Parenting Contents Archive

Toddler boy wants toenails painted

And I’m all for it, but how do you respond to people who tell me I’m wrong for doing so? I’ve had my cousin tell me “you’re supposed to guide him to like boy things” or my BIL told me “I don’t care how liberal you are, don’t do that to him” My dads also been vocal about it. Am I really the wrong one for painting his toenails? My son gets super happy when he gets his toenails painted and that’s all I really wanna guide him to be, happy.

How do people do 2 under 2?

No judgement here, just curious. It seems to be the trend now and since my 10 month old woke up nearly every hour last night, I couldn’t imagine doing that on top of being pregnant 😅 Was your first easy? Do you embrace the chaos? I’ve considered it but last night proved I am not ready for TWO babies to be waking up so often.

Is spending 1k+ on a 5yo birthday party the norm?

We live in Toronto and are middle class. We have 3 daughters. Throwing my 5yos birthday at a park came to over $1k (food, venue, materials, games, kids drinks, etc.). All her friends seem to have similar birthday parties at different venues like arcade centres etc. That would've also cost ~1k+. 1. My question is, is spending 1k/birthday party the new norm? 2. BaCk iN mY day it was a handful of friends, cake, pizza, backyard, done. But now we are told to invite the entire class (plus other friends)... this also normal? Just curious not criticizing.

Very antisocial since birth

Anyone else super antisocial since giving birth? LO is 2 weeks and I’ve had parents and in-laws visit baby but I’m struggling with scheduling friends and other people to visit baby. Plus I don’t feel like texting anyone, I’m never scrolling Facebook anymore, I just don’t want to reach out to anyone. It’s becoming clear that I may have PPD and/or PPA but it would help to know if other people went through this ..

Do you bathe your baby during storms?

Honestly feels like a silly thing to ask, but it was drilled into my head growing up that it was not safe to bathe when there was thunder/lightning or even a risk of it. My husband just looked it up and the CDC does in fact recommend against bathing during storms. Problem is, it’s been storming almost every day for weeks now with no end in sight and we need to give this greasy baby a bath today (she HAS had regular baths, we haven’t been avoiding them for weeks just to be clear). So are we the only ones thinking about this? Anyone else?

I want to stop breastfeeding but the guilt is not letting me

I’m four months pp. Going into this I knew I would breastfeed. But I didn’t know it would be this hard. I didn’t know that my baby would have a hard time latching and would only drink from a bottle. I didn’t imagine being hooked up to a pump 24/7. I didn’t think I would have any trouble losing the baby weight. I’m just over it. I want my body back. I want to not spend the time pumping and stressing about whether I’m going to make enough food for the day. I feel so guilty and selfish, but I am so ready to be done breastfeeding.

How to get him to quit dawdling?

My almost 12 year old is just the worst when it comes to eating. He will dawdle, talk, hambone, say “I love you” over and over while asking for hugs, and say random things during every single meal (even his favourites). He will spend upward of 1-1.5 hours eating most times. This was “fine” while we were homeschooling, but he will be going to public middle school next year and won’t have endless time. Any suggestions? Or should I just let it go? I don’t give him too much to eat and he does get super hangry if I just cut him off at 30 minutes.

How often do you do family fun activities

I was talking to a friend today, and their answer was much different than mine. So I’m curious. How often do you do family activities, like going to a carnival, or a movie, or a family friendly concert, the zoo, a museum, etc? Also how often do you do free activities, like go to the park, library or going for a hike?

My son just destroyed something sentimental that I can never get back.

it's petty. it's not a big deal. but i'm so upset and just need to vent about it. my son is 2 and a half. my sweet boy came to me with an empty spray bottle and said "oh no! all gone!" as I looked in horror to realize it was a glitter body spray from my childhood that i've had for over 20 years. was i ever going to actually use it again? no. can i buy this vintage item for like $70 online? yes. but i still cried. it's not going to be the same, to just buy one off ebay. this one was mine. i loved seeing it on my shelf. it held a lot of memories. now i just have an empty bottle. i may just put some colored water and glitter and shake it around, throw it back on my shelf and act like it never happened. :(

When did you return to sitting in the front seat?

Just curious when you felt comfortable beginning to sit in the front seat of the car again. I sat in the passenger seat for the first time in 2 months last night while LO stayed home with grandmas and felt like when you were a kid and finally allowed to sit up front for the first time in your life lol. Now I’m typing this from the back seat, returning to my normal duties of replacing spit out pacifiers

Why do I feel sleepier after my baby’s “good” nights???

My 16 week old has slept an 8.5 hour stretch the past two nights after a longggg string of nights waking up every 2-3 hours. I’d expect to feel rested and refreshed today (and I am in a better mood) but I feel sooooooooo sleepy. It’s like my body got a taste of real sleep and now is just greedy for more. What’s up with that?!?!? Am I just destined for a life of perpetual exhaustion? 🙃🙃🙃🙃🙃🙃🙃

Will I miss out by not being a stay at home mom?

This is not to debate which is harder staying home or working!!! My maternity leave ends today and I got back to work tomorrow. My baby is 10 weeks old and is smiling and knows who we are. I always wanted to stay at home for the first year, but life has other plans. My husband will be staying home because he is finishing his degree. This will be my only baby. I am sad and feel like I will miss out on things. Is this true? Can people tell their experiences working or stay home parents ?

I’m the one on my period, with a migraine, caring for the fussy two year old who is teething But he’s the one in the bedroom taking a nap after a solid night of uninterrupted sleep (unlike myself).

That’s all.

Is there another way?

I have a 12 year old son who is very aware of the rules (and is quick to enforce them on his guests) who just keeps doing the same thing over and over. One of the rules is no food upstairs (which we also follow) because his trash and leftovers never make it back downstairs to the trash. After a year of finding that sort of thing, various groundings, and threats of locking up the snacks, my wife finally had enough and put locks on the refrigerator and pantry. My conflict comes into play because he isn't limited on when or what he eats, so this feels like some bad foster parent shit. He literally just has to eat downstairs and throw trash away. That being said, I can go look behind his bed on any given day and find chip bags, snack packs, go-gurts, chicken bones, apple cores, etc. I'm open to any advice on the issue.

Cars..

Question for the group. We are currently trying to get pregnant and having a discussion on cars. My wife has a 2 door jeep that she loves dearly. I somehow have ended up with an outback which is obviously very family friendly. I’m trying to decide how likely it will be to have to sell her jeep. Hear me out. We can switch cars for the day if need be for any times where needed to pickup/ drop off the future kiddo. Obviously car seat in a 2 door jeep would SUCK but in an emergency I could do it if need be. I figure if we can make it a couple years until the kid is front facing we should be ok at that point. Thoughts? Am I just crazy? Lol just trying to let her keep her dream car.