Parenting Contents Archive

Not potty-trained by kindergarten?

Full disclosure: I am a kindergarten teacher by profession. Others of my ilk have noticed a higher number of kids entering kindergarten still in diapers. It doesn't seem to correlate with a particular increase in disabilities. Is anyone able to shed light into what's going on and what parents intend schools to do?

People who are short on cash: How do you afford daycare?

We aren't exactly pay check to paycheck but definitely will be if we go to a day care. How do you parents afford it? I have seen some state programs that help for day care but you have to be borderline homeless, unless I read that incorrectly. Do you just have family and friends to watch them? Maybe a neighborhood sitter? Don't have to worry because a parent is a stay at home parent? How does everyone handle baby sitting?

9 month check up

I just noticed the 9 month old pamphlet we got at the pediatrician’s office for her check up says “Your baby should be sleeping through the night.” LOL okay, can you let her know? I guess she hasn’t gotten the memo

Remind yourself. Remind your children. https://t.co/eu4fe4eL22

my kid is growing up with zero family

not one of my child's relatives gives a flying fuck about knowing her at all and it makes me very sad. The vast majority of the people i'm talking about live within about 15 minutes of us. that's the whole post.

Do you think it's important to limit screentime for school aged children? Why or why not?

I'm curious of others thoughts. I don't want to cause arguments with anyone. I know this is a hard subject and everyone's opinion on it can be strong. I don't know where I stand and need insight. I do feel that it is important to set limits but sometimes I feel that it can be difficult.

Closing bedroom doors is weird?

My long term partner has a daughter aged 12, nearly 13. Neither my partner nor her daughter fully close their doors when they go to bed. I've been advocating that it's a part of growing up and eventually we all need to feel comfortable sleeping with the light off and the door shut (though if she needs the light is fine). I've just had a discussion about this with my partner and she thinks it's weird that people close their doors, and I think it's weird that they don't. I feel like I'm going crazy here; I mean, it is normal to shut your door when you go to bed, right?

What is your go-to method to soothe your baby?

LO is 8 weeks old and my current go-to is rides in the car!

What boundaries did you have with family/friends while you had a newborn?

I'm currently 13w pregnant and my husband and I are just starting to talk about boundaries for post-partum. He's a social butterfly and would happily give everyone an open invite to drop in any time. I would prefer to lock down for the first month or two and have very few visitors, by invite only. Our family is all local, so we don't need to worry about anyone coming to stay with us or anything like that. I recognize that my mental health is better when I have people around, so my first preference isn't ideal. My husband recognizes I'll be the one in diapers, so his preference for a full house comes secondary to my comfort. I'm wondering how other families have handled this time period, and how you would do things differently if given the opportunity.

More than 50 million children are slowly returning to classrooms for the new school year — the third year in the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic. What stories will define this year? @NPRCoryTurner @MrJeffPierre https://t.co/1ImYuu7yOs

My teenager has a lump in his armpit and I am freaking out.

He's not at all sick, and has no history of this kind of thing, so of course it took me approximately five seconds to convince myself he has cancer. And I can't call for an appointment with his pediatrician until Monday morning, and it is now Saturday evening.

My heart is breaking (TW death of a loved one)

I just got the news that a friend of mine that has been battling cancer for years is expected to pass away in the next few days. She has young kids and my heart is breaking. My mom died when I was about the age of her youngest child and a lot of my grief related to that experience has come rushing back. I wish there was some way I could bring comfort to those kids but their lives are never going to be the same. After losing my mom, my life was never the same. It all just feels so big and impossible and unfair.

The Duck and the King’s Chapel: The Rubber Ducky Project Week 17 via @ParentingPatch https://t.co/uyJVFtqAWc #boston #church

I’m about to blow a gasket

I’m tapped out. I’m going through postpartum with the nearest family 4 hours away. I wanna move back home but I know if we do, my husband will not have a job that pays what he makes now and we can’t afford the pay cut. My job would transfer but I make about half of what he does. I’m exhausted. I have no support other than my husband. I’m burned out. I need a break. My job is basically me getting screamed at on and off all day. So all day the stress from my job just builds so by the time I get home with the kids I have no mental capacity to deal with my 4 year old throwing the most ungodly tantrums and my 8 month olds blood curdling screams because I can’t hold him literally every second of every day. I feel so trapped. I’m rambling but I had to get that out.

My kid just played with other kids… without me!

My five year old has attachment issues. There are very good reasons for those issues, but it makes it hard for him to be away from me. Today, at an end-of-summer party, he was playing with his classmates without me. He even played with other kids. For TWO HOURS. I got to stay with the parents rather than get wet (it was at a splash pad). I know this sounds silly, but I’m crying happy tears right now. This is just so huge for both of us.