Parenting Contents Archive

How would you respond to, “don’t take this the wrong way, but can you start working out now?”

This was said to me by a friend. I’m 7 months pp and not that it matters, but I’ve lost 40 pounds (I gained about 80 during my pregnancy). I think I look phenomenal. I was talking to a friend about how I’m about to have more help with family moving into town. His (yes, *his*) response was, “don’t take this the wrong way, but can you start working out now?” This is a friend that I’ve had for years. Family friend. If I told my husband what he said, he’d kill him.

I’m not young anymore but I don’t feel old. Aging is a mindf*ck.

This is a weird post. I don’t really even know how to describe what I’m trying to say. Just wondering if anyone is going through this struggle too. I’m turning 36 this year. I have 2 kids. At a decent place in my career. But I don’t feel any different than I did 10 years ago. I still like doing “young” things. I love reading YA romance novels. Occasionally (a couple times a year) I go out with my girlfriends to the bars with all the 20 year olds to dance. I like wearing clothes that are trendy and sexy. Those are just a few examples. I guess I just feel like I shouldn’t be doing these things anymore, or at least I feel like I’m going to get judged doing them. Does anyone else feel this way? How do you get past it?

How much crying will mess a baby up permanently?

EXAMPLE: Hi, I have a 4 month old and I have severe anxiety when he cries. Last night for example I wanted to shower but I knew my baby would cry if I left him with husband, so I didn’t for hours until baby was asleep. I was upset about it the whole time. Husband says this is ridiculous and a half hour or so of crying, especially when being held, doesn’t matter. QUESTION: How much crying can a baby do before it messes with them permanently psychologically? Could they develop a personality disorder, attachment issues, anxiety or depression from this down the road? Does it make a difference if the baby is held while crying or alone (assuming food/hygiene/comfort needs are met)?

Child Support in Texas

I need some advise here. My husband pays child support and last year he was between jobs only for a month. And about a month after he started working, his child support started being taken out. So, about 2 months of no support. At the end of the year we expected the arrears to be taken from our taxes. However, they took every bit we were supposed to get back. After contacting his employer and getting all of his stubs showing he had been paying all year. We find out he’s been paying someone else’s child support all year! Has anyone ever experienced this and if so we’re the funds ever reimbursed? It’s a couple thousand dollars! 😥🥴

How to reduce anxiety about school shootings

My daughter is 3. I'm really struggling with anxiety about her going to school in a couple years. I worry so much about school shootings. Just the fact that she will have to learn about this and do drills is upsetting. What do you tell you kids? How do you cope with your anxiety as parents? My husband qualifies for uk citizenship and I've been thinking more and more that maybe we should just leave

Non-food party favor idea for the kid with the allergy?

We're having a party for my kid's birthday and giving out chocolate lollipops from a local shop as party favors. One of the invited kids (age 4) has a severe nut allergy and so this probably won't be suitable since the shop also deals with nuts. Anyone have ideas for an alternative thing to offer? Price-wise the lollipops are about $4 but I don't mind spending a little more so this kid feels seen. I'm just not sure what to get.

Having one of those days where I just can’t handle my kids

I love them to absolute pieces but my 5 and 6yo have been testing me since they woke up. Bickering, screaming, crying, hitting each other, hyper as all get-out and I just want to walk away and say F*¢K it today. Please tell me I’m not the only one. Is it ok to feel this way? It doesn’t happen often. I just don’t have it in me to keep repeating myself, yelling, getting stern etc… time out isn’t working, taking things away isn’t working. They won’t stay separated. I’m just over it.

Toenails??

A year in and I haven't trimmed LOs toe nails once. Finger nails have to be trimmed almost daily or it looks like I've been attacked by a wolverine. But toe nails have barely grown! What's the deal?

Should I Be Bothered?

Idk If I Should Even Post This On The Reddit But I Need Some Other Parents Advice If They Ever Been In This Situation. Should I Be Bothered By The Fact That My MIL Has Not Made An Effort To See Her One & Only Granddaughter In The Past Two Months? She Lives About 20 Minutes Away & I See That She’s Always Posting Her Eating Out With Her SIL Around Our Neighborhood. She Doesn’t Text Me Or Call Me To Even See How She’s Doing. It Does Bother Me Like A lot But I Can’t Really Say Anything To Husband Because He Always Seems To Have An Excuse For Her. But Am I Overreacting? Should I Just Let It Go?

Is anyone telling married women with sh*tty husbands to terminate?

Or is it just single moms who want to expand their families who are judged, ridiculed, called irresponsible and told to terminate? Society hates single moms. We get the short end of the stick every time. End rant.

Contact naps all day long

I'm a SAHM with my 4.5 month old baby, and I love it! But I'm going a bit crazy with our contact nap habit, during the day she will not fall asleep without nursing and staying on me. I sometimes have minor success with transferring her but usually only for her to wake within 10 minutes. My other option seems to be our baby carrier which she loves and it allows me to do things while she sleeps but it has been a strain on my back problems since we were using it twice a day for usually 2 hours or more! I never thought I would hate sitting on the couch this much, but I'm constantly stuck sitting here thinking of all the things I'd like to be doing while she sleeps. I love our contact naps but I just wish it was an option and not a requirement.

Hitting phase

My 18m son is going through the hitting phase. He started doing this with his grandparents but quickly stopped. Now he is doing that mainly with me (mom) but also with dad when he’s not happy with something. Anytime he does it, I tell him “no, that it hurts me”, ask him to be gentle when touching my face instead, if holding him I put him on the floor and walk away, or try to change his focus to something different, but nothing seems to work. I must be doing something wrong here…I wonder how other parents handled this? Any advise?

Baby not acting like himself?

This is going to sound so dumb, because he’s four months and doesn’t even have a personality yet. He’s been taking antibiotics for a bacterial infection. He’s been on them for about a week with 3 days to go. He just isn’t “talking” as much, and he’s been sleepy. He isn’t lethargic. I’m just trying to tell myself babies are people too, and some days they want to talk and others they probably don’t. He’s smiling, just not as often. I want to ask the pediatrician, but I don’t even know how to phrase this. His stomach has also been upset, and I don’t want to do much when my stomach is upset either. I looked online and it was a bunch of crunchy mom blogs about how I’m destroying my kid by having given him antibiotics anyway, so that made me panic a little. Has anyone had the experience where their kid has less energy with an antibiotic? (Again, not lethargic. Just less willing to interact and more wanting to cuddle and sleep.)

Discipline in Dangerous Situations

I was reading a BBC article (linked below) on discipline and it had me wondering: is emotional coaching still the best line of defensive if the child is causing harm to others? The situation I’m thinking about in particular: I have a distant relative who is 4 years old and was running in the street when his great grandma told him to come to the sidewalk and out of the street. He hopped onto the sidewalk, but proceeded to push her off the curb and into the street because he didn’t like her telling him what to do. She’s super old so I imagine if she hadn’t caught herself, it would have been very difficult for her to recover from an injury. I have a daughter and emotional coaching worked well for her, though, she never really harmed anyone and has always been more nurturing. I have an infant son now and am not sure how I would react if he pushed his great grandma off a curb. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220607-what-should-you-do-when-a-child-misbehaves

First child on the way!

Hello everyone! So my wife is about 6 weeks pregnant, and I couldn't be more excited. We've been trying for over 7 months and it's finally going to happen. I have been trying to make it as easy on her as possible by doing more around the house, and taking as many loads off her hands as I can. Can anyone give me some general advice on how I can further make this easy on her, and how we can enjoy this experience together to the best of our abilities? Thank you so much in advance!