Parenting Contents Archive

When Can I Veg Out At The TV Again?

I assume it won’t be for a long time. I don’t do it very often but some days I’m so tired and just want to lay around watching TV. I have a 1.5 year old and am just curious at what age kids are capable of watching with you, or doing their own thing for the most part so I can just relax. Is this a pipe dream until they are 18+??

Am i the only one...?

My LO is 9 Months old. I‘ve always had the „Problem“ that i don‘t quite know what to do the whole day. I know this sounds stupid but sometimes it’s hard for me to fill a whole day with activities. Everything is fine until lunch. We go for a walk, we do the housework, we cook lunch for daddy... then he leaves again for work at 1 or so and after that i struggle to pass the rest of the day until 7ish when we put her to bed. Sometimes I sit at my mom‘s place or at a friend’s the whole afternoon or we go for another long walk and we play a bit but I don’t know what else to do. She is still very young and we can’t really play real games or go to a playground or something. I’m feeling bad for writing this!!! Am I the only one struggling with this? What are y’all doing with your babies?

Educators shared their best practices—from home visits to in-school parent workshops—for building strong bonds with families, from the first day of school to the last. @edutopia https://t.co/EMRYtqWxeM

Is there any research on how a starlight projector affects toddler sleep?

My 2.5 year old is afraid of the dark at bedtime, even with a night light and flashlight. I'm considering getting her a starlight projector to make it a little brighter in the room without disturbing her sleep, as well as having something for her to focus her thoughts on as she drifts to sleep. I don't know if the extra light will reduce the quality of her sleep though. Is there any research on how a starlight projector might affect a toddler's sleep?

When did your baby sleep 12 hours straight?

Speaking with a fellow mom online, she expressed that, "all babies sleep 12 hours a night by 3 months old in my country". I find this ludicrous, especially exclusively breastfeeding, which she does. Does anyone else have similar experience? My first child did not sleep through until 9 months.

School said they are holding child back even after going to summer school.

I wanted to see if anyone knew the best course of action to take since today was the first day I have to figure this out quickly. The elementary school said my child would be held back if he didn't go to summer school, so we put him in summer school and got a certificate. Now they are saying he didn't pass kindergarten and will not be going to first grade.... How do I fight this? I am trying to schedule a meeting with the principle, but they haven't answered the phone yet. The school said starting tomorrow he will be in kindergarten. If it matters this is in Georgia.

When does life with second baby get easier?

I don't want to write an epic post here because "if you know you know". Our oldest is just over 2 years and the newest is 6 months. My word is life tricky right now - my wife and I hate each other and even small pleasures like watching rubbish on TV togeghet in the evening is completely out the question. My only highlight is my cup of coffee in the morning! Please tell me this gets better!

Not suppressing your voice nor your child's takes artful communication. And knowledge of child development as well as awareness of yourself. And, sometimes, someone to hear you out. ☺️ Whew, that's a lot. But we have that time. And don't need to be perfect. https://t.co/9LfB6GJPc9

Toddler development. About ready to pull my hair out

My almost 2 year old daughter (birthday in October) has started throwing epic meltdowns anytime something doesn't go her way. Can't get the chair to move, meltdown. Can't close herself into a cupboard, meltdown. I have to take a pair of scissors away, meltdown. Please tell me this is a normal phase of development and she will eventually grow out of it to some extent. It is like when she is tired and needs a nap except all day every day no matter how much or little sleep she has. What can I do to try and help her get through these without just solving every problem she ever has?

Any parents of kids in gymnastics? Need advice!

My daughter just turned 6 and was moved from her recreational gymnastic gym to a competitive gym because they said she was very good and would do better at this other gym. Anyways she just got accepted to join the tumbling and trampoline competitive team(she’s very talented at tumbling) and she also still does pre competive gymnastics on top of this since tumbling doesn’t teach bar and beam and she will eventually get on the competitive gymnastics team(has to be 7 before she can move to the team). With all that said she is going to be doing 8 hours a week of training(5:30-7:30 mon-thurs) and will have one meet a month about 3 hours away on top of this. Before she got on the tumbling/tramp team it was 4 hours a week so this is double. Is this a normal amount at this age or way too much? It seems excessive to me but I don’t know anything about gymnastics. She seems to enjoy it but I’m worried she will burn out. Any advice welcome!

Savory nighttime breastfeeding snacks

I’m 2 weeks pp with my first baby. I have a stack of granola bars ready to go for an easy snack while doing the midnight feeds, but I find them too sweet and not very healthy in the long run. I’m looking for something preferably high in protein (like nuts, or beef jerky) that ideally doesn’t need to be refrigerated that I can just keep ready to go beside my chair. Google says things like hard boiled eggs and cheese etc., but our bedroom is upstairs and our kitchen is downstairs. Thank you for any tips/advice/suggestions!

🤳 Social media is a great way to connect with other people, but it can also provide unrealistic benchmarks for teens to compare themselves to. 🔵 Parents and carers can support young people by promoting positive self-esteem online, and encouraging them to see #TheFullPicture

Worried about first grade. Anyone else?

My son is a bit behind on reading after the struggle of distanced learning last year, and honestly, I haven't been able to work with him much. We have been moving and going through a lot this summer (miscarriage, family issues, etc.) He can sort of sound out words, but he's definitely not where he should be. We are settled into our new home, I am getting my mental health under control, and I really want to work with him. Any tips on how to help have reading "click" for him? Has anyone else had a child go into first grade struggling with reading? I feel embarrassed and like I should have done more. Hopefully we can work on it the next few weeks. Any advice would be appreciated.

Need advice re: my 19 yo son

Not so quick background. Graduated HS 2020. Lost his job during COVID, and spent year on UE, Getting high, and withdrawing from me. He was supposed to do a gap year after HS internationally so he didn’t apply to college. I convinced him to take some prerequisite courses online which didn’t go well at all. GPA 1.5. His self-esteem is terrible. He doesn’t want to talk. He says he’s depressed. He’s thinking about meds and I gave him his MD’s number. He went to one therapy appt but didn’t like the guy. I’m so worried about him, and he spends ALL his free time out of the house because he says he’s lonely, yet he withdraws from me. his father and I are in the middle of divorce. I moved out of the marital home over a year ago and his dad is moving to another state with his new GF this month. Understandably he’s gone through hell since HS graduation, but I do not know how to help him. Has anyone here gotten past this troubled time with their teen?

Nursing mom leaving for a couple days

I’m leaving for a couple of days and my 2month old is (almost) exclusively breastfed I’m a little worried about my supply. Im bringing a hand pump but don’t think I’ll be able to pump as often. Any advice on keeping up the supply? If it decreases, any tips on bringing it back up?