u/scumbagspaceopera

I’ve never been strict about screens with my 6 year old but I think I’m going to start banning some shit. Some of her brainrot favorites I can’t take even just being exposed to them by proxy.

My daughter’s absolute favorite genre of videos is kids playing video games (often Roblox) while narrating along and saying absolutely nothing substantive. It’s complete drivel for the entirety of the video; no enrichment to be had whatsoever. I don’t know how this kind of content captures her attention, to me it’s just pointless verbal diarrhea, but it drives me crazy listening to it even passively. It’s so…empty. Vloggers in this genre:

Lankybox
Cherry Pop Productions
Foltyn

I’ve also noticed videos that look like familiar cartoons such as Peppa Pig but that get weirdly inappropriate all of a sudden at random times. These are allowed on Kids YouTube too which is unfortunate.

I don’t know a lot about this stuff, admittedly. What should
I keep away from her? She already has behavioral challenges due to severe ADHD.

She plays Roblox and I’ve never seen anything terribly sus there but I also don’t know what she’s doing when my back is turned. I do think it’s probably fine in moderation with supervision or active parent involvement though. I don’t feel like it’s completely evil BUT admittedly I haven’t seen the full gamut of what it has to offer. I have witnessed people who seemed to be predators but we turned off the chat and she’s good now.

Got prescribed Zurzuvae for postpartum depression/anxiety. It’s a 2 week course of meds specifically for postpartum. Doc said it can cause sedation though so I would need someone available at night to take care of baby. I said that should be fine, I have my husband. I told my husband about this and he wants it in writing from my doctor that this is the case. That’s how badly he doesn’t want to help with the baby at night I guess. As if I would lie about that? That is next level scumbag. I’ll prob end up waking up with baby myself anyway even though it’s dangerous to do so. SMH.

Anyone have experience with this medication?

I run out of Adderall tomorrow.

I want to quit for good this time.

I quit for 3 months before but went back to it thinking I could “take it as prescribed.” I can, for a couple days. Then I get a shitty generic, or have a shitty day, and I end up binging the fuck out of it. This month was the worst in my 20 years of taking Adderall: a 30 day supply gone in 7 days. I cannot solve this problem with willpower alone.

I’m now convinced that I simply cannot moderate and need to quit completely. I have a 6 year old and a 2 month old. They are my reason for wanting to stop this binge/withdrawal cycle I live every month. This isn’t living.

How did you keep yourself from filling your script when it was due? I already attend NA. I intend to tell my doctor that I’d like to try non-stimulant ADHD meds instead but I don’t see him until after next fill day.

Also, is there any supplement that makes the withdrawal more bearable? The intense drive to sleep for days is hard to cope with.

Thanks for any suggestions.

I run out of Adderall tomorrow.

I want to quit for good this time.

I quit for 3 months before but went back to it thinking I could “take it as prescribed.” I can, for a couple days. Then I get a shitty generic, or have a shitty day, and I end up binging the fuck out of it. This month was the worst in my 20 years of taking Adderall: a 30 day supply gone in 7 days. I cannot solve this problem with willpower alone.

I’m now convinced that I simply cannot moderate and need to quit completely. I have a 6 year old and a 2 month old. They are my reason for wanting to stop this binge/withdrawal cycle I live every month. This isn’t living.

How did you keep yourself from filling your script when it was due? I already attend NA. I intend to tell my doctor that I’d like to try non-stimulant ADHD meds instead but I don’t see him until after next fill day.

Also, is there any supplement that makes the withdrawal more bearable? The intense drive to sleep for days is hard to cope with.

Thanks for any suggestions.

This is long but I don’t care, I need to think out loud. Scroll past if you don’t want to read. Also scroll if you feel like commenting something unkind or unsupportive. Thanks in advance.

I got addicted to Adderall the very first time I took it in college to help me cram for finals. Now, over 20 years later, I’m a complete Adderall whore. I got diagnosed with ADHD at 21 and have a valid prescription (30mg BID), but am trapped in a vicious cycle of binging the script, running out after 10 days, going into withdrawal, and doing it all over again the next month.

Don’t get me wrong, Adderall is incredibly helpful for my ADHD…when I take it as prescribed. But I so rarely take it as prescribed that it’s purely theoretical. I am always battling the urge to take more. I’ve taken as much as 300mg of Adderall in a single day and didn’t even feel that much. Either my tolerance is insane after using it off and on for 20 years, or the generic brands I’ve been getting don’t even have amphetamine in them. Who knows.

I got an especially ineffective generic brand this month and I’m REALLY struggling to keep my use reasonable because it feels like I’ve taken a sugar pill. I feel the same way about various manufacturers. I have one preferred brand that seems to work for me even in small doses. My doctor said he could write the script to specify that it be filled only with my preferred manufacturer. That might be a solution for me to help end this vicious binge and withdrawal cycle I’m in. Maybe I should try that before abandoning all hope.

But also? I’m really fucking sick of debating with myself about whether or not I’m going to binge on Adderall today. Deep down I want to finally quit this drug and learn how to cope without the use of amphetamines. Taking it now is like a recovering alcoholic working as a bartender. I have an abuse history with Adderall, but now take it “as prescribed.” I feel like after long enough around booze, even someone with the strongest of resolve to not drink would maybe break down and have a drink after repeated exposure to their former drug of choice in their daily work as a bartender. Like I’m playing with fire taking Adderall in any amount, so the best thing for me to do is not take it at all.

I tried quitting Adderall last October but only lasted 100 days. And those 100 days were rough. But, importantly, I proved to myself that I can in fact function without Adderall. I may have moved a little slower, got less work done, texted less, posted less on Reddit, slept more. But I still got done the major things that I needed to do as a mom and employee.

My psychiatrist told me it was lowkey negligent to my child to not to treat my ADHD and he urged me to go back on Adderall. So I resumed treatment in January and have stayed on it mostly “as prescribed” since then, because I consider myself to be a person in recovery and I want to keep my clean date. BUT, I still have days where I slip up and take an extra pill. I’m constantly having to talk myself out of taking more. And I don’t always win out against my addict brain.

I’ve tried to understand my triggers. I definitely use to mask emotional pain. If I have an emotionally difficult day I feel like fuck it, might as well binge. I use to cure boredom. I use because I feel like I have very little else to look forward to as a 40-something suburban mom of 2 in an unhappy marriage. Fill day is like Christmas morning every single month. I don’t drink, smoke, or use other drugs, so in a way I feel like the Adderall is the only treat I get in life.

Many times my logical brain has concluded that I’d rather have all month coverage and take my prescribed dose instead of binging and running out early. But that knowledge alone never stops me from binging. The withdrawal is so painful every month and yet I keep setting myself up to run out early. In withdrawal I’m having a hard time being a good mom to my 2 month old baby who requires me to function even when I’m very tired. The pull to sleep during withdrawal is very hard to cope with and remain functional throughout.

What helped you gain the resolve necessary to quit for good? Not reduce your usage, but quit entirely. When did you stop viewing Adderall as potentially useful and start realizing that for you, it was bad news and you shouldn’t take it anymore? I feel like I’m at that point.

This is long but I don’t care, I need to think out loud. Scroll past if you don’t want to read. Also scroll if you feel like commenting something unkind or unsupportive. Thanks in advance.

I got addicted to Adderall the very first time I took it in college to help me cram for finals. Now, over 20 years later, I’m a complete Adderall whore. I got diagnosed with ADHD at 21 and have a valid prescription (30mg BID), but am trapped in a vicious cycle of binging the script, running out after 10 days, going into withdrawal, and doing it all over again the next month.

Don’t get me wrong, Adderall is incredibly helpful for my ADHD…when I take it as prescribed. But I so rarely take it as prescribed that it’s purely theoretical. I am always battling the urge to take more. I’ve taken as much as 300mg of Adderall in a single day and didn’t even feel that much. Either my tolerance is insane after using it off and on for 20 years, or the generic brands I’ve been getting don’t even have amphetamine in them. Who knows.

I got an especially ineffective generic brand this month and I’m REALLY struggling to keep my use reasonable because it feels like I’ve taken a sugar pill. I feel the same way about various manufacturers. I have one preferred brand that seems to work for me even in small doses. My doctor said he could write the script to specify that it be filled only with my preferred manufacturer. That might be a solution for me to help end this vicious binge and withdrawal cycle I’m in. Maybe I should try that before abandoning all hope.

But also? I’m really fucking sick of debating with myself about whether or not I’m going to binge on Adderall today. Deep down I want to finally quit this drug and learn how to cope without the use of amphetamines. Taking it now is like a recovering alcoholic working as a bartender. I have an abuse history with Adderall, but now take it “as prescribed.” I feel like after long enough around booze, even someone with the strongest of resolve to not drink would maybe break down and have a drink after repeated exposure to their former drug of choice in their daily work as a bartender. Like I’m playing with fire taking Adderall in any amount, so the best thing for me to do is not take it at all.

I tried quitting Adderall last October but only lasted 100 days. And those 100 days were rough. But, importantly, I proved to myself that I can in fact function without Adderall. I may have moved a little slower, got less work done, texted less, posted less on Reddit, slept more. But I still got done the major things that I needed to do as a mom and employee.

My psychiatrist told me it was lowkey negligent to my child to not to treat my ADHD and he urged me to go back on Adderall. So I resumed treatment in January and have stayed on it mostly “as prescribed” since then, because I consider myself to be a person in recovery and I want to keep my clean date. BUT, I still have days where I slip up and take an extra pill. I’m constantly having to talk myself out of taking more. And I don’t always win out against my addict brain.

I’ve tried to understand my triggers. I definitely use to mask emotional pain. If I have an emotionally difficult day I feel like fuck it, might as well binge. I use to cure boredom. I use because I feel like I have very little else to look forward to as a 40-something suburban mom of 2 in an unhappy marriage. Fill day is like Christmas morning every single month. I don’t drink, smoke, or use other drugs, so in a way I feel like the Adderall is the only treat I get in life.

Many times my logical brain has concluded that I’d rather have all month coverage and take my prescribed dose instead of binging and running out early. But that knowledge alone never stops me from binging. The withdrawal is so painful every month and yet I keep setting myself up to run out early. In withdrawal I’m having a hard time being a good mom to my 2 month old baby who requires me to function even when I’m very tired. The pull to sleep during withdrawal is very hard to cope with and remain functional throughout.

What helped you gain the resolve necessary to quit for good? Not reduce your usage, but quit entirely. When did you stop viewing Adderall as potentially useful and start realizing that for you, it was bad news and you shouldn’t take it anymore? I feel like I’m at that point.

Any tricks for getting your kindergartner to brush their teeth before school? Sometimes she does it herself without a fight. But most mornings it’s a battle and I end up losing the battle. She refuses. Tries to tell me she already did it, etc.

I’ve tried:

- Getting toothpaste she likes better (Tom’s strawberry)
- Getting a Frozen electric toothbrush that she likes
- Brushing along to Danny Go’s teeth brushing video
- Giving her choices (brush hair or teeth first?)
- Setting a timer for her to brush teeth in 5 minutes
- Rolling a dice to see what order to do morning tasks in (still refuses teeth)

I’ve tried everything short of pinning her down and brushing her teeth myself. Any tips appreciated. TIA

Anyone have a SAHD in the family? How is that arrangement going for you?

How much are your babies drinking per feed at 8 weeks/2 months? And what formula are you on?

Since we recently switched from Similac 360 to Enfamil Infant, baby seems to need more per feed. He went from being satisfied with 4 oz to sometimes needing 5 oz to be satisfied. I usually do a bigger feed in the morning and at bedtime and 4 oz bottles the rest of the time.

What is a reasonable monthly grocery budget for a family of 4? We currently spend $1000-1400. We mostly buy generics, but also plenty of convenience foods instead of cooking from scratch. We do indulge in sodas daily, I know this is a major expense. We have young children so cooking elaborate or labor-intensive meals is not practical for this stage of our lives. I'd like to get the budget down to closer to $700 but I don't think that's possible anymore in this economy. I feel like I place a $150-200 Walmart grocery order at least weekly so that's over $700 on just Walmart.

HELP!

I've been spiraling since my recent post where several individuals expressed concern over my husband sleeping with our 6-year-old daughter in her bed. Before that, he was sleeping with her in the master bedroom (the marital bed), forcing me to sleep in her room or on the couch for the duration of my high risk pregnancy. This has gone on for at least a year, despite me telling him previously that it made me uncomfortable and I felt it was time for him to encourage her to sleep independently of him. It's like that conversation never happened because he's kept sleeping with her, even though he agreed to start sleeping on the couch.

Here are some things that raise red flags for me. I don't know for sure if these things are sus, I never was abused myself. I am going to rely on your opinions as people who may have experienced abuse in your own lives.

• He insists on wiping her butt despite the fact that she recently learned how to do it herself (with my help and encouragement to become a Big Girl before her brother was born). I don't understand why he would continue doing that when she's capable of doing it herself. I also don't know why he didn't insist on her doing it herself sooner than age 6. Some kids are doing that independently as young as 4 years old.

• Bathtime has become an INTENSE struggle in our household lately. My husband insists on bathing her because according to him I don't do it properly (?), and he tells Audrey that's why only daddy can bathe her. When he announces that it's time to take a shower, she panics, runs away, refuses, says she doesn't want to get wet, tries to delay bath until morning, does everything she can to avoid the shower. He threatens to call Santa if she doesn't comply, which upsets her more. This goes on for a solid 30+ minutes. Also, she's at an age where she can independently wash her hair and body with supervision (that's what I do on the rare occasions I give her a bath myself), but he insists on doing it for her so it's done "right."

• She has been hiding at times recently. One day she was hiding in her closet, hysterically crying and acting petrified about some monster in her room all of a sudden out of nowhere. She was absolutely inconsolable and not making sense. She was screaming "monster" and would not come out of her closet. I tried to talk to her and figure out why she was so scared, but she wouldn't speak, almost as if she were mute. I was very confused as to what could be going on to make her react in this way. My husband was in her room outside the closet door and she pointed in his direction when she was saying "monster."

• In March 2024 (when she was 4) my husband took over more of her caregiving because I started working out of town 3 nights a week and I got off late. She started gaining a crazy amount of weight at this time...so much so that at age 5 her doctor had to tell me, something needs to be done, she is way off the growth curve, her triglycerides and cholesterol are elevated, etc. Doc showed me the graph of her weight gain, and for the entire four years I was primarily responsible for feeding her, she was within a normal weight range; then once the graph hit March 2024, her weight started skyrocketing. THAT EXACT MONTH. Between ages 4 and 6 she doubled in weight (45 to 90 pounds). I have heard that victims of child abuse often gain weight. This could also be related to other things, of course, but I found the timing of the weight gain mildly sus.

• She refers to her brother's genitals as "mischief." I have never referred to genitalia that way before, so I asked her where she learned that. She said daddy.

• They often will wrestle on the bed and roughhouse. Sometimes she'll say "don't touch me on my crotch" and he'll apologize. It's happened more than once that she's expressed discomfort about him touching her in an inappropriate place.

• My husband insists our daughter never see him naked. It's almost a "thou doth protest too much" situation where he is SO adamant about protecting her from the sight of male genitalia that it makes you wonder if in reality he's being a creep with her -- almost like he's overcompensating.

• At age 5 she took a long object and motioned it toward her vagina, then moved it in and out as if simulating penetrative sex.

• She has had accidents a lot recently whereas she almost never had them before. She keeps having accidents right next to the toilet which I don't understand -- you're right there, how does that even happen? And she wet the bed the other night. She has never wet the bed before. She's also been sucking her thumb and saying how good babies have it. This could also be related to her brother having been born recently though.

• For Valentine's Day my husband got me a custom towel with pictures of him and our daughter. These were pictures I had never seen before, from times they spent together where I was not present. I was not in any of the photos. He had also never shared these photos with me. This was his gift to me for a romantic holiday. I found that to be...bizarre, to say the least.

• Very often since our youngest was born, my husband is always finding ways to spend time one-on-one time with our daughter. He's been doing it so much, in fact, that I told him I feel like me and her brother have been erased from the family unit. I told him that we would appreciate being included in the fun things they do together and that it would be nice to go out as a family of four from time to time instead of them always going out and leaving us at home. He frames it as giving me a break by taking our daughter off my hands, but even when I expressed wanting to be included more, he continued arranging for them to have one-on-one time.

• He absolutely refuses to let a certain group of my friends be around our children. He was deeply offended when one of my friends hugged our daughter, saying it bordered on pedophilia.

• He always frames himself as her hero or protector the one who can comfort her. I'm always positioned as abusive, a monster, incapable, aggressive. "Mommy won't help you, come here," etc etc.

Thoughts? Am I being overly paranoid? Please someone help me make sense of this.

I've repeatedly heard Bannerman recommended so I'll start by reaching out to her.

Any other good divorce attorneys in the area? TIA

My marriage has been strained since day one. We had been together seven years when we got married in September 2025, and we had problems for years leading up to that including infidelity on his part.

Tonight though I think was the final straw for me.

Today I spent 15 hours straight caring for our 6-year-old daughter and infant son (7 weeks). This is a typical day in my life as I am currently on maternity leave and my husband works 50 hours a week doing manual labor. I'm fine doing the bulk of the baby care because taking care of our son is sort of my job right now. HOWEVER, everyone needs breaks, and I barely get any. When I do, I often have to rush home after a short time because the baby wakes up and my husband refuses to tend to him due to needing to wake up at 4 AM for work. He apparently feels like he can opt out of parenting simply because he works early. Or, he feels "above" the woman's work of baby care. Not sure.

Tonight I went to my mom's house for some me time after getting the baby down around 10:30 PM. I was at her house for 15 minutes when my husband orders me to come home because the baby is awake. I said, so? Spend 15 minutes feeding him. Peace. He said I can't, it takes me forever to fall back asleep. I said, you're already awake, what does it matter if you fall asleep 15 minutes later? You'll struggle to get to sleep if you spend the time caring for our son or not. He said, fine, I will let the baby cry and put himself back to sleep. At this point I don't want to make my son suffer, so I'm on my way home.

I get home to find our son scared, alone, and hungry, wide awake in the bassinet. My mama heart just broke. I look in my daughter's room and there my husband is with the glow of his cell phone in his face. I'd love to know what was so important on his phone at midnight that it was worth neglecting his son for. My husband said he put the pacifier in the baby's mouth and when he got back from making a bottle, baby had fallen back to sleep.

This strikes me as a lie because I know my baby. He doesn't fall asleep easily. I found him unswaddled, and I doubt that sucking on a pacifier for 1 minute made him so drowsy that he fell back to sleep. I think it's much more likely that my husband made the bottle as a prop to create the illusion that he cared for our son (the bottle was completely full), then peaced out and went back to bed.

This was the last straw for me. I already do 98% of the work of caring for our children -- what difference would it make if I went to doing 100% of the work after getting rid of my husband? He provides virtually no help, so no huge loss there. He does no housework. He is a financial drain on me. I have trust issues with him since he emotionally cheated on me a year ago. We haven't had sex in 6 months. I plan mini-date nights with him to reconnect and maybe have some intimacy after the kids go to bed, and he falls asleep instead, completely blowing me off. I beg him for his attention, for him to show me any signs of caring about me, and get nothing in return. All 5 of our attempts at therapy have been brief and unsuccessful; eventually I got the memo that he just isn't invested in doing the work of improving our relationship. I feel like a roommate, a live-in maid, a babysitter. I don't feel like a wife.

There's more but this is long. I just feel like it's been difficult between us for a long time and if I can't rely on him to be a decent parent when we're in the midst of the newborn trenches, BOY BYE. I ain't got time for this shit. I'll go be by myself and probably be happier that way. Peace.

Am I overreacting? Was he right to demand I rush home to care for the baby? Is it okay for him to let the baby cry himself back to sleep instead of feeding and soothing him? I know you shouldn't make decisions in the middle of the night when you're angry. But this isn't the first time I've wanted a divorce either. It's a lot of stuff all built up and I'm just tired of expecting him to be a decent person and being let down when I see who he truly is.

My marriage has been strained since day one. We had been together seven years when we got married in September 2025, and we had problems for years leading up to that including infidelity on his part.

Tonight though I think was the final straw for me.

Today I spent 15 hours straight caring for our 6-year-old daughter and infant son (7 weeks). This is a typical day in my life as I am currently on maternity leave and my husband works 50 hours a week doing manual labor. I'm fine doing the bulk of the baby care because taking care of our son is sort of my job right now. HOWEVER, everyone needs breaks, and I barely get any. When I do, I often have to rush home after a short time because the baby wakes up and my husband refuses to tend to him due to needing to wake up at 4 AM for work. He apparently feels like he can opt out of parenting simply because he works early. Or, he feels "above" the woman's work of baby care. Not sure.

Tonight I went to my mom's house for some me time after getting the baby down around 10:30 PM. I was at her house for 15 minutes when my husband orders me to come home because the baby is awake. I said, so? Spend 15 minutes feeding him. Peace. He said I can't, it takes me forever to fall back asleep. I said, you're already awake, what does it matter if you fall asleep 15 minutes later? You'll struggle to get to sleep if you spend the time caring for our son or not. He said, fine, I will let the baby cry and put himself back to sleep. At this point I don't want to make my son suffer, so I'm on my way home.

I get home to find our son scared, alone, and hungry, wide awake in the bassinet. My mama heart just broke. I look in my daughter's room and there my husband is with the glow of his cell phone in his face. I'd love to know what was so important on his phone at midnight that it was worth neglecting his son for. My husband said he put the pacifier in the baby's mouth and when he got back from making a bottle, baby had fallen back to sleep.

This strikes me as a lie because I know my baby. He doesn't fall asleep easily. I found him unswaddled, and I doubt that sucking on a pacifier for 1 minute made him so drowsy that he fell back to sleep. I think it's much more likely that my husband made the bottle as a prop to create the illusion that he cared for our son (the bottle was completely full), then peaced out and went back to bed.

This was the last straw for me. I already do 98% of the work of caring for our children -- what difference would it make if I went to doing 100% of the work after getting rid of my husband? He provides virtually no help, so no huge loss there. He does no housework. He is a financial drain on me. I have trust issues with him since he emotionally cheated on me a year ago. We haven't had sex in 6 months. I plan mini-date nights with him to reconnect and maybe have some intimacy after the kids go to bed, and he falls asleep instead, completely blowing me off. I beg him for his attention, for him to show me any signs of caring about me, and get nothing in return. All 5 of our attempts at therapy have been brief and unsuccessful; eventually I got the memo that he just isn't invested in doing the work of improving our relationship. I feel like a roommate, a live-in maid, a babysitter. I don't feel like a wife.

There's more but this is long. I just feel like it's been difficult between us for a long time and if I can't rely on him to be a decent parent when we're in the midst of the newborn trenches, BOY BYE. I ain't got time for this shit. I'll go be by myself and probably be happier that way. Peace.

Am I overreacting? Was he right to demand I rush home to care for the baby? Is it okay for him to let the baby cry himself back to sleep instead of feeding and soothing him? I know you shouldn't make decisions in the middle of the night when you're angry. But this isn't the first time I've wanted a divorce either. It's a lot of stuff all built up and I'm just tired of expecting him to be a decent person and being let down when I see who he truly is.

Can’t seem to find this info online for some reason.

What is the income limit for Section 8 in Stanislaus County?

Is there a waitlist? If so, how long is the waitlist?

TIA for any info.

Delete if not allowed.

I started an uncensored WhatsApp group chat to serve as a safe space and support group for people in recovery from any addiction. Right now it’s just a handful of my friends from NA but I was hoping more would join us on the dark side. If interested in participating, please comment here and I will DM you for your contact details and get you added to the chat. TIA.

Delete if not allowed.

I started an uncensored WhatsApp group chat to serve as a safe space and support group for people in recovery from any addiction. Right now it’s just a handful of my friends from NA but I was hoping more would join us on the dark side. If interested in participating, please comment here and I will DM you for your contact details and get you added to the chat. TIA.

Delete if not allowed.

I started an uncensored WhatsApp group chat to serve as a safe space and support group for people in recovery from any addiction. Right now it’s just a handful of my friends from NA but I was hoping more would join us on the dark side. If interested in participating, please comment here and I will DM you for your contact details and get you added to the chat. TIA.

I just had my second who is 6 years younger than my oldest. I now have one of each. Everything logical says it makes sense for us to stop at 2 and call it good. But…giving birth majorly messes with your hormones and causes temporary insanity, making you want to have an army of babies. Now I’m contemplating possibly adding a third to our clan in the near future.

Why? It’s simple really. I love being a mom and I think I’m pretty good at it, too. My marriage is strained at times, so I gain most of my happiness and satisfaction in life from my children. Before kids I was a lost drug addict who couldn’t even manage to take care of herself. Now I’m in recovery and have a stable job with the state.

I had kids late in life — 34 and 40, respectively. If we had another it would need to be soon just due to my ticking biological clock. My most recent pregnancy was rough — gestational diabetes, hypertension, polyhydramnios, macrosomia, severe insomnia — but would I do it again? In a heartbeat. Things that are worth doing are rarely easy.

I suspect that our age gap is making things with 2 kids feel easy now that my son is still a potato baby (7 weeks old). I suspect it will get more demanding managing 2 kids once my son is mobile and/or starts talking. The 1-2 age range brought me to the edge of insanity when I just had ONE kid, so I’m a little fearful of how rough it’s gonna be in about a year’s time. I understand that it may not be the best time to judge the feasibility of managing 3 kids, knowing that the worst of life with 2 kids is likely still to come. I might be way overwhelmed with just the 2. I don’t know yet.

I guess I just feel pressure to decide one way or the other due to my “advanced maternal age,” and needing to conceive in the near future if we do intend to expand our family further.

As for support systems, ours is fairly weak. We don’t have much local family help (my sister lives 7 hours away and is the most involved family) nor do we even have a go-to babysitter. We rely on daycare for our kids while we work full-time. We’ve managed fine up until now. But it’s really just us handling it all day to day. I don’t view that as a major downside though since so many people are in the same boat and they make it work for themselves.

Financially it would be tight but doable. We would need a bigger car or cars. That’s the major change I foresee in our lifestyle going to 3 kids. I currently have a Kia Soul and my husband has a Nissan Sentra, which might be technically doable with 3 but it would be tight enough to be far from ideal.

Someone talk me out of this postpartum insanity of wanting more and more babies! Anyone here go from 2 to 3, particularly with a small age gap between the second and third babies, and have any guidance about how to make this decision?