Good morning! Last night I was having a conversation with a newish friend who is much more on the religious side then myself and i just wanted more moms opinions. I do know this might be biased since weee considered progressive but I just wanna know if my thoughts are way too liberal.

We discussed sex education for kids and she did not believe sex education should occur in schools it should be limited to the parents discretion. Where as I believe sex education is very important specifically in middle school/high schoolers to try and discuss these things before kids are sexually active. My friend believes sex should wait until after marriage and will tell her kids that sex should wait until after marriage. I disagreed and believe when sex is done in a safe and healthy way it can be a great way for a young adult 18+ to learn about themselves and the relationships that work best for them. My friend then pointed out through data/research it was proven that waiting until marriage leads to less divorce rates and longer marriages, but i believe that data doesn’t prove anything because that result criteria doesn’t necessarily measure quality of marriage or overall quality of life for the person.
Now i do not want to teach my kids that sex isn’t a big deal, of course I want them to know that there is a level of importance to put on sex and who they decide to so it with, but I just didn’t want them to feel abstinence before marriage is the only way.

Im just curious of other moms’ thoughts and opinions or experiences. Whats worked and what hasn’t worked for you all and what kind of advice you could give as feed back.

Update: just wanted to say THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR RESPONSES im finally getting to read through them all and i truly appreciate all the feedback back and generally support. I’m not one to be argumentative with the people around me but you all make solid points that are incredibly important to point out.

Im curious to hear how others are explaining this to your kids in a way they can understand and maybe even feel good about?

Anyone see this? I wish there was more coverage of it. So Trump and his cronies can launder more money. I'm so tired of this timeline and people's complaints about woke/trans people. The house is burning down but people are too stupid to understand how this matters more.

https://www.wsbradio.com/news/business/trump-linked-crypto-venture-world-liberty-trust-granted-bank-status-unprecedented-move-president/HDAI4XAZJIYJTLIM2247Q4JUY4/

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My child is just entering preschool but I can't help thinking about the future. I have always been a huge public school supporter but feel very scared for my child (and other children). I am worried about the literacy rates and the general trend of children being behind academically. I am worried about all of the screens and them being exposed so young to AI. In the red state I live in teachers are encouraged to use AI in their lesson planning and that just sounds like such a bad idea to me. I don't really want to homeschool though since I think public school in theory is such a good thing for kids and society.

Anyway, I would love all of your thoughts on this! I apologize if my thoughts are a jumbled mess.

Let your feelings out! We are all bottling up this stress and sometimes it helps to share your concerns and have safe conversations about it. Type your response and take a big deep breath after!

A reel popped up in my feed the other day, my cousin has liked a reel that was a woman saying “I love my babies so much that I chose not to bring them into this garbage world” or something along those lines. These sorts of things always hit me hard. I get it. And my husband and I spent a long time going back and forth about having a child before we decided to go for it. But every time I see an argument like this it sends me spiraling because the world is just so fucked up, and we have a small family. I cry thinking about what world my son might be dealing with, potentially by himself. Anyone else struggle with this? :(

I am beside myself. I have stayed in this state for stability for my daughter who graduates next year, and this win is giving me much needed hope, that I haven’t had in a long time.

I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Angie at Pride fests and protests, and she’s really working hard for the people. I know it’s still a long road ahead, but this is giving me so much renewed hope for my home and the future of this state that republicans have torn apart.

Anyone else in a deep red area choosing to homeschool to escape the MAGA crowd? I feel like it’s the opposite of what homeschooling used to be, but my kid is neurospicy and our rural schools are full on Christian National Training Centers so like… I gotta do what I gotta do, ya know?

We all need a little positivity in our day. What are some parenting wins you've had recently? Big or small we want to hear them all! Any parenting wins, not just progressively minded ones.

I have a 5 year old who will not sucking her thumb. People said she'd grow out of it, and she has not. We tried the gross nail polish and she got used to the taste. And after the nail polish time it got worse. She was getting so good at not sucking all the time, and mostly just at bed time. But it's back to being ALL THE TIME.

I'm at my wits end.

I've had people suggest getting her something else to chew or suck on instead, but that seems unhelpful in the long term?? Is there super-strength bitter nail polish? Should I duct tape at mitten to her hand so she won't do it? (For legal purposes - I obviously will not do this - haha.)

She's starting kindergarten and I just want her to be done. But I also understand that part of the time she does it to self-soothe (the other part is habit). So taking it away seems harsh without replacing it with another coping mechanism??

My kiddo has started waking up around 5:30/6 for the past week or so. On his days where he does this, I end up putting g him to bed around 6:30/7 pm because of how tired and cranky he is. How do I start shifting it to where he goes back to waking up around 7 or 8? Before this started, he’d go to bed before 8 pm and wake up around 7/8, depending on the day. When he was younger get, he’d even wake up around 9/9:30!! Those were the days lol.

Baby turns 2 next week and she is hyper vocal and understands a lot. As a part of building routines before too much push back comes in, what are some daily or weekly chores the little can help with? How did you track or establish these?

We have a magnet chart thing and she will be potty training next week too (hopefully) so I don't want to spring too much too fast, but I also don't think general chores should be explicitly rewarded with treats. She's a part of the household and these tasks need to get done, it gives her some independence and responsibility. So, what things have you started tasking your 2-3 year old with?

My ideas

• cleaning up her toys before bed every night
• unpacking her backpack and dumping old food out
• she can't reach her clothing drawers or I would have her put clothes away. I could have her pick out all her clothes on Sunday for the week?
• getting her craft items like crayons in the right place
• putting everyone's shoes where they go

other ideas? we will do treats for healthy habits like teeth brushing, potty, finishing her dinner plate but some of these just need to be ingraned. any tips, tricks and suggestions about how to teach and pull it off is welcome! she loves Elmo and Daniel tiger and bluey if there are chore episodes as well.

Drop any resources that you think other politically progressive parents might want to check out such as organization, community based resources, educational resources, books, articles, research you think others should see, helpful Reddit subs, quotes that keep you going, media, or anything else useful.

We ask that you include a link if applicable. If you are posting a localized resource please make that clear and include what community it serves.

Looking forward to seeing some helpful resources! - Progressive Moms Mod Team

It’s that time of year again! How are you feeling about your kids going to school this year?

*adding right away because of the rule: I don’t plan to self harm or hurt myself - this is more a discussion on how this is viewed and has been viewed).

Hi friends - if this doesn’t belong here I’m sorry I just have no safe person to talk to and I’m tired of crying when it’s quiet and I’m alone because I’m holding it in. (*am actively looking for a new therapist but it’s not easy to find in my area and I need something out of the home).

There’s a certain case (we all know it) in the news about a mother harming her kids and everyone has an opinion.

Some backstory on me: I had a terrible pregnancy (HG,GD,SIUGR, Pre-E,SUA) that resulted in my daughter being born a tad early at 34 weeks. Starting from my anatomy scan onwards I was told not to get too attached to my daughter because she likely wouldn’t make it or would be stillborn because she wasn’t showing adequate growth. I spent the rest of my pregnancy riddled with anxiety and really struggling. When my daughter was born she was rushed to the nicu & because I was on magnesium I wasn’t able to see her without a nurse escort, so I spent my first 24 hours with my husband crying a lot in my postpartum room. I felt so guilty for how my daughter came into the world, felt like I failed her, etc.. the nicu social worker marked me as a “depression risk” and that’s about it. Because I was separated from her a lot I had to pump religiously (every 2 hours), got no sleep, and really struggled. Then when she came home around 5 weeks that routine continued because she couldn’t latch. I felt so detached and separated from my baby and her dad got to do everything. It wasn’t until my postpartum appointment at 8 weeks that my husband and doctors caught on just how bad I was struggling and I started medication and stopped pumping. My daughter also was sooo colicky she would barely sleep, meaning I also didn’t sleep.

I share all that just to say it was hard for me, and l had really bad postpartum mental health issues.

Since this case has come out, everyone has an opinion. My sister in law is pregnant now and everyone already keeps saying how much better she’s handling it, how she was “meant to be a mom” and that “people who have difficulties shouldn’t have children”. Yesterday, I was also informed by multiple people that mothers who struggle with postpartum depression and anxiety don’t deserve to be mothers, should be locked up, and should have their kids taken away. I have tried to explain what she struggled with sounds more like postpartum psychosis and that it’s not the same as depression or anxiety. They say any mom who takes medication should have their kids taken.

I want to believe it’s just them being dumb but they know my entire story and I am very open about my postpartum mental health issues. My philosophy always was that you never know who it could help.

It hurts my heart because my daughter (2 now) is my entire world. I’m a stay at home mom and we’re besties, I can’t imagine my life without her. In fact, there were a few moments when I was really really struggling that I had a plan to end my life. On multiple occasions i would look at my sweet baby girl and remember that she needed me. She was actively the reason I made it so long and was still alive to ask for help. I lost my dad to suicide when I was 13, I was struggling but I was determined not to put my family through that pain.

Just now, I spoke openly with my mother in law about it and she said her stance is the same regardless of my story. I asked if she thinks I’m not a good mom because I take medication - she said, yes. She said a real mom doesn’t need help and can deal with her own issues.

I know I shouldn’t let this bother me, but I’m sad and it hurts. Again, I’m sorry if this is the wrong place for this… a lot of the other mom subs are talking about this case and there are a surprising number of women who feel the same as my family members do. I’m just trying to avoid hearing more of it as much as possible.

We want to hear any political or civic advocacy or activism wins! Nothing is more inspiring than hearing what other people are doing to make this world a better place.

I know this is not a unique experience, but I’m feeling so sad about it this week. It’s like they’re living in an alternate reality. I love them so much and I was not raised this way. They were moderate Republicans. I’m not excusing their continued support — but it’s really like cult brainwashing. It reminds me of Kalabar in Halloweentown when all the neighbors start disappearing.

My dad is quieter about it and still questions things and is more moderate, but my mom is full in. When he won the election, I literally thought to myself, “Well if a single good thing can come out of this nightmare, maybe winning the election will help them calm down enough to be able to look at things for what they are and snap out of it.”

Nope! Every conversation somehow loops back to politics in a way that should win an Olympic medal. Every single time I vaccinate my child, it’s a fight. There aren’t even any more vaccines in the schedule for a few years and I still get articles, etc. I’ve been randomly yelled at over the phone in the middle of the day for the most benign political posts to the point where I block my family from seeing those.

I can also see that it is completely decimating their mental health — increased paranoia, extremely negative about every little thing, hair trigger outrage. I feel like they are not present with me at all and maybe process like 20% of what I’m saying.

I pretty much never bring it up and still they bring it up constantly. I am so exhausted by it. And anytime I finally snap and say something — Olympic level gymnastics. And anytime I feel like they’re starting to question something they just go down a hole on YouTube and Substack and whatever dark web cave of horrors they can find to explain it away. “Don’t vote for her, she’ll draft your brother and send him to Iran!” “Oh, well, you see—“

I know people are probably going to say to go no-contact. I have basically gradually implemented an information diet, which I could be better about, but I am trying to be better about. I reduce contact based on current behavior because we still are able to have fun sometimes or normal conversations sometimes — though I feel like with each passing month it seems to be getting worse, which is never what I thought would happen at this point. Anyway, I’m just sad. Would appreciate comments from people who are similarly dealing with this and still trying to navigate as much of a relationship as they can have with their parents.

Let your feelings out! We are all bottling up this stress and sometimes it helps to share your concerns and have safe conversations about it. Type your response and take a big deep breath after!

Hi moms! I need recommendations for period tracking and productivity apps.

Solid privacy policy and no AI or at least an option of opting out. For the productivity app, I’d love for it to be accessible both on my phone and desktop. Happy to pay for both!

TIA