u/grown-up-dino-kid

I'm a 21yo guy, and I've been considering masking more regularly for a while now. Since mask mandates were lifted, I basically have only masked if I am symptomatic or someone in my household is. However, I have multiple people in my life who are more vulnerable to infections (a brother and a close friend who both have long-covid, grandparents who are sick, etc), I generally don't want to spread disease, and, somewhat selfishly, I am very active and hate having to take a break from training when I get a cold. The main reason I have not started is the garbage, but the more I read, the more I realize that masks can be reused far more than I thought. With the amount of time I'd need them, I would probably only need about 1 per week.

My final straw was a piano student coming in sick yesterday. I work at a studio with very small, windowless rooms and questionable ventilation. A 6yo girl came in for her lesson, and after coming into the room, explained she had a cough (she did, and she sounded sick, not just one of those coughs kids have for weeks after illness) and started struggling to put on a (far too big) mask. I helped her tie the earloops shorter and put it on and found my own KF94 in my backpack, which I kept on for the rest of the time I was in that room. I have yet to find out if that was enough.

Anyhow, all that to say, I have some questions that I haven't found satisfactory answers to by searching the sub.

1. SIP valves: yay or nay? What I've gathered is sort of "not ideal, but if you won't be able to get out to drink, it's better than lifting your mask or being dehydrated." I am thinking I will install one on a mask if I will be in such a situation where I need to drink but can't do so safely (eg gym, museum), but I will use an unaltered mask in situations where the valve is unnecessary and/or the risk is higher (eg I am symptomatic or someone around me is.)

2. SIP valves: waterbottle recommendations? I am thinking I will go with u/qwirkier 's solution they shared here, but I am curious if anyone else has tried it or has other suggestions.

3. What exceptions do you personally make to the general rule of masking indoors outside of the home? When do you think it is worth it to take the risk? The main situation I am thinking of for myself where I will not mask (unless someone is symptomatic) is when I'm at the house of the family I nanny for. If I go on outings with the kiddo, I will, but at her house I want to be able to eat, drink, use facial expressions, and generally make us both a bit more relaxed. Yes, kids are experts at spreading germs, but I need to be able to eat/drink indoors around her, and while I have no sources saying masking stunts social-emotional development, nor do I think it inherently does, I don't want to risk impairing communication with a young child that I spend so much time with. If someone does have sources regarding the impacts (or lack thereof) of masking on communication with young children, I'd be super interested to see them!

4. Is there anything to know about removing, briefly storing, and re-donning a mask? For example, put on the mask to get on the bus, take it off for a drink of water after getting off, on to go into the library, off for a snack at the empty, outdoor bus stop, and on for the bus ride home. From during the mask mandates, I feel like I recall that you are supposed to wash/sanitize you hands before and after every time you touch your mask? And how do you recommend storing it?

Sorry if these questions are asked frequently, and thank you for your time answering!

I started part-time nannying for a 4yo girl just over a month ago. The family is great, and I really love the position. I do about 4 hours Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Sometimes more Thursday if it works with both our schedules and we want to do some kind of outing.

My question is about independent play. Right now, my shifts are fairly short, so I am not too concerned if we spend most/all of the time doing things together. I bring a book so that if NK starts playing on her own, I am not just... watching her creepily. But mostly we do things like small world/imaginative play, trampoline, bike rides, crafts, reading, etc, together.

However, MB has said that when preschool finishes for the summer, they will need more hours. I don't want NK to get the idea that if I am there, I am her playmate 100% of the time, because it is important for her to play by herself sometimes, and also if I'm there for longer shifts, I will need to prep lunch and whatnot, and we would probably both benefit from some downtime.

So, how much do you encourage your NKs to play by themselves? Any tips and tricks if they are resistant to the idea?

And parents, how much do you want your kids to engage in independent play vs have the nanny actively involved?

As summer approaches, I am realizing that I don't have great shoes aside from white leather sneakers. I want something a bit nicer than those, and loafers keep popping up in my search. I never loved the look of loafers, but I think they are growing on me. I guess I just don't know exactly what I'm looking for, though. I'm a 21yo guy, and I mostly wear loose pants/shorts with a medium to high rise, slim t-shirts or ribbed tank tops, relaxed button ups, denim jackets, bombers, and blazers. I do wear jeans and knit sweaters and whatnot, but not as much in the summer, and the white sneakers would be fine with those. For leather, I usually lean towards black, but maybe that wouldn't be suitable for summer?

In summary, if anyone has advice for style/colour/material of loafer for a 21yo guy looking for a summer shoe to wear with shorts and pants, I'd appreciate it.

My 8yo brother likely has ARFID, and a lot of his nutritional intake comes from chocolate protein drinks. He usually has one for breakfast, one for lunch on school days, and one in hot chocolate form for dessert. However, his pediatrician has asked us to try to limit him to 1 per day. Because he is neurodivergent and has anxiety, he can be a bit rigid and is easily dysregulated when his routines are disrupted, so we were not sure how it would go trying to get him to have something else for dessert last night. He sometimes has strawberry smoothies, which seemed like a good starting point. He was hesitant about a strawberry "milkshake" (frozen strawberries, banana, vanilla greek yogurt, 2% milk, 35% cream), even when our mom expressed her excitement to try one, but I showed him a picture of one I made myself a couple days ago, and when he saw the whipped cream and sprinkles, he said, "well that changes things!" and was willing to try. AND when the first attempt was not sweet enough, he let me re-blend it with sugar and adjusted his opinion, drinking until he was full. He told us that if he opened a restaurant, he would put it on the menu!

I was blown away by his openness and flexibility, and I'm excited we may have found a new dessert with real fruit, a bit of protein, and lots of calories. Hopefully it sticks, and maybe we can bridge in little bits of other fruits.

Wishing everyone else food victories this week!