@ July Randoms @

[Velar Fricative]

Yesterday DD1 started her new summer camp and DD2 started her new daycare, so it was a big day in the Velar household. My groove is in flux though - now we have to think about bathing suits, towels, sunblock, etc. to bring instead of just the usual stuff to bring during the school year. Plus, DD2's new daycare provides so much more than the old place did so I feel emptyhanded when I bring her (unlike her prior daycare, this daycare provides all food/snacks, mats, and sheets), which isn't helping me feel like I'm not forgetting something. But, they both had great first days.

[calamity]

Do kids grow more in the summer or something?

I swear both of my kids are eating everything in sight and shooting up, they are all arms and legs at this stage.

[5kcandlesinthewind]

My kid has reached the asshole stage of 4. I took him to the bounce place over the weekend, and he had a full on screaming fit when it was time to leave, despite me giving him the 10 and 5 minute warnings and promising him ice cream if he left without a fight. My husband said he did the same thing at Legoland last week. It makes me not want to take him anywhere ever. Sigh. I'm trying to cut him some slack because I was just gone for work for almost a full week, but it started before I left and only got worse when I got back. Hopefully, he scales it back again once he feels secure that I'm not leaving again. For now, though, every time I leave the house he asks me if I'm going to Scotland again. I told him I was going to get coffee the other day (just around the corner! where he goes MULTIPLE times per week!), and he told me to send him a postcard. ugh!

[simpsongal]

We just took our first vacation just the four of us (short trip to Lancaster). It was so fun!

I'm so excited about entering this next stage of our lives and actually taking vacations. I've been hoarding leave for maternity so long, and income for daycare that regular vacations just hasn't been a thing.

[Velar Fricative]

Jul 2, 2019 8:04:31 GMT -5 5kcandlesinthewind said:

My kid has reached the asshole stage of 4. I took him to the bounce place over the weekend, and he had a full on screaming fit when it was time to leave, despite me giving him the 10 and 5 minute warnings and promising him ice cream if he left without a fight. My husband said he did the same thing at Legoland last week. It makes me not want to take him anywhere ever. Sigh. I'm trying to cut him some slack because I was just gone for work for almost a full week, but it started before I left and only got worse when I got back. Hopefully, he scales it back again once he feels secure that I'm not leaving again. For now, though, every time I leave the house he asks me if I'm going to Scotland again. I told him I was going to get coffee the other day (just around the corner! where he goes MULTIPLE times per week!), and he told me to send him a postcard. ugh!

I feel for you with the rest of what you wrote but the bolded is making me laugh so hard. 

I do hope this is a short phase for him (and for you guys).

[Velar Fricative]

Jul 2, 2019 8:21:03 GMT -5 simpsongal said:

We just took our first vacation just the four of us (short trip to Lancaster). It was so fun!

I'm so excited about entering this next stage of our lives and actually taking vacations. I've been hoarding leave for maternity so long, and income for daycare that regular vacations just hasn't been a thing.

We've got our first vacation for just the four of us at the end of August (we've done weekend trips to our ILs' lake house but that's pretty low-frills). I'm a little nervous because DD2 is kind of a terror right now but we purposely planned a no-flights-necessary vacation full of relaxing and in a city DH and I have been to so that if things don't go as well as hoped we won't feel like it's a waste (we're doing a day and a half in Montreal and then a few days of relaxation at Mont Tremblant). Your post gives me some hope that things might turn out okay lol. I too can't wait for the daycare expenses to be replaced with vacation expenses (well, partially - still got SLs to pay off and other important shit, ugh). 

[eponinepontmercy]

We got the new class schedule for DD's dance studio. The hip hop class she has been taking has two options: Friday night or Saturday morning. She also wants to take tap, which is only offered at 4:45 on Fridays. We don't have a way to get her there, unless DH works his schedule to leave at 4:00 on Fridays. I haven't talked to him about it yet, but I'm not sure what we're going to do.

[georgeglass]

My kids are still at camp, so I waffle every day between "Wheee!" and "OMG! Are they okay? happy? having fun?"

[simpsongal]

Velar Fricative, good luck!

I had to talk DH into the short trip b/c he was fearful it would just be unpleasant w/DD (she's 2.5 going on 17...). Same rules apply on the road re: keep them fed & rested, plus the distraction of new things helped (and loose rules re: screen time and late bed time). Of course there were some bad moments, but again, we would have had those at home too. It was all worth it to see their reactions and hear her happy screams at Dutch Wonderland. My 5 yr old is thankfully easy.

I agree w/dipping your toe in the water slowly. Props to those that do Disney at this age, but a 2 night $400 trip was just fine for us at this age & stage.

[Velar Fricative]

We're aiming to do Dutch Wonderland sometime this summer/fall as well! Disney is a big fat nope. *I* have never been to Disney myself so I want to be able to soak it all in myself without my 2-year-old acting like a 2-year-old lol.

[pixy0stix]

My baby turned 1 last week!

[litebright]

DH and I have had a couple of really fun weekends with the kids. Two weeks ago, he took DD1 out on a day fishing trip with a guide, while DD2 and I went and got mani/pedis. Then we all went to a Beatles tribute band show together (which was part of DH's Father's Day gift). This past weekend, he took DD2 to Baltimore to see an Indians/Orioles game, they stayed overnight and then went to the National Aquarium the next day before coming home. (I took the girls to the aquarium awhile back and DD2 adored it so much, she wanted to take DH.) They did a couple of other things, like a paddleboat ride and walking around the harbor at night. He told me this morning that when they were talking the dog last night, DD2 asked him if, when we go to the Bahamas later this month, they can "sneak off, just the two of them" and go for a walk on the beach at night. <3 <3

I think the one-on-one time really means a lot to her, and to him. It sounds like they had some good talks. One of the things we wanted to accomplish this summer was each of us doing some one-on-one things with the girls. So while they were off in Baltimore, DD1 and I went to see Dark Phoenix and the next day, did a tube-float down a section of the Shenandoah river. It was tons of fun, very relaxing and she loved it. Then on Sunday we attempted baking macarons (and did okay for a first try -- they're not an easy bake!).

DH is driving them to Cleveland this weekend to see the uncle/aunt/cousins who used to be in Korea but are now back state-side; we haven't seen them since the last family wedding, and they're in Ohio visiting DH's parents and MIL is putting together a BBQ so hopefully everybody in the CLE area (which is most of the family) comes to visit. I'm staying home with the dog because it's impossible to find boarding at this point due to the holiday. I am looking forward to having a day and a half to myself, with no work and nothing on my agenda!

[StrawberryBlondie]

I was 100% sure we were done with birthday parties for the summer (it's been a near-constant slog since March). But then we got an invite for another one. And it's at a place we've already been for 3 birthday parties since March. Argh.

[nessness]

DD1 (4.5) is seriously the most dramatic kid ever. I bought some new throw pillows on Sunday. A couple hours later, I mentioned to DH that I wasn't sure I liked them. She ran across the room, threw her body across them, and cried, "Nooo, I love these pillows! Don't send them away Mommy! Don't send them away!" So I guess I'm stuck with some mediocre throw pillows. 😂

She got her first two-wheeled bike this weekend. I get off work early tomorrow, so I'm thinking about picking her up early and teaching her how to ride it.

[raangoli]

We did a long weekend in DC this past weekend with BB and she had a blast. There were two times I had to get her to behave and she cried loud giant tears but overall it was great. It gives me hope for longer trips.

Her daycare also started their “summer camp” style this week and I forgot how much I hate it. She’s the one of the oldest since her classmates moved on and I hope she doesn’t loose the momentum she had going into the summer. (That might be my Asian tiger mom showing 😳.) She will move up to the 4s room in September though so it should be short lived.

[isabel]

MIL asked to take each of the boys for a night this week. She had DS2 last night and will take DS1 on Wednesday night. It was kind of weird to only have one kid and I'm sure will feel equally weird on Wednesday. I didn't find the move from 1 to 2 to be difficult, but when we go back to only having 1, it's always sort of enlightening to me how much easier it is. lol But DS1 was really sweet missing his brother and asked if we could call and say hi. DS2 clearly gave no fucks about missing any of us. 

July is going to be a really fun month. We're camping this weekend, going to Steamboat the following weekend, and have a week in Indiana with family at the end of the month. Work is very busy, but I'm going to try to commit to really relaxing during these long weekends.

I bought long-sleeve SPF rated shirts for the four of us from Patagonia. Between that and camping this weekend, I feel like a real Coloradan. Ha.

[eddy]

This week DS1 (6th grade)is getting to stay home on his own. We thought it was a perfect time to try it out as it is a short week and H and I can run home for lunch.

He is so freaking proud of himself. I can’t believe I am at the stage in life when I can leave my kid at home. Where did the time go. Also this is marvelous. 

He is still in enrolled in camps the rest of the summer. There was nothing offered this week and I thought it was a great chance to try it out.

We also now have a “home” cellphone. And he is very excited that it might someday change into his phone. We told him with time and earned trust we can have that conversation. He had already changed all the ringtones by the time I got home at lunch yesterday lol. 

[picksthemusic]

The babysitter started yesterday, and the kids did great (she's sat for them before and they love her). We had a list of activities that they needed to do (read/play/art/outside/whatever) before electronics or TV, and it seemed to work well. DD thrives on structure and knowing what to expect, so this worked I think.

[ohgillian]

Jul 2, 2019 10:49:35 GMT -5 eddy said:

This week DS1 (6th grade)is getting to stay home on his own. We thought it was a perfect time to try it out as it is a short week and H and I can run home for lunch.

He is so freaking proud of himself. I can’t believe I am at the stage in life when I can leave my kid at home. Where did the time go. Also this is marvelous. 

He is still in enrolled in camps the rest of the summer. There was nothing offered this week and I thought it was a great chance to try it out.

We also now have a “home” cellphone. And he is very excited that it might someday change into his phone. We told him with time and earned trust we can have that conversation. He had already changed all the ringtones by the time I got home at lunch yesterday lol. 

So can you tell me more about this? Did you add a smartphone to your plan, and he's only allowed to use it for phone calls, or what are the groundrules? My kid has been staying home short periods of time, and i always leave him my cell phone, but we need a better plan. I checked on an old-school landline and it was upwards of $25/month. 

[eddy]

Also DS2 is at the ILs this week. I am also enjoying the one kid lifestyle. Especially when the one kid is our easy kid. The 7 year old is a bit of the pain in the ass. A cute one, but still a bit too much work for my liking. :-)

[eddy]

Jul 2, 2019 10:53:12 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Jul 2, 2019 10:49:35 GMT -5 eddy said:

This week DS1 (6th grade)is getting to stay home on his own. We thought it was a perfect time to try it out as it is a short week and H and I can run home for lunch.

He is so freaking proud of himself. I can’t believe I am at the stage in life when I can leave my kid at home. Where did the time go. Also this is marvelous. 

He is still in enrolled in camps the rest of the summer. There was nothing offered this week and I thought it was a great chance to try it out.

We also now have a “home” cellphone. And he is very excited that it might someday change into his phone. We told him with time and earned trust we can have that conversation. He had already changed all the ringtones by the time I got home at lunch yesterday lol. 

So can you tell me more about this? Did you add a smartphone to your plan, and he's only allowed to use it for phone calls, or what are the groundrules? My kid has been staying home short periods of time, and i always leave him my cell phone, but we need a better plan. I checked on an old-school landline and it was upwards of $25/month. 

Yes another phone to our plan. The rules is it is our phone. It isn’t his. He doesn’t get to take it places unless we give permission. It stays in the office. It doesn’t go to his room for example. He doesn’t have the ability to use apps or the browser. He knows we can monitor everything through our apple account.

Also the phone is just one of our old iPhones. We didn’t buy anything new.

Currently none of his friends have the number. With time I would be okay with him giving it out to close friends with our monitoring so they can arrange going out on their bikes or whatever. Currently all the social stuff happens on my phone.

[ohgillian]

Jul 2, 2019 10:57:01 GMT -5 eddy said:

Jul 2, 2019 10:53:12 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

So can you tell me more about this? Did you add a smartphone to your plan, and he's only allowed to use it for phone calls, or what are the groundrules? My kid has been staying home short periods of time, and i always leave him my cell phone, but we need a better plan. I checked on an old-school landline and it was upwards of $25/month. 

Yes another phone to our plan. The rules is it is our phone. It isn’t his. He doesn’t get to take it places unless we give permission. It stays in the office. It doesn’t go to his room for example. He doesn’t have the ability to use apps or the browser. He knows we can monitor everything through our apple account.

Also the phone is just one of our old iPhones. We didn’t buy anything new.

Currently none of his friends have the number. With time I would be okay with him giving it out to close friends with our monitoring so they can arrange going out on their bikes or whatever. Currently all the social stuff happens on my phone.

Thank you! I have an old iphone that my DS uses for the meditation app Calm (it has bedtime stories), but it hadn't occurred to me to put it back on our data plan and get a new # for it. I'll look into this. 

[picksthemusic]

Jul 2, 2019 10:54:24 GMT -5 eddy said:

Also DS2 is at the ILs this week. I am also enjoying the one kid lifestyle. Especially when the one kid is our easy kid. The 7 year old is a bit of the pain in the ass. A cute one, but still a bit too much work for my liking. :-)

DS is a totally different kid when DD isn't around, it's weird. So much easier to deal with than when she's around.

[af1212]

Jul 2, 2019 10:53:12 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Jul 2, 2019 10:49:35 GMT -5 eddy said:

This week DS1 (6th grade)is getting to stay home on his own. We thought it was a perfect time to try it out as it is a short week and H and I can run home for lunch.

He is so freaking proud of himself. I can’t believe I am at the stage in life when I can leave my kid at home. Where did the time go. Also this is marvelous. 

He is still in enrolled in camps the rest of the summer. There was nothing offered this week and I thought it was a great chance to try it out.

We also now have a “home” cellphone. And he is very excited that it might someday change into his phone. We told him with time and earned trust we can have that conversation. He had already changed all the ringtones by the time I got home at lunch yesterday lol. 

So can you tell me more about this? Did you add a smartphone to your plan, and he's only allowed to use it for phone calls, or what are the groundrules? My kid has been staying home short periods of time, and i always leave him my cell phone, but we need a better plan. I checked on an old-school landline and it was upwards of $25/month. 

We have Ooma for our landline which is like $3 a month. I like having a landline so that babysitters and kids always know where a phone is to call 911 if needed. We rarely talk on it so it’s always in the same spot. Also alerts me if anyone dials 911.

[calamity]

Jul 2, 2019 11:24:31 GMT -5 picksthemusic said:

Jul 2, 2019 10:54:24 GMT -5 eddy said:

Also DS2 is at the ILs this week. I am also enjoying the one kid lifestyle. Especially when the one kid is our easy kid. The 7 year old is a bit of the pain in the ass. A cute one, but still a bit too much work for my liking. :-)

DS is a totally different kid when DD isn't around, it's weird. So much easier to deal with than when she's around.

Same.  My kids are so much more fun to hang out with when they aren't together. 


We try to do something separately with them once a month.  They each like their 'alone' time with mom or dad.

[sent]

DD and DS moved to their new school/daycare on Monday. Two kids, one school, one drop-off which is the last year I will have this since they are 4 years apart. I also hate water play in the summer because of the extra work and DD isn't s fan of it either. I decided I will drop them at 9:30 or later on water play days to avoid all that. They go to the pool on the weekends with my husband anyways so it's not like they won't see the water all summer.

Except my husband and I unanimously agree that this new daycare isn't the right place for DS and that he should go back to the old place. DS went for 3 trial days last week with my husband and two days with me. We never unanimously agree on anything. So all the benefits of one school, one drop-off are out the window.

[pinkdutchtulips]

DD is in Michigan for the ENTIRE WEEK !!!

[mbcdefg]

I took DD (2) to the store earlier today. On the way off the front porch she was screwing around a bit and sitting on the ground so I lifted her by her left arm to get her walking.

I loaded her into the car and then she started crying and just wouldn’t stop. I figured she was over-tired because MH had her at the park early in the day and she only had a 20 minute nap on the ride home. So we went back home and I tried to settle her down and lay her down for a nap ... she tried to sleep for about 45 minutes but kept waking herself up with crying. We got her up, still crying, and noticed she wouldn’t use her left arm.

I suggested taking her to an after hours children’s clinic nearby but MH said we should go to the ER instead in case she needed x rays or whatever. So we went there and she was still whiny but trying to be brave. A doc came in and twisted her arm a bit ... I thought he was just testing it but he said it was fixed and he’d come back in a few minutes to check. Nursemaid’s Elbow, he said. As soon as he left the room she turned back into her usual bubbly self and was climbing and running all over the room.

I feel really bad for doing that to her - both MH and I have lifted her that way dozens of times but I guess we won’t be doing it again! I’m glad it was an easy fix and she’s feeling better. Doc said it’s something we can do ourselves next time, too. Hopefully there won’t be a next time!

[georgeglass]

We are supposed to head out of town for a getaway today and my son's camp called late last night saying he broke his collarbone. Fuck.

[Velar Fricative]

Oh no, sent! Are the issues anything that can be discussed with the director? I'd hate to move him back so quickly but if you're both unanimous and otherwise never are, that's telling.

Oh no, georgeglass! Poor kiddo.