I’ll go first: no matter how often you do laundry, there’s always more laundry to do. Always. 😆

This is a PSA for all parents especially first time parents. Do not go down the slide with your kids on your lap, please just don't do it. We hear this everyday and how it's the top cause of fracture or broken leg among kids and I even saw a video about this when my daughter was still a newborn and educated my husband about this - still it happened 🙁

What was supposed to be a fun family time turned into a bad day when my husband and 22 month old went down the slide together, my husband did grab my daughter's legs when they went down but her ankle still got caught on the side. Took her to the doctor right away to get an xray and thankfully they did not see any fracture or broken bones but she was still down and couldn't walk for almost 2weeks.

My husband felt so bad when it happened and of course i did want to yell at him for doing it but i didn't. Fighting and blaming each other won't help the situation, we just know better for next time and want to share this with other parents.

This is the first time my daughter has been hurt this bad (she got some light boo boos before but nothing this serious) and it was heartbreaking which i know won't be the last time we'll feel so heartbroken and feel like we failed as a parent.

She is better now and back to her old active self which i'm so grateful for.

I keep seeing parents being told that we shouldn’t use our phones in front of our babies because it can interfere with bonding, eye contact, communication and development.
And I completely understand the point. Babies learn through interaction, facial expressions, talking and responding to us. And obviously, we don’t want our phones to constantly take our attention away from them.
But here’s my question: how realistic is it to completely put your phone away?
What about when you’re breastfeeding for 30–60 minutes?
What about when your baby falls asleep on you and you’re literally trapped underneath them? 😂
What about those endless contact naps?
Or when you’re exhausted and just need 20 minutes of scrolling to switch your brain off?
Personally, I find the idea of never touching my phone around my baby pretty unrealistic.
I think there’s a big difference between occasionally checking your phone while your baby is happily nursing or sleeping on you and being constantly glued to your screen while your baby is awake and trying to get your attention.
So I’m genuinely curious:
How do you handle phone use around your baby?
Do you put your phone away completely?
Do you use it during breastfeeding/contact naps?
Or do you think occasional phone use is totally fine as long as it doesn’t replace interaction with your baby?
No judgment I really want to know what other parents actually do in real life. 😂❤️

I have a 17 week old babygirl and she has truly become the world to me. When she was born I struggled to bond with her and it took getting to know her and her getting to know me for us to truly truly bond.

Now I cant stop struggling with thoughts of her going through pain and hardship, heartbreak, loss etc. When I take her for vaccines I cry because my heart aches when shes upset. Just the thought of me leaving her at nursery and her being upset turns my stomach and the many other worries that will come with her growing up.

I sometimes think I wish she didnt exists so she couldn't be hurt, its a weird thought and I wonder if anyone else has felt this way or should I seek professional help?

While I’m sure that might be true, I hate when people say this to me. I’m a first time parent & everyday I’m so humbled. Everyone keeps telling me to get out with my newborn, but my newborn is giving me hell everyday! He has been SO fussy recently, crying much more than usual. He’s almost 10 weeks old and I truly thought it’d be better by now but it feels harder to me. I am truly in survival mode and have 0 energy to get out with a crying baby.

I feel like everyone always says “how do you not go crazy just being at home all the time?!?” I personally enjoy it. Pre pregnancy me, I NEEDED to go for rides everyday after I got my coffee. Loooved it. We moved out of our hometown, have a coffee machine and I make even better coffee than I used to get at Starbucks lol, and I just genuinely don’t feel the need to leave my house unless I have money to spend, or need to go grocery shopping. Once a month I’ll usually go out for drinks with a friend or something, sometimes not even once though lol.

Am I the only person who can stay home for days at a time without going ‘crazy?’ Everyone always says “it’s good to get out of the house!” But like…. I don’t mind. There’s plenty to do at home. And I love being cozy and comfy.

Im not sure any flair quite fits so im not looking for any mental health support or advise. Im curious if other people feel the same.

I literally cant do anything without someone being pissed off. If i cant agree to a time because baby needs to feed then im not flexible but if I feed baby out and he makes a mess then im just in the way. If i dont feed him im awful and he will just cry.

I no longer want to leave the house or meet up with anyone as I cant be bothered with mean looks ot comments.

My husband has been awful because the baby isnt a robot that goes to bed at a set time and wake up at a set time from both night sleep or naps. Baby having needs is an inconvenience and its all my fault yet has no suggestions because at the end of the day you cant not feed a baby or not let it sleep or change its nappy.

Friends have disappeared even though you were there for them when they had kids.

It just feels like theres no room in society for kids and their mums. Either than or I have been incredibly unlucky with the people around me so far.

My baby is only 6 weeks so I’m still super new to parenting but everyone keeps telling me to go with the flow and chill and ignore wake windows and all of that. Social media is flooded with parents claiming to be chill and just following baby’s lead, which sounds appealing because all the different views on wake windows and naps etc is hurting my brain already. But personally I find it so much easier to be “chill” or at least feel chill when baby isn’t doing anything particularly crazy. All babies cry all babies fuss etc, but last night we had her worst ever screaming episode for about 3 hours, the most piercing soul crushing scream I have ever heard her do, and I’m 99% sure it was over tiredness because of a fought nap, two much shorter naps than usual, and the fact that what ultimately calmed her was my husband holding her VERY tight to his chest and almost human swaddling her arms and legs still so she wouldn’t startle herself. I can tell her nervous system was just completely fried.

So my question is if you’re a chill parent who doesn’t listen to all the wake windows stuff, what do you do when your baby is just absolutely losing the plot? Or do they just not? I just can’t understand how anyone can be expected to “go with the flow” when the flow is screaming at a decibel that you could hear from space and your baby is SO distressed. How do you not find yourself trying to understand why? (Yes yes I know I know babies are unpredictable and you can’t understand them etc etc but there is of course SOME degree of cause and effect).

TY in advance from one highly strung FTM so badly wanting to be chill

So… I’m a FTM, exclusively breastfeeding.
I’m still not fully recovered to start having sex with my husband yet, but we’re both very eager for it 😁
I just have one question, how is the boob thing going to work? Lol I can’t take my bra off because I leak like crazy, I’m also wearing nursing pads all day otherwise my clothes would be drenched all the time. I guess I can leave my bra on for it, but my breasts are a huge part in giving pleasure for me when having sex, if I take the bra off, my bed will be soaked!
On the other hand I’m not sure how my husband feels about it, if he kisses them, you know, he’ll inevitable will get milk in his mouth. I haven’t talked to him about it but who knows maybe he is into it! lol

So, what are your experiences on this? Sorry if I was too explicit.

I think this is mostly a vent/getting things off my chest kind of post.

Little girl is 8.5 months. I've seen some posts from people feeling regret etc but mainly in the newborn phase and others say it gets better around 6ish months and honestly I just don't feel that way.

We were always on the fence about having children but eventually decided we did want a baby and were really excited when I got pregnant, throughout pregnancy etc. And I do 100% love her but I just have so much regret sometimes. Regret because I feel like I've lost myself and my autonomy, regret because I feel like my dog is getting a lot less attention and is now being harassed by this tiny dictator, regret over how our relationship has changed. And I just feel like it's not going away.

I hate that I have to be constantly switched on 24/7. I hate the constant battle of getting her to sleep. I hate the constant fatigue and feeling permanently exhausted. I think I'm probably the only one who actually enjoyed the early phase where she would just sleep and eat and be held. Now she's crawling and wants to do everything and it's just so overwhelming trying to keep her alive, keep me alive and generally keep my shit together. I've shouted at her before when I've got to the end of my tether and felt immense guilt over it because I know she's just learning to live and be and deal with all these new things in the world.

I don't even think she's a particularly fussy/problematic baby which makes me feel even more guilty that I feel this way.

I'm not necessarily looking for advice but just hoping I'm not the only one out there feeling like this and that I might not hate my life forever.

[TW: Brief mention of sick infants/ICU]

My 13 week old has started fighting every single nap and refuses to transfer to her crib. To make it worse, she hates when I sit down, so I have to stand and bounce her for at least 20 minutes to get her down. She’s getting heavy, my back is destroyed, and I’m constantly reminded that I should probably work out.

Last night, while standing there completely exhausted and losing my patience, I tried an unhinged perspective check.

I pulled up one of those documentary videos on YouTube about babies in the ICU and what families with sick kids go through. Watching what those parents are dealing with completely reset my brain. It instantly snapped me out of my frustration and reminded me how lucky I am to be holding my healthy baby girl, even if my arms are numb.

My back still aches, but holding her stopped feeling like a burden. Watching those videos helped me reframe the moment and actually cherish holding her instead of just counting down the minutes.

Slightly dark and definitely unorthodox, but if you’re trapped standing in a dark nursery losing your mind right now, maybe this weird hack will help you too!

Hi!! FTM to a beautiful 3 month old bb girl and just wondering when did you decide you were content with having an only child? Before having our daughter, my husband always talked about having 2-3 kids max but now me personally I’m not so sure anymore. The pregnancy wasn’t bad and the early months weren’t too terrible, but idk, idk if I can give it my 120% and do it all again? Apologies for the lack of grammar, just needed a space to think out loud 😅

Just like the title says, I accidentally locked my baby in the car today. I feel so terrible and guilty!

I just had a massive win towards my PPA yesterday and feel like I've taken a step back after this.

Yesterday I was so proud of myself. I left baby (m,10w) alone with dad for the first time to go play volleyball. I enjoyed it and even stayed for a drink afterwards. Before today the longest I left him was 20min. So this felt like a massive win.

Today I went food shopping and when I put baby in the car I closed the door. It didn't close properly and locked itself. Normally not all doors lock when closing a door so not sure what went wrong this time. I ALWAYS ALWAYS keep the keys on my body because I am so afraid of this exact scenario happening.

Thankfully my sister was with me and had her phone on her (mine was in the car next to the keys). I called police right away to come help us. But Thankfully my FIL had a day of and could bring me the spare car key so they didn't need to break a window.

I now feel like such a bad mom. Although little one was sleeping through all of this.

How do I prevent this from making my PPA worse again? I feel like I won't dare to leave the house with him alone again soon.

This morning my baby was adorably impatient while waiting for me to feed her while I went to pee. She makes these squealing sounds which cannot be contained.

The thought occurred that her experience could be made more gentle should she learn some patience for her fellow, often slow-moving humans. Patience really is a virtue!

However, I love her complete lack of inhibition when it comes to expressing her feelings about waiting for me. That part can stay!

Why aren’t we just saying our children are 2 or a little over 2 or just shy of 2.5 years. I always heard this as a joke, those memes of people being like “my baby is 132 months old” but to actual see it with me own eyes - like is there a genuine reason to not just say __ years when your baby is over 1 year???? It feels equivalent to saying my baby is 14 weeks instead of 3 almost 4 months

We just started daycare. So far, he has attended 8/17 scheduled days.

Back to back illnesses. How am I supposed to hold down a job???

My PTO is already drained from maternity leave. My current employer is very resistant to the idea of remote work and I get the sense her patience is wearing thin.

I’m so overwhelmed.

How are other 8 month old parents getting anything done?! My son just turned 8 months and has recently learned to pull up on things to stand. Well that has led to quite a few tumbles. He’s got a padded playpen with foam blocks to crawl on but I feel like every time I looks away for a second this kid is bumping his head 🫩

I don’t want to sound like I’m complaining about having an “easy baby” because I know how lucky we are. But on the inevitable days where our baby is having a harder time, difficult to console, no clear cause or solution to the crying, I find it so difficult.

I probably find it more difficult because I’m blessed that this isn’t our every day. But it really knocks my confidence and gets me down. Family and friends tell me I’m doing really well. But I feel like I’ve been living this whole thing on “cheat mode” - I seem like a good mum because our baby is easy. When she’s having a bad day, like any baby does, I find it really difficult and I don’t feel that I’m such a good mum at all. Feel like a bit of a fraud if I’m being honest.

I'm the kind of person that gets sick once a year or once every other year.

But since daycare started two months ago, we've all been sick non-stop.

Does anyone have any tips? Changing clothes after daycare? Using had sanitizer after daycare? Etc

You'll save yourself hours agonizing over what went wrong last night, why they wouldn't nap the way you hoped, or what you could have done differently to guarantee a different outcome. You cannot guarantee anything! Take the pressure off yourselves and just accept that you're on the struggle bus and will be for a while. There are so many variables you can't account for or control, and trying to do otherwise will just cause you more anxiety than just living with it. There've been days when we did everything "right" to ensure a good night, down to the most minute details, and guess what? Some of those ended up being really hard nights anyway.

Many voices online sell the illusion that if you just adopt their Ten Step Plan or this one little-known trick, you'll crack your baby's code, as if they're some mathematical puzzle that you must solve. They're a human. A human baby. And by and large babies suck at sleeping like an adult. There is no trick to it, no universal secret sauce. You'll drive yourself mad cycling through all the "life-saving" tips that people swear by, only to learnt that of course none of them happen to work for your baby. You cannot control it. You cannot reason your way out of this predicament. It is not a science. It is not an art. It is not a sport. It's just a struggle you have to go through as a family.

Sure, there are some basic practices that can help ease your ride on the struggle bus, but the predicament you're in does not fundamentally change by implementing them. Try to read tiredness cues, have a calming bedtime routine, take care of your back, celebrate what victories you do have, but you're still on the struggle bus, and that's normal and fine.

I’m a FTM in my 30s and I swear that before this all I was so flexible and easy going. Plans could change and schedules could be chaotic all around me, yet I could easily navigate the chaos and keep going.

Now (even at 9 months PP), I feel like a crazy lady trying to manage a schedule for my baby while maintaining by high level job, being a wife, finding myself again, etc. The slightest shift or change to baby’s schedule - which happens often with daycare - stresses me out because I can feel the looming night of shit sleep ahead.

Like today… we’re on day 6 of a cold + some awful teething. Sleep has been awful since Thursday and her milk intake has dropped drastically during the day (she’s still hydrated and has been eating more solids at home to offset things). It’s 4 PM and I just checked the daycare log - she’s at 6 total ounces on the day + only one puree pouch and I’m already stressed for the night 😩

Does the stress of managing ounces, wake windows, sleep, etc eventually go away or does motherhood change those aspects of your personality forever??

Hey everyone! My formula fed baby smells. I bathe him every other day usually but he still ends up smelling like cheese/sour milk. I hate it! I am cleaning all of his colds, under his neck, etc. I also have noticed his hands smell. What in the world can I buy to help remove this smell in between baths? I don’t necessarily want to bathe him each night as I don’t want his skin to dry out. Any ideas are great! Are there any wipes of some sort I can buy?

Do all newborns breathe super loud?? Like doesn’t seem like they’re struggling to breathe and they’re not retracting in the chest, just super loud?? Is this normal? Doesn’t seem to bother him, I just have crazy anxiety right now at 6 days postpartum and am interested if anyone else’s newborns are loud breathers?

hello!

i am currently 4mo pp vaginal delivery no complications. after about a month i started going on walks ~3x week and after 2 months i tried to go daily (really just when baby allows) about a month ago, i started working out again. i’m trying to lose weight for my brothers wedding in november but making sure to eat enough to keep my supply up.

about a week ago (the day after my husband and i had sex), i saw some tissue like stuff when i peed and had a light pink discharge for a couple days, then it turned into darker red (not quite bloody like a period, more slimey). that happened for about 2-3 days. it started calming down, then just yesterday i passed a quarter (ish) sized clot thing when i peed.

i am also getting some lower abdomen pain when i go for simple walks after about 10-15 minutes. i just switched insurance so i am trying to set up an appointment asap but wanted to hear if anyone else has experienced something similar.

im not convinced it was my period, but it could have been. i’m not sure if im working out too hard, or maybe sex stirred up some loose stuff i had in there. i have no idea. but the pain while walking is what concerns me.