I'm not okay doing drop off and pickup so that husband can do whatever he wants. I'm not okay with having to ask for everything I need. I'm not okay being so exhausted I can't even work out anymore. I'm so tired. Everyone says that raising a child is so rewarding but where is my prize?

“Sorry about Easter. I didn’t know that was a thing.”

To be fair, my ex was specifically referring to the Easter Bunny. Apparently, my 6yr old’s dad didn’t realize that kiddo would be sad if the Easter Bunny didn’t show up on Easter. This is despite the fact that kiddo always stays with their dad on Easter and the Easter Bunny “visited” with Easter baskets and hidden eggs the past three years. When I told my ex how I’m going to try to fix it for our 6yr old (yes, I’m plan to pull from Bluey) and asked my ex to play along, my ex’s response was “Maybe we need to switch something up. If no one tells me what’s up, [kiddo] ends up getting hurt.” Yep. It’s all my fault because I didn’t tell him that the Easter Bunny comes on Easter.

I’m an idiot

My baby is almost 2 months and had a head full of dandruff yesterday day. I brilliantly read online that Aquaphor is great for dandruff and cradle cap. Lathered his head with it and stuck a beanie on and left it for a couple hours. Good news is the dandruff appears to have resolved, however, now my child looks like a miniature Italian mobster with oiled and slicked back hair. I can not get the Aquaphor to come out!!!! Things I’ve tried to take it out- dandruff shampoo, my shampoo, dawn dish soap and baking powder. It’s come out a little bit but there is still quite a bit residual. Pls help :(

Self-care double standard

So, my husband just left without either of our children to run some errands. I promptly informed him that this time counts as self-care. He looked at me and laughed. I said, “This isn’t a joke, your self-care time starts right now, enjoy it!” 🤣

I just changed 3 poop diapers in the last 10 minutes.

From one baby. 🫠

People Say It Gets Easier After 8 Weeks

When people say the newborn stage gets easier after 6-8 weeks, what do they mean? Why does it get easier? Is it because it objectively gets easier or is it because you get used to the pain? Background: New dad to a 2 week old

When did you stop carrying a diaper bag

My son is about to be 3 we’re still working on potty training so I still carry diapers and wipes when we go out. I usually just have a snack, diapers and wipes, and his cup. I feel like carrying the diaper bag is over kill especially since I carry a purse but there’s so much space in the bag I just feel like I don’t need it. Then I have my tote bag that I’ll put everything into and that gets heavy when I add his things because I also carry my iPad, phone, wallet, etc so my bag gets bulky and heavy. I need a happy medium where I’m not carrying around a huge backpack or a heavy tote that’s weighing down one shoulder lol

LO only accepts mom

I am at a loss. 6mo (ebf) only likes to be held by me (mom) and will tolerate dad for, if we are lucky, 5 minutes. She cries quite hard and long when my husband takes her. He feeds her solids on the weekends and takes over the nighttime routine and putting her to bed. Some days it works and she will fall asleep, but most days she will scream until she is red and sweating and pushes him away. We go for walks almost daily and when he baby wears she has no problem. Even when he gives me a break and takes her for a walk alone; there are no issues. I feel awful for both of them and I don't know how to help them bond other than him spending more time with her. Did anyone else have bonding issues with the other parent and were able to resolve it?

Baby Books?

Do people still buy traditional baby books anymore? I recall my baby book being 75% complete (I was brown first) and my brother’s about 25% (he was born second), so I wouldn’t want that to happen with my second child. If you don’t use a book, how do you document “milestones” and firsts other than the time stamp on your phone’s photos?

PPD

TW depression / suicidal thoughts Please someone tell me that this will get better. I am in so much pain. I don’t know how much longer I can do this for. I’m laid in bed quietly crying by myself, My son is 14 months and the PPD just won’t go away. I’m in therapy and on meds. Nothing helps. I can’t go on like this forever Please tell me I’m not alone

AITA? MIL cried to husband that she doesn’t see baby enough

So, my LO is 3 months old and my MIL lives about 45 mins away and just saw her a few weeks ago. Yesterday she called my husband crying saying that she doesn’t get to see the baby enough. We both work all week and on the weekends, we just like to be by ourselves with our baby. We try to plan things where they can visit every so often, but between their family and mine, we would have someone over every weekend which I’m not ok with. My husbands younger brother has two kids, but lives at home with her and his wife (who separate every other week & do drugs) so she’s used to being with those grandchildren 24/7 and pretty much raising them. I mean honestly, AITA for being annoyed for her doing this? Both my husband and I don’t want to be around a toxic environment and I’m a firm believer in boundaries, which I feel she constantly crosses.

Washing hands?

My LO is 11 months and I have started realizing that I never wash her hands. That being said, neither of us really leave the house and when we did go out to a children's museum (baby play area) I did bring baby hand sanitizer. Now she is getting a little messier with foods and a baby wipe doesn't always seem to cut it but I still don't wash her hands often. Does anybody else wash their baby's hands? When did you start doing this? I feel a little mom guilt about it wondering if I should be doing it before or after any meal (just sounds like LOTS of handwashing lol)

Why did you have a preterm birth?

For anyone who delivered early (before 37 weeks) what was the cause? My baby was born 35+2 from PPROM but I had a healthy pregnancy overall. Luckily baby didn’t have a NICU stay. However, I’m just curious to know if your baby was born early due to preeclampsia or another condition or was it spontaneous.

Daycare

My one year old started daycare today, just a half day. She was so sad when I picked her up and I'm dreading dropping her off tomorrow. How long did it take your little one to get adjusted with daycare?

Blanket during the night

Hi! I have a one year old boy. We haven't had the need to put a blanket on him to sleep during the night but lately I've been noticing that he tends to cuddle at one end of the crib so maybe he's getting colder during the night? The main reason why we haven't used a blanket is because he enjoys having any type of fabric on his face, it makes him smile, he has fun that way and that worries me because it makes me think that he won't remove the blanket from him face while he sleeps. Does any of you have a kid that feels the same way as mine? What did you do? Thanks in advance