Activity Cube or Activity Table
My little one will be 8 months tomorrow and he loves to pull himself up on things. Which toy do you think he’d get more use out of?
Books for 2.5 year old (for Christmas)
I’m looking for some new book ideas for my 2.5 year old. She has a lot of books already but I want to get her some new ones for Christmas. We don’t go over the top for this holiday but books are always a gift. She loves everything....from fire trucks, trains, airplanes and school busses to dolls, babies, animals...very typical toddler with wide and varied interests. She’s an only child and ... More
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Stacey
My son loves the "Don't touch Monster" and the other "Don't touch" books. They have textured parts that the kid can feel. He also loves ANY interactive book like lift a flap or slide something over. In term of non-interactive books he seems to like the Llama Llama books. Llama Llama Red Pajama gets read a lot and there are several holiday books so we have been readi... More
Trailer bike recommendation
Goal : family bike rides with 2 parents, 1 yo & 3 yo through flat, paved suburbia Question: what is the best trailer bike for the 3yo? Context: the 3 yo currently uses a balance bike, but can't yet do long distances nor is he tall enough to cross streets & be seen by drivers. We would like him to contribute (pedal) rather than just tag along. We would prefer the option to easily ... More
Does Santa brings gifts to adults too?
Asking from a 1st time parent to a toddler who’s into the holidays now & is very excited about Christmas. I know each family has their “traditions”. I’m just curious, besides Santa filling up the stockings with little gifts, can he bring presents to Dad, Mom & other adults too? I didn’t grew up here in the US, I grew up in Asia (Philippines), we do love Christmas but more as being Catho... More
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MamaNukesYopolo
Santa (for our house) usually brings something mom and dad need, like kitchen towels or sneakers or toothbrushes.
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antigrav_kids
When I was a kid, Santa totally brought presents to my parents. Also, one of the perks of Santa was that they didn't wrap gifts. If it was sitting out unwrapped, it was from Santa.
Christmas gift fairness
I have a 10 year old step son and an 18 month old daughter and I’m not sure how to make gifting fair between the two. Our 10 year old put a list together and all of his items are anywhere from $70-$300!!! He doesn’t play with any toys and only likes video games!! Ugh I blame my husband for that one. At this age do you not worry about making sure they each get the same amount in dollar wise or ... More
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Sara
I definitely wouldn’t worry about making things fair. Your 18 month old will have no clue and won’t care. Spend on the 10 year old whatever you’re comfortable spending. If you want to get everything on the list great but the list is not an obligation to get all those items! As far as the 18 month old, putting money away in savings is a wonderful idea if you can afford it. They’re happy unwrappi... More
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Anonymous
How it went for me growing up is that we made a list, and then we got some of the items. You dont get the whole list. But you do spend the same amount in money.
We JUST saw you: Family Boundaries
Anyone have any experience with setting boundaries with their families around the holidays? Before my daughter was born my husband and I used to split time between family members or just spend it together. However, now with a 1 year old (only grandchild) the grandparents expect us to invite and host them for all holidays going forward or worse—travel to them with a toddler. They mean well but t... More
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Jaclyn
We split holidays between my family and my in-laws so no one can argue and so it’s not overwhelming. And we switch each year. So for example this year my family came for Thanksgiving and his family will come for Christmas. Next year we will do Thanksgiving with his family and Xmas with mine. I typically host Thanksgiving since my family is smaller on the “on” years and may travel a bit for his ... More
Christmas Tree Fence?
Anyone have any experience with these? I have a curious and active 1yo and she gets into everything. How do I keep her from tipping over the Christmas tree?
Anyone else read "Oh Crap Potty Training"...
And feel like it just wasnt the right fit? I found the book to be informative and useful on many levels but knowing my kid I just dont think that method will be the best for her. Just wondering what others thought of the book and experiences with it. TIA!
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Diana
I bought it, all excited, until I started hearing everyone else’s rave reviews, explaining how their child only peed on the floor x number of times today... and I will fully admit that I selfishly did not want to clean up unnecessary bodily fluids. So I did exactly what everyone says you should never do and put my child in pull-ups. She was 90% there (even waking up dry) at 2.5, but then regr... More
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Jennifer
We just went through this over Thanksgiving! I read the book in its entirety and my husband read key chapters and the checklist/FAQ while on a business trip. Some of it was great, but the rest seemed totally unrealistic unless you have at least one stay-at home parent (Block one is three days but can take up to a week? Sorry can’t burn up the few vacation/sick days I have on a week of potty ... More
I need help finding activities to do with my 8 month old on a low budget
I’m a stay at home mom and my biggest struggle is keeping my little boy entertained. The past few months I’ve been letting him watch TV, but I’ve noticed lately that he hasn’t been reaching some milestones with language and emotional connection... I realized with how often I let him watch TV, it isn’t helping him develop what he needs, but I don’t know what to do to help him learn! We don’t hav... More
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MamaNukesYopolo
Check out hands on as we grow, the blog. They have a variety of activities and most of them either use materials you have at home or you can sorta look around and swap it in. It’s very hard to keep babies that age entertained and safe without being the one entertaining. As far as education, they’re simply Learning by listening and watching you. So when your cooking, give the baby some Cheerio a... More
Books about emotions?
My almost 2 yr old is just getting super frustrated and lashing out when he doesn’t get his way or we simply don’t understand him. i want to start teaching him more about emotions and he responds to books well. Any book recommendations that cover this topic?
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Jennifer
Just wanted to second two replies: (1) the Little Monkey Calms Down (and other Hello Genius) board books have worked great for our 18 month old, and (2) what Ashleigh recommends—helping identify the emotion for your little...I know when I started saying things similar to Ashleigh’s example to our toddler, she would stop to listen or say yes/no to confirm that it was how she felt.
Books on toddler nutrition?
Hi everyone, I have a 2 year old picky eater. I know it’s not uncommon, but I am stumped on how and what to feed her. I feel like she rejects 90% of what I offer, and today I realized she started losing weight. I am looking for book recommendations on how to feed her, and what to feed her. It doesn’t have to be the same book. TIA! 💗
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Anonymous
Thank you all for the replies and suggestions
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Anonymous
Penelope I have tried not offering anything else, but she started losing weight because she won’t eat. I definitely don’t want this to become a battle, I’d like for her to look forward to meal time. Toddlers are headstrong little creatures.
Anxiety about walking toddler
So I'm a SAHM and my kid is 20 months and she gets into EVERYTHING. I think a daily schedule is needed but I have depression and anxiety so its hard for me to even have the energy to follow a kid and internally freaking out everytime she gets into something, does anyone know what I can do to improve?
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Kieli
Definitely baby proof, if all the dangerous things are put up and the only things she can get into is toys, then let her play and dump them all out. I have a 2 yr old and a 6 month old and I don’t really have a set schedule, just kind of a routine I like to follow. Starts with breakfast for both, then nap for 6 month old and independent play for 2 year old. Usually by the time the baby wakes it... More
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Angelica
There are lots of toddler schedules online that you can base yours off of. Designate a couple of rooms, like the child’s room and maybe a play room or living room where you and your child will spend most of your time. Put away problematic things in those rooms and baby proof them so that these rooms are safer. Baby gate the other rooms so your child can’t even get into those rooms. It doesn’t t... More
No screen time - thoughts?
I would like no screen time for my current 16 month old. However we do show her videos and photos of herself on our phones, sometimes she watches us on our phones, sometimes we turn on the news/Netflix in the background while we play/lie in bed waiting for her to fall asleep. I am really strict with screen time. Especially involving other people that aren’t her parents. I don’t want them bein... More
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Lindsey
I have my first on the way, so I can't speak from experience yet, but my husband and I have already talked about screen time. My plan is to raise her like I was raised and to be a good example when I'm around her. My first thing will be no videos on the phone (except now that you mention it, showing her videos of herself sounds fun and harmless.) I am ok with some TV shows occasionall... More
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Vonda
You are not too controlling. But just make sure you and your husband are on the same page. We don’t do screens for our son either. I show him photos and he FaceTimes with his grandparents. But no tv or movies. I don’t put tv on in the background. Just music or read aloud. It’s hard for us to not do something we do all the time in this day and age. It took me a while to purge it out of my syste... More
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Mandy
Our son was 9 months old last Christmas. But we did musical and developmental toys. Hape Pound & Tap Bench with Slide Out Xylophone - Award Winning Durable Wooden Musical Pounding Toy for Toddlers, Multifunctional and Bright Colours https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00712O2D6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_XJWTDbEABQH07
With the upcoming holidays & school breaks, how are parents handling childcare coverage?
I'd like to keep my daughter active (not just hanging around the house with a sitter) - there's got to be a better way than a Google search for what's available when school's out? Ideas? Thanks!
Birthday Party Ideas
Hi so I have a set of twins turning 4 in January. My son is autistic but my daughter isn’t. This is the first year I want to throw them a party but I don’t want to be so concerned about not overwhelming my son that my daughter doesn’t have fun. Any suggestions?
Golden birthday
Hi! My daughter is turning two and I was wondering if you guys have any cute golden birthday ideas or traditions. I already know I’m going to get her a gold two birthday balloon and taking her to the zoo but other than that I’m lost
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anonymous mom
I didn’t know that 2 was a golden birthday 🤦♀️. My daughter likes fire trucks so I ordered a cake that looked like a fire truck. Red. Not gold. Happy birthday to your little one, I hope you all have an awesome day!!! ❤️❤️
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anonymous mom
Oh ohhhhhh but school busses are kind of golden right!? If she’s school bus obsessed like most kids are maybe something to do with a school bus!! 😍
Best age for 1st Sleepover
What age did your child attend/host 1st sleepover? Daughter is turning 8 years old and she would really like one. I'm wracking my brain and nerves trying to plan/prepare/make definitive decision on yes or no. I don't feel our house is big enough. Her room is upstairs. Mine is downstairs...do I sleep upstairs???? Go up and down15 times checking on girls? Does my hubby and 2 year old st... More
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Serrina F.
I have a 9 year old son and he has had several sleepovers and gone to a couple. We haven't had more than 3 boys at a time though but they were fine in his room, if we past 3 I would make them set up in the livingroom. All they did was snack, play video games and be on the laptop. I had to force them to watch a movie and eat dinner. They were up pretty late playing them dang video games but... More
We have an activity cube that I love and my 4 year old still uses it. My 9 month old uses it too, and they play on it occasionally, however, my 2 year old has pretty much never really been interested in it. I chose a cube because it’s better for storage, and was cheaper, but I think if you have the space and budget, a table could be nice. I think both would be great options in any case
We ended up with two tables. The second one he has only had for a month or so but he has had the other one since he could stand. He doesn’t play with it as much ( he just turned 2) but he loved his table when he younger. He loved anything with buttons and switches and if it has sound that is even better.