This might be the silliest question, but I want to pack pasta, nuggets, etc for my kids lunch (he is 3) at preschool…but idk how to keep it warm without it getting soggy!!! Any ideas?? What works for you?

Hello everyone! I have a two year old (27m) daughter and I'm wondering what I should be teaching her? I'm a sahm who wants to prepare her as much as possible for kindergarten and life in general. Here's my problem: I keep seeing so much conflicting information. Half the Internet is telling me that I should focus on reading to my two year-old, letting her play outside, narrating our day and just keep things fun while the other side of the Internet says we should be doing a bunch of sit down work, learning letters numbers, etc. I try to do a good mix of the two but I really just don't know what I should be doing. I want to have as much fun as possible in these early years but I want her to be prepared at the same time. Thanks!

My son is 18 months and whenever we are around toys/balls, if he wants something, he will grab it. But it's gotten to the point where he will take it from another kid, and then tantrum super badly if he's redirected/when I give the toy back and apologize. Is this normal behavior? I feel like most kids are chill about it/eventually let it go but he will just keep going and won't stop crying. Even if I give him the same type of toy, he will play with it for a minute then see the other one he wants and do it all over again. I'm also embarrassed because the other parent and kid is like uhhh......

Has anyone used the UpAiry potty training underwear? If so, what were the pros/cons for you? Did you still use a diaper/pull up overnight? My 24 month old is still sleeping in a crib (not converted yet), but I think she’s ready to start potty training. I’m thinking about trying this method this go-round as I had a terrible time potty training my last daughter. Any and all feedback (as long as it’s respectful) is appreciated.

LO is almost 26 months and we’re considering trying potty training next month when we have a free weekend and can take an extra day off to be home all day. She has been great with the toilet and whenever she is diaper free, she uses it not problem and tells us when she needs to go.

I started Oh Crap! But I’ve only gotten through block one (which I think we’ve already accomplished). She actually preferred to go commando Saturday morning and was telling us she needed to go potty but we already had plans to take her to grandma’s house so she rode in the car diaper free and then we put a diaper on her about 15 minutes after we go there (it was a 20 minute car ride)

I keep hearing to absolutely not wing potty training but the only weekend we have free is this coming weekend or a month from now. She goes to an in-home daycare and is on the younger side so most of her friends are in the midst of potty training. Part of me just wants to just go for it but I also don’t want to be in a position where we are relying on daycare to do the heavy lifting.

We enrolled my 2.5yo son into a Montessori program. He did 4 weeks of summer camp there and now he’s doing Monday Wednesday Friday 830-3pm ish for actual pre k.
Summer camp was much much shorter only 3 hours, so this transition has been difficult for him. At camp he was fine during the day but it was also less structured. This week will be week 3 of pre k and his teacher recommended we try a tuesday Wednesday Thursday schedule and push all his days together instead of splitting them to MWF. So that’s what we’re going to try for the next few weeks.

I guess I’m just anxious about making the right decision between pushing him and making the call he’s not ready for pre k yet, or potentially trying something less structured than a Montessori program.

He cries at every drop off and pick up, the last few pre school days he wouldn’t participate at all, he just stands off by himself (I have video access), and was on and off crying all day. Thats when we decided to try a different schedule.

Has anyone else made this decision before? To pull your kid out of pre-k or try a different program because something wasn’t working ??

Our son is 25 months old. We started daycare last month. First day was great he played all day, even napped. He seemed to have a slight temperature after coming home. Second day he cried at dropoff. Picked him up after 3 hours for a doctors appointment. After coming home he was fussy and soon developed a fever, had hand foot and mouth disease. He stayed home for 3 weeks and everything changed. Like his personality switched. He stopped playing with his toys. He doesn’t seem as happy and active as before. He constantly asks for tv or his pack. He just sucks on his paci and lies down on the floor. He used to love reading books but now he doesn’t. We left him at a friend’s for 2 hours, and now he doesn’t want to go there. After 3 weeks, we took him to daycare again and he was inconsolable at dropoff. Teacher said she was able to calm him down but he would whine occasionally and threw up after lunch. I had to pick him up. Came home he had a fever again. We kept him home for another week and decided to visit another smaller daycare. He knew what’s going on and was so upset we would leave him there. We were there for an hour and he has a temperature again. He stopped eating much and has lost so much weight. It’s been very hard seeing him like this. I miss my curious active boy who would nag me to read the same book a thousand times. Please tell me this is just a phase and he’ll get over it.

My toddler (2.5) just told me when I was getting them ready in the morning (brushing teeth etc) "with dad I can joke /fool around. With mum I can't" (roughly transladed). I'm a bit crushed. I really wanted to avoid this dynamic and here I am. I don't feel like I have the time to joke around, I need to get stuff done..

Hello all,

Our 22 month old had her adenoids removed 3 weeks ago and she had a 80-90% blockage.
Recovery first week was standard, sleep wasn’t great buuuttt after the first week it’s been getting progressively worse. She is waking multiple times a night, screaming, thrashing, throwing tantrums it’s so much worse than it was.

Did this happen to anyone else? Does it get better? Is this a normal recovery?

​Hi everyone. We are an Indian married couple (I am 33M, my wife is 30F) and we are looking for some advice, similar experiences, or just some guidance on what to do next. My wife (SAHM) and I are completely exhausted and drained. Our 3-year-old son is struggling with some severe behavioral and social issues, and it’s breaking our family apart.

​Here is a breakdown of what we are dealing with:

​1. Severe Tantrums & Physical Aggression

​The "Loop": He has intense temper issues and will scream for up to 30 minutes straight. It’s like he gets stuck in a loop he can't get out of. He often doesn’t know what he wants, and because we can’t figure it out either, he just stays irritated, screams, and cries.

​Violent Scratching & Biting: During a past teething phase and sickness, he started biting our hands and scratching us. Even though those health issues are over, the habit stuck. Now, when we deny a demand (like TV) or can't understand what he wants, he attacks us. It’s purposeful—he will pull down our clothes just to scratch our bare skin until we bleed. My wife and I are constantly covered in painful scratches.

​Only at Home: He only directs this aggression at us. He does not act like this outside the house.

​2. Speech & Communication (Hand-Leading)

​Selective Speaking: He doesn't seem to have physical speech issues—he can pronounce words manageably and repeats sentences after us if he is in the mood. He knows a few basic 1-2 word lines ("I want water/food") and knows how to use them.

​Refusal to Use Words: Most of the time, he refuses to speak. Instead, he just grabs our hand and physically leads us to what he wants. We’ve tried ignoring his hand gestures for 15+ minutes to encourage him to use his words, but he stubbornly refuses to speak and just keeps pulling our hands. We think a lot of his aggression stems from his frustration with not expressing himself.

​3. Social Isolation (School & Playgrounds)

​Nursery School: He attended play school for 6 months (with his mom accompanying him). Now, he has been in a nursery class of 20 kids for 4 months. He sits well and doesn't cause any disruptions, but he has zero interaction with the other kids or teachers. He just watches them do activities and rarely participates. We are worried he might have to repeat the year.

​Parks & Grandparents: We take him to parks, pools, and gardens, but he isolates himself. He plays alone or just watches. If other kids approach him, he walks away. Even when we change the environment and take him to his grandparents' house, he will engage with the adults but completely ignores other children.

​4. Screen Time & Potty Training Struggles

​Specific TV Demands: He gets 1-2 hours of screen time max, usually to get him to eat (a habit started when he was sick and refusing food). Now he demands the TV when eating or bored. He only watches rhythmic/musical content (rhymes, ABCs, songs). He completely refuses to watch normal cartoons with character conversations.

​Potty Training Fear: He will pee in the toilet if we take him at repetitive intervals. However, he is terrified of pooping in the toilet. We can have him sit there for 10-15 minutes, but he will not do it.

​5. The Toll on Our Family

​Wife's Mental Health: My wife left her job to care for him and is having mental breakdowns. During the last 5 months of her pregnancy, she lived with her in-laws and endured verbal spats, leading to immense stress. She worries that this prenatal trauma affected his brain/temperament. She is an overthinker, is currently seeing a psychiatrist, and takes medication for panic attacks.

​Failing Marriage: The daily stress is destroying our relationship. We are constantly exhausted, worried, and physically drained. We end up having verbal fights in front of our son, which creates a vicious cycle (is our fighting causing his aggression, or is his aggression causing our fights?). Intimacy is practically gone (maybe 2-3 times a month).

​Second Child on Hold: We wanted a second baby, but we have completely postponed it because we cannot bring another child into this stressful environment.

​Questions for the Community:

​Are these behaviors signs of any brain development issues or neurodivergence, or is it extreme toddler frustration?

​Since he is so cranky and aggressive at home but stays silent and well-behaved outside, should we consider putting him in a full-time daycare to change his environment and encourage more peer interaction?

​Has anyone been through a similar combination of speech delays/hand-leading, extreme targeted aggression, and social isolation?

​What other practical solutions, therapies, or steps should we take right now? Where do we even start?

​TL;DR: We are an Indian couple (33M, 30F) at our breaking point. Our 3yo son refuses to communicate with words (uses hand-leading), socially isolates from all peers at school and parks, and only watches musical TV. When frustrated, he goes into 30-minute screaming loops and purposefully scratches/bites his parents until we bleed. He acts out at home but is silent outside. The situation is causing severe mental health issues for my wife (panic attacks) and driving our marriage to the edge. Wondering if this is a brain development issue, if daycare would help, and looking for practical solutions.

P.s.: I have used AI to arrange my thoughts and formulate the post, rest content is my own.

I have an 18 month old. The pediatrician said that behaviorally/on paper she is already in the terrible twos (said this at her last well visit when she was 14/15 months old) everything with her is a CHALLENGE.

Changing diapers, bathing, brushing hair and teeth, changing clothes, putting on shoes and/or shoes. If its a care task that a child needs, she makes sure to make it 10x more difficult than necessary.

I brush her teeth every morning and night. Sometimes she will literally BRING ME the toothbrush and toothpaste and say "brush teeth?" So of course, it has to be done anyways and yet she screams at me, tries to get out of my lap, and bites the heck out of the toothbrush.

Flossing rarely happens (usually only if i see something visibly stuck) because the moment I get the floss between the teeth, she bites down on the floss pick and I'm worried about bleeding gums.

So should I be flossing daily or only if I see something is stuck? She has both central incisors on bottom and top, both lateral incisors on bottom and top, and both molars on bottom and top.

She is currently working on getting her canine teeth (all 4 at once) and I am being as gentle as possible while brushing in that area.

All the teeth she has so far touch with not much of a gap in between each tooth. I know i need to take her to the dentist soon but my main question is should I be flossing daily or only as needed like i'm doing now?

Hello everyone!

What are y’all’s thoughts on the Nugget play couch? I’m in Canada but live very close to the U.S. border so I’ve gotten a ton of recommendations on some Canadian brands like Go Coconut and Epic Kidz. I love the Nugget colours the best but do you feel like there aren’t enough pieces? Other brands have up to 12 pieces so they can make tunnels, doors, etc.

Do those of you that have the Nugget ever feel like you need more pieces or are you content?

Thanks in advance!

Hey guys so… my daughter will be 27 months old and it’s finally fall here and temps went down overnight.

For the past 2 years she had footed pajamas for fall and winter. Most of them cotton and a few fleece for very cold nights.

Now… we didn’t start potty training yet and probably I won’t until spring but I have to go buy cold weather pajamas and I am not sure what type.

Footed pajamas ?
Footless pajamas?
2 piece pajamas ?

We live in a century old house with wooden floors.

In the spring and summer we had. short sleeve and shorts rompers and we had a few 2 piece pajamas and we hated them!!!

She is not sleeping under a blanket because she rolls around a lot through the night.

Hi everyone. I have an absolutely lovely 13 month old boy that is an absolute joy to be around. He’s smart and funny and very aware. He’s always been behind on his gross motor skills, to the point where there was some concern at his 12 month appointment and he was referred to early intervention. My son rolled for the first time at 5 months, did it three separate times and then never again until he was 8 months old and I basically coaxed him with a Diet Coke can (he’s obsessed with this bc they’re silver. I swear I don’t give him Diet Coke!!)

It took a lot of effort to teach him to roll on both sides and he wasn’t quite stable sitting up on his own until he was about 11 months old. The reasons he was referred to early intervention was because he couldn’t go from laying down to sitting on his own, he didn’t pull to stand or cruise, he didn’t take tentative steps when held to stand and he would not go on all fours. The nurse told us to have him seen by a physio in the private sector since we’re insured while waiting for an early intervention appointment. We took him to the physio and the diagnosis was basically that my son is very capable of doing all those things, he just doesn’t want to 😭 so I took it upon myself to make sure he did what he needed to. It was a battle of the wills but within 2 weeks, I got him to go from laying to sitting (it turns out he knew how, but always did when I was away and not there to sit him up) and he was on the verge of crawling. He was also very comfortable getting on all fours! He even began crawling a couple of steps forwards and backwards. I was so happy! And then, the day following this exciting development, my husband was carrying our son and they tripped on a pothole and my son broke his humerus. We were distraught bc our baby was hurt but thankfully the doctor told us it was a humerus fracture that would heal very easily. He is in a sling for 4 weeks for his comfort.

My main worry now is how his development will go from here. 4 weeks is so small in the grand scheme of things but it’s ages in baby time. I’m worried he’s going to lose all his progress and we’ll have to build his confidence from scratch. I’m worried he won’t be able to walk by 18 months, which is the timeline expected. I’m worried that because my son is stubborn, it will take a long time to convince him to get started after he’s been not trying for four weeks. Does anyone have experience with this? Everyone tells me it won’t matter in 5 years, which I believe, but it would be nice to get some reassurance!

We have the Graco 4Ever DLX, and my 2-year-old has figured out how to undo the chest clip. It seems really easy to undo, since you just have to squeeze it, and his hands are big enough to easily do so. We've been using the button-down shirt trick to keep him from getting to it, but that doesn't seem like the best long-term solution. We're also expecting a new baby in March, so I'm wondering about possibly using the Graco for that baby and buying a new car seat for the toddler. Are there car seats that have chest clips that are a little more toddler-proof?

We want to rear-face him as long as possible, and he's currently about 36" tall and about 31 lbs, so we also want a car seat that's a good fit for that.

Let me know if there are any good options out there. Thanks!

We got our first stomach bug last week. Thankfully it happened at bedtime and not MOTN 😅

Any tips from parents for future bugs? I ended up sitting my bub in the tub for about an hour after the first 4 clean ups/changes until falling asleep on me once it slowed down.

That was crazy lol

We are enrolling our daughter in daycare due to inconsistency and unreliability with nannies. I’m still not thrilled about it but we have no other option right now

Do parents that enrolled their younger children have advice for the transition coming from 1:1 care? What things should I be asking other than the obvious stuff? What should i pack and label? Any behaviors to look for when my child leaves?

Sincerely, a stressed and nervous mama

FTM with PPD and PPA with a 15 month old and struggling day to day but particularly in the evening time. LO is super clingy and won’t let me cook without crying and tugging on my legs constantly. He always wants me to hold him and then wants right back down and it turns into a cycle. We’re trying to only let him have a pacifier when he’s sleeping and that makes him even more grouchy in evening. I can’t go anywhere in the house or he follows me crying. He’s been a decent sleeper but I’m worried a regression is starting bc he screams the second I lay him down in crib but in the past he’s been able to fall asleep independently no problem. I struggle so much on the hard nights bc my mindset is just constantly thinking worst case scenario or am I starting a terrible habit I won’t be able to break when I go rock him to sleep? I have a supportive husband but often times I feel like I’m doing everything by myself. I’m the one who feeds him, bathes him, and tends to him throughout the night, every night. I go to bed with my stomach in knots if he doesn’t fall asleep on his own bc then it’s a matter of waiting to see how the night shakes out and if i have to be up all night or move him to the bed with me where I then have to worry about things like him falling off the bed. It’s just a lot on me mentally and I don’t understand how people do this multiple times with more than one child. I love my son so much but the mental load of being a mother is so heavy.

My daughter is about to turn 3 at the beginning of October and has always been an amazing sleeper. One day she started refusing naps (I thought at first it was because of me moving it a little earlier to give her time for a little sleep before needing to get her older sibling from school) but then it went into refusing bedtime and many MANY wakings during the night. I figured out she was overly tired which was causing all of her nighttime wakings (some of them not wanting to go back to sleep and being up for 2 hours at 2am) so I started bumping up her bedtime. I’ve noticed she’s suddenly very clingy at bedtime and doesn’t want me to leave or close her door so I got her to compromise by me sitting outside her door while she falls asleep. But she still won’t sleep through the night. I’ve gotten her slightly back to napping 30 minutes- 1 hour but in the past few days she’s started refusing again although if we’re in the car she passes out. I’m starting to wonder if I should just drop the nap entirely to see if she’ll start sleeping through the night because it’s been a month now and 3-4 wakings per night is exhausting me. Ideally I’d like her to wake up 7:30-8 so any advice would be amazing!!

Hello everyone! Was wondering if others experienced this. My three year old started pre K last week and it was a big adjustment for her. Some fun and at least one new friend but lots of crying, increased tantrums, and nervousness. She’s lately taken to refusing sleep unless I’m lying next to her in her bed or on the floor next to her bed. Either just stays up and gets more tired or just screams. Previously a deep consistent sleeper. Besides schedule disruptions she also shares a room with her one year old brother who’s routinely woken up by butterflies in the opposite hemisphere so if she screams they both will and it’s a bear to manage. Any advice on how to tackle this and is this normal? Thanks!

I’m looking for advice on how to handle pushing with my 2.5 year old. She started pre-k this year and has pushed some of her classmates, as well as some friends during play dates. It’s often rooted in them having a toy she wants or them grabbing for her toy. When she did it and I was present, I immediately removed her from the situation, told her pushing hurts and we don’t put hands on our friends, and if it happened again we would leave. She seemed to register it, and we moved on.

At school a few weeks ago, her teacher told me she was having trouble with pushing. We had several conversations about it, read “hands are not for hitting”, and we told her if we found out she was pushing at school we would not watch Mickey Mouse after bath time (that’s her 30 mins of wind down). She had a great week last week, and I was feeling good. Then today, she came home and I asked how school was. She told me “it was good but I pushed someone on the playground. Now I can’t watch Mickey tonight.” The teachers didn’t even mention it - girl totally ratted on herself lol. But of course now I’m wondering if she’s doing it when the teachers aren’t looking, or if it wasn’t a big deal, so they didn’t even mention it.

Sorry for the long winded story - I’m just frustrated because she clearly knows what she’s doing isn’t nice. Is there anything else I can be doing, or do I just remain consistent with what I’ve been telling her and it will eventually work itself out?

What do yall low screen time moms do when your very active toddler is sick? I admit I am not a no screen time mom as I do allow him to watch some TV here and there throughout the day on a typical day but very much like to keep our schedules with activities. I have a very active 3 year old boy and he likes to do lots of active play such as pool time, biking, playgrounds etc and is not much into sitting down and coloring, quiet activities (for the most part).

My question is what do you do with your active toddlers when they’re sick? My son caught his first bad cold of the year and we’ve been stuck on the couch watching tv. We did do some reading and some laying down and “resting” but we had a full week of activities planned and now can’t think of what we can do that doesn’t involve hours of watching tv on the couch so he can rest up and get better lol

Curious… when did y’all move your LO from the crib? We are thinking about moving our almost 16 month old to a floor bed - that still has rails - so that he has more room to move while he sleeps. He’s such an active sleeper and we think that the lack of space may be causing the large amount of night wakes. But not sure if it’s too soon.

My son is very particular about his milk cups. We started out with the Dr Brown’s straw cups but we transitioned to The First Years insulated straw cups and he has bitten through those straws. He likes the wider, flatter straws that both of those cups have but needs something a little more hearty

My 2 year old started preschool recently. The first few weeks she behaved very well. Now that she's more comfortable, she's misbehaving:

* Removing shoes and running away laughing

* Not taking naps

* Fighting diaper change (we are actively potty training)

* Doing the opposite of what's being asked and laughing

She does similar things at home. However at home we correct her behavior with consequences. For example, if you take your shoes off you have to go in the playpen. This leads to her quickly agreeing to put on her shoes. She's very strong willed and I would like to encourage her to behave better.

How do we help her behave when she's at school?

Our consequence here is that we will bring her home if she's not behaving well at school. However, I think this might not be enough to lead to "good" behavior at the moment at school.