u/blkstk

I only listen to Beyonce as music and particularly renaissance was soundtrack to my life between 2022-2024. Then I got pregnant and had my baby. And I only listened to baby songs for a while. I knew she released cowboy carter and I always wanted to listen to a decent country album but I just didn’t vibe with Texas Hold ‘Em and disregarded the whole album… until a few days ago. I don’t know what came over me but I started the whole album from first song and couldn’t put it down and it has been on loop since.

“nothing really ends. For things to stay the same they have to change again.” God. This woman is a poet. And her voice is just angelic. I loved Jolene and Blackbird covers. As a new mother to a girl protector just kills me. My Rose. I know it is for her son but as someone with super high anxiety and high self depreciation I sing that to myself.

then the Linda Martel show act and all the songs that follow is PURE ART. i don’t speak English that well to explain all the feelings I feel. mix of yaya. Oh louisiana sample. The bass of desert eagle is amazing. And the goes to river dance banjo wow.

Now this album is to the soundtrack of my life and it fits so well. God. I just wish I could go through the first half without cryin.

We have a 23 month old girl and she never had good sleep. She stopped breastfeeding at 16 months and never liked formula. We tried cry it out multiple times, especially before she was able to say mommy and daddy and it worked but always something happened (sickness, tooth pain, holidays) and we had to do it all over again. After some point it got really hard for us, especially when she cries for us and now she cries for a very long time (much longer than 10 minutes).

We went on holidays for three weeks to Canada and by the end of the holidays she got used to sleeping with us. This is because she would wake up and usually one of us goes and gives a hug and rocks her for sometime. During holidays we didn't have a rocking chair so when she wouldn't go back to sleep after the hug we took the habit of taking her with us. One thing she is very good at is she naps for almost two hours every day. By the end of the holidays she was also skipping those.

Now we are back in Europe and it has been exhausting. She is back to daycare, she went back yesterday. She had her usual nap there. She had her usual sleep time at 20:00 as well but she wakes up at around 22:30 (which is when she had her first wake of the night) and despite us rocking her for a very long time, the minute we put her to her crib she loses it. Yesterday I tried to just sit next to her and tell her mommy is here every time she cried. She cried for a few minutes, went to sleep, woke up after 5 minutes on repeat. If I tried to touch her she went even more crazy, getting up and asking me to pick her up. After three tries I gave up and brought her to our bed. I don't remember what happened afterwards. I think she was awake for a long time, my husband took care of her during that time. The only thing I remember is it being around 2AM and she is screaming daddy for what felt like hours. I had to tell her to stop it in a loud voice and then she just stopped it and slept next to me till 8 AM.

On the one hand I was thinking that she is jetlagged and it is OK that she still gets to sleep with us etc. On the other hand I want her to know that in vacations there can be exemptions but at home we sleep in our own beds.

I am just so exhausted. I am also really not coping well. She is an easy child on some ways and very difficult in others. She is a picky eater and I was too worried about this. At some point I gave up. She might be the only child that doesn't eat fruits... They need to be fully mashed and preferably in a pouch if she is to eat them - with the exception of banana. But during the holidays she tried many fruits and I was so happy. Now the daycare tells me that she is not eating fruits there.

She is also very thin, and I started this habit of giving her honey and maple syrup with her crepes or pancakes or bread. Now I am worried that she just eats sweet stuff. In daycare they tell me she eats her lunches well.

Personally, I am not doing well. Because of the lack of sleep and my very stressful job I had a really bad burn-out that I had to take time off my work. I just really need her to sleep, so I can sleep and be a better mom. Sometimes I am like, oh stop it everyone is having it hard, stop pitying yourself and just get on with it. But really, is everyone having it this hard with an almost two year old's sleep (and eating)?

I am so exhausted. Waited for two hours for the passport control at the arrival outside of the EU, mind you we now have EU passports. We couldn’t use the machines because we were travelling with our toddler but two hours wait was brutal. I thought once I got an EU passport arrivals at Zaventem would get better but no. Every year it gets worse and worse.

Hello,

I am finding it really hard to keep on top of administration, specifically for the mutualite, especially with a kid that is sick constantly. A lot of costs you pay upfront and then ask for reimbursement and I am really struggling to keep up with the paper work. Does anyone have any tips and tricks? I am so sure that we missed and lost some invoices of physiotherapy or some vitamins etc we could have got reimbursed for.

The thing that is going on outside and the weather forecast for the next few days is a bit scary is all I am saying.