Last week of August Thread

[shauni27]

Morning, all. Did everyone have a good weekend? Mushe was it so nice have B home?? How have you all settled?

We had a pretty good weekend. I had some nice visits with a friend while S napped  so I got some actual adult time and conversation. And we had a play date with another friend  of his which was fun. We played outside tons and overall had a good weekend. Except...he is biting, a lot. He is fully testing his limits. He will see if he can put his mouth on us and then if we allow that, 50% of the time he will then bite. He laughs when he does it. We are trying to be consistent with our response. We kind of shout "no biting!" because it usually hurts enough that we shout, lol. Then we pick him up immediately, move him to a different (safe) room, put him down on his bum and say, "sage, teeth are for food, not biting people. That is not ok" in a strict voice. And then we walk away. He usually cries and then comes back to hug us. We say, "I love you, Sage, but we do not love biting."

Any other suggestions on how to stop this behavior from happening? He so far has only done this to the two of us and thank god not any kids. But I legit have little teeth shaped bruises all over my arms and chest right now. I know it is developmentally not unheard of and that he is doing it really to test his limits. But it is annoying, painful, and it makes me nervous as to what he might do with other kids.

[oneslybookworm]

shauni27, I hear you. G isn't biting, but pinching. We normally just redirect him, say "no" and don't give it any more attention. Hopefully it slows down soon!


Not a ton going on here...J is back from his camping trip out in Utah, so I'm done single mom-ing it. G was sick towards the end of the week, and now I'm sick, so that's splendid. I leave Wednesday for FL for a girl's trip, so hopefully I can get some rest and relaxation in!

[scm1011]

shauni27, it sounds like you're doing everything right. I hope it eases up soon!

We had a great weekend. It was lovely out, and we spent a lot of time at the park and hanging out in the backyard. We met an old daycare friend at the park and it was so cute to watch Cal actually PLAY with her. I did get mom-judged because I let Cal climb up the rope ladder alone (maybe 5 feet high) over and over while I sat on a bench chatting. He is great at it, and the playground is a mix of sand and soft wood chips so I just don't stress it. Another mom kept going up to spot him and give me looks despite me saying "thanks, but he's fine!" twice. Oh well. You wanna helicopter my kid go ahead I guess lol.

[shauni27]

oneslybookworm, a girls trip to florida sounds SO RELAXING! OMG. I have serious envy, lol.
scm1011, we went to a friend's house and they have a deck with no siding. It is only about 1.5' off the ground, so if he was going to fall, it would be onto grass and not a big fall. I figured, the kid is going to fall at some point and also needs to learn about boundaries and this seems as good as ever. The parents whose house we were at got so nervous every time S would walk over to the edge and I was like, eh, if he falls he falls.

[scm1011]

shauni27, yes! I'm with you. Plus Cal is a cautious kid in general. If he feels confident with the rope ladder I want him to feel empowered to take that on.

oneslybookworm, a girls trip sounds amazing! enjoy!

[loira]

Spent the weekend running around getting semi ready for camping this weekend. Am a little annoyed that the tent we bought is more of a 3 person than a 4 person tent, but oh well. Guess that seals the deal with being oad? Lol

This is the first week I'm feeling really stressed about my job because a super tight deadline landed on my desk on Friday, and I'm taking this Friday off so will probably have to work longer hours (which is a total crap complaint considering I work 7 hour days, but still). Worried I won't be able to get everything done. I already cancelled out of my committee meetings this week because I just don't have the time. I am not very good at leaning in this week...

Is anyone else finding toddler bedtime a challenge? A runs away, she screams, she stalls, she whines, she refuses to brush her teeth. We've been taking away toys (her currency) but that's not working anymore. Time outs also do nothing. We're resorting to taking away stories and songs, which she still seems to care about, but I would love for bedtime to be a nice routine like it was before. Now H and I both dread it.

[thoseareradishes]

E didn't cry when the teacher picked her up at gym today! It has only taken like 8 weeks for her to get used to him. She really hates anyone other than H or me picking her up (or often just touching her- she screamed about the nurse taking her temp at the pedi last week, so I had to do it). So I'm really proud of her.

Question - she is leaking pee out the top of her diaper at night. She sleeps on her belly, and wears pampers baby dry size 5 at night (she wears size 4 swaddlers during the day; size 4 fits her better, size 5 is a little too big for daytime). Any suggestions about what to do? I'm hesitant to switch brands because I think the horrible diaper rash she got last week was from the target diapers I tried.

shauni27, E bites too. I try to stop her before she chomps down, I say "I don't want you to bite me" and I move her away from me a little. I try to stay calm about it (although if she gets me I do yelp, it hurts!) and not really make a big deal about it, just make sure she knows that it is unacceptable.

[loira]

Aug 27, 2018 9:18:49 GMT -5 scm1011 said:

shauni27, it sounds like you're doing everything right. I hope it eases up soon!

We had a great weekend. It was lovely out, and we spent a lot of time at the park and hanging out in the backyard. We met an old daycare friend at the park and it was so cute to watch Cal actually PLAY with her. I did get mom-judged because I let Cal climb up the rope ladder alone (maybe 5 feet high) over and over while I sat on a bench chatting. He is great at it, and the playground is a mix of sand and soft wood chips so I just don't stress it. Another mom kept going up to spot him and give me looks despite me saying "thanks, but he's fine!" twice. Oh well. You wanna helicopter my kid go ahead I guess lol.

I wouldn't helicopter your kid, but I'm not gonna lie, I'm totally a nervous mum and that would make my heart race. Still wouldn't spot another kid though. Mainly because I have no interest in interacting with other people's kids. I hate when kids talk to me on the playground - like, go bug your own parents! I am not interested in you!

[ivy]

shauni27, I think you are responding in the right way. It may just take time to pass. One of my friends bought the book Teeth Are Not For Biting when her kid went through that phase. He may be a bit young for it, but it may be worth a shot to reinforce the message.

So much commiseration, loira. Everything is a battle at nighttime. We've tried a few things, including giving her choices which works pretty well. Like, "Either you brush your teeth or mom or dad will brush them." We let her pick out her pajamas. We let her brush our hair before we brush hers. We give her until the count of 5 to do what we're asking or we do it for her. Independence is so big at this age, we've found that giving her more freedom in these things helps a lot. But sometimes she just tantrums and if all else fails (and nothing else is wrong), we tell her that we're going to leave for a few minutes until she calms down and we walk out of the room. We come back usually within 30 seconds and ask her if she's ready to listen, etc. We've also started reading books in our room after she's ready for bed. She's contained to the bed (too high up for her to get down) and listens well without the distractions in her room (like hiding behind curtains and rifling through her closet). It's made for a much calmer bedtime. I hope it gets better for you soon!

[ivy]

We had a nice weekend. DD started back at gymnastics on Saturday. I took her most of the time last year, but H decided to take her the majority of the time this year (it's a pretty physical endeavor for parents at this age). It gives me some time to myself to get laundry started and work out undistributed. They also came back with breakfast! And the weather is cooling off a bit so we spent more time outside which was so nice.

We also started looking at new cars this weekend. I've been pretty annoyed that I have to replace my current one (it will not accommodate 3 car seats), because I bought it with in the intent of having it for 8-10 years. We even drastically accelerated the payoff and it's literally 4 payments away from being paid off. So taking on the financial burden of a new car at this point was not my plan. But we've found a great option, and I think we can swing paying for it in cash to avoid a payment again.

I'm only 12 weeks along, but I think I'm going to tell work this week. I mean, I think I have to because the physical evidence at this point is difficult to conceal. I'm not sure it will be much of a surprise at this point. Hoping I get the NIPT results back first. Blood was drawn last Tuesday so hopefully not too much longer.

[scm1011]

loira, I hear you on the chatty kids. I seem to be a beacon for other people's kids and they always want to chat. I guess my RBF only works on adults lol.

[shauni27]

ivy, excellent idea on the book!

[shauni27]

loira, S is only 1 but brushing teeth, which he used to love, is now SUCH A FUCKING FIGHT. Kills me. Also, bathtime at night is getting rough--he loves to take baths, but because he is so active right now he wants to climb out. So as soon as he does that, we end bath time and dry him off. But then he freaks out because he wants to get back in. Commence screaming and thrashing.

Then dressing him is a PITA but he calms down with his cup of milk. Then repeat with the tooth brushing.

[katespade]

H got to feel the baby move for the first time last night, and the look on his face was one of the best things I've ever seen. He was so shocked when it happened, because I warned him that it might be a while before he would be able to.

[cactuscookie]

shauni27, I'm not an expert, but it sounds to me like you're doing everything exactly right. Biting is, unfortunately, a stage that a lot of kids go through. Even our daycare handbook has a section on biting and how normal it is. I can commiserate though, because H was a terrible biter for about a year.

scm1011, omg, my DH is totally that parent at the park who would helicopter other people's kids. I'm so jealous that you can let your kid climb at the park independently at that age. DH would kill me if he knew what I let H play on independently at the playground.

loira, ivy, I can commiserate, but I don't know if there's much that can be done, I really think it's just a phase. Right now with H, anything scheduled ends up in a tantrum, so daycare, naptime, dinner time, and bedtime. Some of these tantrums are truly epic, like naptime yesterday and leaving for daycare today. Bedtime isn't usually as bad, but there was one night last week where she screamed for 15-20 minutes in the midst of our routine. Like ivy, we do give her a lot of choices as part of our bedtime routine - which toothbrush to use, which undies/jammies to wear, which books to read - and that seems to help. But there's still a lot of hiding behind the chair and sometimes just plain running away, which gets really old. When she does have these huge tantrums, we usually just let her roll on the floor screaming while one of us sits next to her. Blowing out the birthday candles seems to help (hold up five fingers as if they're candles and ask her to blow them out one by one, which is supposed to be a calming breathing exercise), although mostly I think it's just a distraction.

But yeah, overall, it sucks. Like this morning, we had a great morning. H was super cute following the cat around in the backyard, until we had to get dressed to go to daycare and she refused, so we basically held her down while we forced clothes on her, which I hate doing. It puts me in a bad mood for a while, and it's especially disappointing after having such a nice morning together.

[shauni27]

cactuscookie, that is when I would let S just wear either pajamas or give him the option of picking 100% what he wants to wear and I would drop him off looking like a crazy person, lol.

[scm1011]

Here is the bottom of my kid (blue shorts) on the ladder. It’s chain link, not rope (I misremembered). Maybe I’m being too breezy in this circumstance, but he climbed up at least 20 times and never had an issue (nor did his little friend behind him). I’m pretty hands off at the playground these days unless there are bigger kids running around.

[cactuscookie]

Aug 27, 2018 12:11:43 GMT -5 shauni27 said:

cactuscookie , that is when I would let S just wear either pajamas or give him the option of picking 100% what he wants to wear and I would drop him off looking like a crazy person, lol.

We do let her choose her own clothes. Except instead of dragging her back upstairs to her bedroom, we just bring a few options downstairs for her to choose between. I should probably encourage her to get dressed as soon as she wakes up so that she can rifle through her drawers and choose something, which she likes, but it's so cute when she spends the mornings in her purple panda jammies! No so cute that she can wear them to daycare though, especially with her current hardass teacher.

[cactuscookie]

Aug 27, 2018 12:59:12 GMT -5 scm1011 said:

Here is the bottom of my kid (blue shorts) on the ladder. It’s chain link, not rope (I misremembered). Maybe I’m being too breezy in this circumstance, but he climbed up at least 20 times and never had an issue (nor did his little friend behind him). I’m pretty hands off at the playground these days unless there are bigger kids running around. 

That's awesome. Seriously after the first few times without issues, I think you're good to take a step back and relax. My husband is just super paranoid and he basically irritates everyone around him.

[ivy]

scm1011, I don't think you're being too breezy. You know your kid. If he was managing fine, I would've done the same thing. Sounds like you all do this all the time!

[mpc]

I had some pain this morning that freaked me out. It was sharp, constant, right where my previous c-section internal incision was. Lasted about half an hour but has gone away now. If I get up and walk around briskly to a meeting or something, I feel a dull ache there, but not as bad as the morning. Did I mention last week that we tentatively set my c-section date for Oct 1. (unless something happens before then, lol). I was kind of hoping for september, but it is a relief either way to have a date to plan around.

[mpc]

shauni27, DD is going through a phase where she is hitting us, in the face. Just to gauge our reaction I guess. We started putting her in "time out" when she got in trouble, mostly so DS could see her getting consequences too, but now I think we need to really do something to curb this behavior and not just put on a show for DS. Second time around and I still don't know how to fix this stuff.

loira, our tent is for 8 people, and i'm a little unsure how we will go from 4 to 5 and still all fit, lol.

thoseareradishes, I would say for leaking at night you either size up or try a brand that is specifically nighttime. i know you don't want to switch because of rashes, but it might be worth a short trial.

[ivy]

Just got the results from my NIPT. Everything came back as low risk, thank goodness. And a Y chromosome was detected, so we're having boys! Identical twin boys. How on earth are we going to survive? <3 <3 <3

[cherryvalance]

Did anyone here have HG? The ER diagnosed me with HG, and I'm obviously following up with my OB, but figured it doesn't hurt to have tips in the meantime.

[pooh8402]

I got the results back on NIPT too, but I'm asking them to put the sex in an envelope so DH and I can find out together. EXCEPT I can't pick up the dang envelope until Wednesday! Grrrr. (I work 7a-7p today and tomorrow)

All the genetics came back normal!

[mpc]

Aug 27, 2018 14:54:31 GMT -5 pooh8402 said:

I got the results back on NIPT too, but I'm asking them to put the sex in an envelope so DH and I can find out together. EXCEPT I can't pick up the dang envelope until Wednesday! Grrrr. (I work 7a-7p today and tomorrow)

All the genetics came back normal!

I asked the nurse to call me back and leave a voicemail, so we listened to the voicemail together that night. I couldn't wait longer than that lol. Glad to hear about the genetics, that's such a relief!

[shauni27]

pooh8402, ivy, congrats on healthy babies!!! And ivy congrats on the TWIN BOYS! SO EXCITING!

cactuscookie, I hope I did not come off as judgmental because that was not at all my intention. I just meant that I am beyond lazy, lol. But I only have a one year old and I am sure my thoughts will change as he grows up. I am sorry you had to deal with that this morning (and that his DAYCARE TEACHER is such a hard ass!)

[loira]

scm1011, oh yeah, that ladder doesn't look too bad. I was envisioning the kind of climbing thing where there are no steps and it's just a rope and an incline.

cherryvalance, I was never formally diagnosed, but pretty sure I had it. I could not even go 2 hours without puking, had constant hypersalivation, and I was just miserable until at least 16 or 17 weeks when it tapered off to just daytime and by evening I could eat a bit. I was glad I worked freelance at the time because getting on the tube to go to an office would have been impossible. I spent most of my day lying on the couch, sipping water and wanting to die. Nothing helped, not even the drugs they gave me. At least I didn't have to be hospitalized. #silverlinings

[cherryvalance]

loira, I'm so sorry! That is awful. I was diagnosed this past weekend, but by the ER Dr on staff and not my OB. I went in because I thought I had food poisoning and couldn't keep liquids down. They gave me IV fluids, Zofran, etc, but I still couldn't keep liquids down on the way home. I've been on Diclegis and Zofran since and have been able to drink and eat tiny amounts of food.

I still don't think this is HG just because it came on so quickly, but I'm following up with my OB today or tomorrow (couldn't take the 45 minute car ride before now).

[boiler717]

@scm1101 he’s fine! T never climbs anywhere inappropriately, but he was climbing 12 feet+ by 15m of age. I actually think hovering makes them more likely to fall. We don’t help him do anything, but if he can do it himself it’s developmentally appropriate IMO. The first pic was around 18m, he climbed the entire thing over and over. Second was in the late spring, so before 2.5 years and he’s about 12 feet in the air.