u/RecordLegume

My husband and I have always planned for 3 or 4 kids. We had our first in 2019 and had our second in 2021. We wanted a third with a similar age gap but our second born was an absolute menace. He’s now about to turn 5 and has really chilled out. He has finally matured and can reason, talk through his feelings, and is just so much more level headed. I thoroughly enjoy both of my boys and I think they are just awesome kids.

We have discussed a 3rd since my 2nd started calming down about 6 months ago but we had to wait because we have a trip planned for this summer that we didn’t want to bring an infant on. We are officially safe to start trying now but I feel so much apprehension. We want a child and we are ready in every physical aspect but it just feels weird. I think we’ve gotten so used to it being just the 4 of us. It was starting to feel like it would always be 4 of us because I truly couldn’t picture an infant in the mix when my youngest was in the depths of toddlerhood. We really didn’t know if we’d have more because I knew I couldn’t be a good mom if I had another at that point in time. I feel like I now have a lot more free time since my boys are independent. I find myself just watching them play outside with friends as I watch through the window. I know I have the capacity for a baby now.

I am a stay at home mom already so I have the bandwidth to handle a baby now that my boys are older. We have the space in our home. We have a van. We have a community. It just feels weird. Anyone been in this situation?

We are trying for our third and final baby starting in June. I wasn’t on antidepressants with my first two pregnancies so I’m not sure what to expect. My doctor just told me to take them until I get a positive pregnancy test and then we will discuss options. Google says it’s fine and the risk is extremely low. My own gut says I should stop but I worry about my mental state if I stop. What’s your experience? I’m on 300mg and have been since February 2024. I had my first baby in 2019 and second in 2021.

We are trying for our third and final baby starting in June. I wasn’t on antidepressants with my first two pregnancies so I’m not sure what to expect. My doctor just told me to take them until I get a positive pregnancy test and then we will discuss options. Google says it’s fine and the risk is extremely low. My own gut says I should stop but I worry about my mental state if I stop. What’s your experience? I’m on 300mg and have been since February 2024. I had my first baby in 2019 and second in 2021.

How good is this stuff? We just ripped out everything in our basement (safely, by the books, with advice from a professional mold remediation company) because of mold behind all of the drywall thanks to the previous owners being downright stupid when finishing the basement themselves. We have scrubbed and hepa vacuumed all visible mold on the concrete block. We sprayed concrobium. There’s no leaks and haven’t been in 10 years so we don’t need to worry about active water coming in. Is finishing with zinsser mold killing paint and then top coating with zinsser permawhite a good finishing point?

My son is finishing up his second year of preschool in the 4’s class. Most of his classmates are already 5, some even approaching 6, and will be going to be off to kindergarten in August. My son is a late summer baby so he won’t be 5 until mid August. We’ve decided to keep him home one more year because of some immaturity and behavioral stuff. He could go to his current preschool one more year, but we decided to send him to a different school this incoming year so he can go for more days a week and more hours each day.

He was invited to his current preschool’s graduation but we aren’t sure if he should attend. He will have another graduation next year at his new school before he actually heads off to kindergarten. He also said he does not want to attend. We were concerned that he’d be confused by all the kindergarten talk at graduation since he knows he has another year of preschool since he is younger. His teacher has made me feel guilty for wanting to decline saying they’ll miss him and everything, but he really seems adamant against it. I know we shouldn’t leave the final choice solely in his hands, but this is his journey and I do feel like we should weigh his opinion as well. I’d definitely push for him to attend if he was going to kinder in the fall. I just don’t see the point since he will literally have another ceremony exactly a year from now. Thoughts? Opinions?

I’ve been home with my boys since I graduated college around my oldest’s first birthday. He’s finishing up first grade and my youngest has one more year home with me before he’s off to kindergarten. We plan on having our last baby this year so I’m starting to think more about my future plans once they are off to school in the next 5-6 years

I want my role as a stay at home parent to be first so it’s mandatory that I have the same schedule as my kids. I don’t want to miss their time outside of school for a job so it’s really narrowed down to working at their school or one of the other elementary schools in the district.

In our state you have to have a bachelors degree in any field to be able to sub. I have my associates plus some extra credits that I obtained along the way. I only need a few more classes before I have a bachelor’s degree in the same field as my associates. I never pursued it further because I didn’t need it for the job I was planning on doing. I am thinking of slowly scraping away at those few classes over the next few years and then start subbing once our third starts part time preschool.

Has anyone been a stay at home parent along with occasional subbing? How has it been? Pros? Cons?

Located in PA. My girl is a 13 year old Shih Tzu. She is a rescue and she’s always been a bit of a mess. She had a very, very short snout and her eyes stick out just as far, if not further than her nose. It’s caused multiple corneal ulcers in the 8 years we’ve had her but we seem to manage alright. We keep her hair trimmed and clean around her face which seems to help things out.

What I’ve noticed lately is that she will randomly start to develop symptoms of having a corneal ulcer but it seems to affect both eyes. They both drain green gunk, she squints, and her sclera is bright red. Her eyes are very a sensitive at this time and she always pawing at them. I keep a cone on her. It clears up with antibiotic drops but comes back within another month or two. This has been happening for about a year now. The vet keeps saying it’s an ulcer since she’s had so many before but it doesn’t make sense since it’s been both eyes. Any advice?

My kids love turkey sandwiches. I’ve always bought brands without nitrates but I’ve recently learned of nitrosamines so I’d like to avoid celery powder, cherry powder, etc. The brand I normally use is free of all of that, but recently added carrageenan at the end of the ingredient list 🙃

I tried buying a plain, whole turkey breast and roasting it then slicing it in but my kids and husband hated it so I’ve been eating so much turkey on my own this week lol. What brands are out there that fit my bill? I have Walmart, Aldi, Target, Giant, and BJ’s in my town. I have Trader Joe’s, Wegman’s, and Costco about an hour away and we go once every few months to those locations. I’m okay with buying in bulk and freezing as well. Does not have to be organic!

My kids love turkey sandwiches. I’ve always bought brands without nitrates but I’ve recently learned of nitrosamines so I’d like to avoid celery powder, cherry powder, etc. The brand I normally use is free of all of that, but recently added carrageenan at the end of the ingredient list 🙃

I tried buying a plain, whole turkey breast and roasting it then slicing it in but my kids and husband hated it so I’ve been eating so much turkey on my own this week lol. What brands are out there that fit my bill? I have Walmart, Aldi, Target, Giant, and BJ’s in my town. I have Trader Joe’s, Wegman’s, and Costco about an hour away and we go once every few months to those locations. I’m okay with buying in bulk and freezing as well. Does not have to be organic!