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We mentioned this skirt as a dupe for our Monday splurge over on Corporette, but hello: It’s machine washable, some sizes are $21, and it looks like a great year-round classic skirt. It’s $21-$69 at Amazon. Kasper Flounce Hem Skirt Here’s a plus-size option. Psst: Note that the Nordstrom Half-Yearly Sale starts today — we already took a look at some of the great workwear deals on the site yesterday; stay tuned later this morning at Corporette for another round-up. (L-4)Sales of note for 3.18.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Ann Taylor – 30% off sale; $50 off $200
- Banana Republic Factory – 50% off everything
- Eloquii – 50% off select styles; up to 40% off almost everything else
- J.Crew – Up to 40% off women’s dressed-up styles
- Lands’ End – 10% off your order
- Loft – 40% off your purchase
- Nordstrom: 4,400+ new markdowns
- Talbots – 25% off your purchase, including markdowns
- Zappos – 37,000+ women’s sale items! (check out these reader-favorite workwear brands on sale, and some of our favorite kids’ shoe brands on sale)
Kid/Family Sales
- Carter’s – 50% off pajamas & free shipping on all orders (ends 3/18); at least 40% off everything
- Hanna Andersson – 30% off all dresses; up to 40% off Easter
- J.Crew Crewcuts – Up to 40% off kids’ dressed-up styles
- Old Navy – 50% off everything (ends 3/20)
- Target – 20% off tees, tanks & shorts for all; BOGO 50% off kids’ books, board games, activity kits & puzzles; up to $150 off select Apple products
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And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- If you’re a working parent of an infant with low sleep needs, how do you function at work when you’re in the throes of baby’s sleep regression?
- Should I cut my childcare down to 12 hours a month if I work from home?
- Will my baby have speech delays if we raise her bilingual?
- Has anyone given birth in a teaching hospital?
- My child eats everything, and my friends’ kids do not – how should I handle? In general, what is the best way to handle when your child has some skill/ability and your friend’s child doesn’t have that skill/ability?
- ADHD moms, give me your tips to help with things like behavior in the classroom, attention to detail, etc?
- I think I suffer from mom rage…
- My husband and kids are gone this weekend – how should I enjoy my free time?
- I’m struggling to be compassionate with a SAHM friend who complains she doesn’t have enough hours of childcare.
- If you exclusively formula fed, what tips do you have for in the hospital and coming home?
- Could I take my 4-yo and 8-yo on a 7-8 day trip to Paris, Lyon, and Madrid?
Edna Mazur says
Tent camping with a one and a 2.5 year old. Crazy?
Meg Murry says
Crazy to me, but camping is closer to the “torture” end of the scale than the “vacation” end of the scale in my personal enjoyment index, so my opinion is slightly biased :-)
I’m assuming when you say “tent camping” you mean “drive to a campsite with a car full of stuff and sleep in a tent”, yes? That seems do-able, and I could see it working for people that liked camping pre-kids. If you mean “hike into the woods with a tent strapped to my back with the kids and sleep there” – that seems a bit more daunting.
Edna Mazur says
I feel you. I’m definitely more of a fully furnished with kitchen and bathroom cabin type of girl.
LegalMomma says
With good support I think its possible. But I went tent camping with an eight-week old last summer. I also was with my parents who camp all the time, and who did everything camping related and I was solely responsible for my kid. I also come from a family that went tent camping at a boat-in-only campsite for years starting when my siblings and I were 5, 3, and 1 (yes my parents were crazy).
Edna Mazur says
Oh goodness yes, the car will be parked 20 feet away.
TheElms says
A colleague did this with a 2 year old and 6 month old (at the end of her maternity leave I think) and she said it wasn’t awful. They did make sure to have a hotel location pre-picked in case it all went south fast.
Momata says
Do some backyard trial runs first. We tried tent camping with a 1yo and she woke up in the middle of the night, freaked out, and would NOT go back to sleep (even after successfully napping in the tent only hours earlier).
Edna Mazur says
This is a great idea.
EB0220 says
We’ve done it! It was kind of hard at that age, but great by the time the younger one was 18 mo or so.
Anon says
What bedding did you use at 18 months? Did you bring a PnP? I’m ready to get my kids out, but I’m worried about – super early wakings that will disturb the whole campsite, and what to do with the kid who can’t yet sleep in a sleeping bag.
hoola hoopa says
For that age, we’ve used the shrunks toddler air mattress (amazon) with regular bedding or a sleeping bag, a twin air mattress with a sleeping bag, and co-sleeping in a double sleeping bag on a queen air mattress. We’ve never brought a PNP. (I think we technically brought it the first time just in case but never got it out).
The shrunks mattress is awesome for travel in general, but for camping I wouldn’t say there was any advantage over a twin (other than being smaller for packing and quicker to inflate), but I do prefer a sleeping bag because the kiddos stay warmer at night with the better insulation below them. They either use our extra adult sleeping bags or the North Face kids bags, which are awesome.
Anonymama says
Fun! But if possible bring extra adults, as someone else mentioned, it will make it a lot easier.
hoola hoopa says
DH and I are big campers and love taking the kids, but I will be honest that those are hard ages. It can really go either way. We’ve had some great trips with toddlers and some rough ones. Tips:
Go with another family (more kids = more fun) or at least bring another adult!!
Go for one night, near home. It sounds worthless if you were a heavy camper pre-kids, but really start with one night about an hour from home.
If your kiddos have a hard time sleeping in a light room, plan to be in the car during nap time (arrange a day trip, drive in/out during nap time, or just go for a drive).
Do something away from your camp site every day.
Go to a ‘family friendly’ campground: now is the time for the developed bathroom, interpretive center, and playground. And other families who will go to bed earlier, not blast the music, etc.
I wholeheartedly agree with backyard camping. We do it pretty routinely with the older kids, too. All the fun of sleeping bags and smores without the packing and drive ;)
Tunnel says
I love a good flounce skirt, but Kasper never seems to fit me right. Always too tight in the waist when it fits everywhere else. I think Kasper is trying to tell me something…
CLMom says
Any tips on starting baby food/cereal at daycare? Which storage containers that travel well (I’m making the baby food)? Bring food daily, or keep a stock at daycare?
We’re doing okay eating at home already.
Lkl says
For the first couple months of baby food lunches, while still in purees, we would freeze homemade purees in ice cube trays and then plunk some frozen cubes into a little plastic dishes with lids (gerber graduates brand, I think)the night before – even kept in the fridge they’d be thawed by lunch time. We probably started with 1-2 cubes but were sending 4 by the time the baby moved on to finger foods.
BTanon says
This is what we do too. Our containers are the Munchkin Love-A-Bowls, and they’ve held up well so far. I freeze the puree in a Wee Sprout Silicone Tray, and then transfer them into freezer bags. Each night I pop one of those cubes in a bowl, close the lid, and label so the daycare knows what the mush is. Right now (7mo), I’m sending two bowls, each with a 1.5 oz cube, but expect it to increase once my baby starts actually eating some of it.
Anonymous says
I would also keep a few pouches at daycare in case baby is extra hungry one day or you don’t get it together to make food for that day.
CLMom says
Good idea. Are there non-corporate brands of stage 1/2 food that are shelf stable? I will probably stop by Whole Foods this weekend.
Anon in NYC says
I don’t know if this qualifies as non-corporate, but we have given my daughter Plum Organics, Ella’s Kitchen, Peter Rabbit, and Sprout pouches. She’s also had Earth’s Best and Gerber, which I thought were totally fine. I think the Peter Rabbit are my favorite.
My husband and I are very into making our own baby food as well, and the ingredient list for all of them is really straightforward. I don’t think I’ve been concerned that there was anything in any of the pouches that shouldn’t be in there, although some pouches do have “hidden” fruit in them. Like something bills itself as pear, peas + spinach, but then the ingredient list includes apple puree. I’m not going to get upset over apple puree as a “bad ingredient,” but apples = constipation for my little one. So just be aware of that if you have those issues.
CLMom says
I love Peter Rabbit the book…I will look at Peter Rabbit the food!
Hidden fruit? I’ll be on the lookout. Thanks!
Anonymous says
I usually buy the least expensive organic kind. Diapers.com or Amazon often have coupons. Ditto to the comment on “hidden” ingredients. My main tips are to check the ingredients and the sugar content on the nutrition label. Some of them have a lot of sugar as a result of using something like apple puree as a principal ingredient (not necessarily bad in and of itself, but something to be aware of)
PinkKeyboard says
Just to warn you, I did purees leading to my baby refusing all packaged ones because they were apparently inferior. We quickly moved on to finger foods at 7 months, but just a warning!
anne-on says
Ditto to this, my kid would only accept homemade purees (or of course the one magical type of organic apple sauce, and hated all others).
Roasted cubed sweet potatoes were also a super easy favorite finger food – I roasted them with coconut oil and a teeny bit of cinnamon and vanilla extract. Yummy, and great for practicing pincher grip without using puffs.
CLMom says
Oh my. Good to know.
Anon in NYC says
We use (and really like) the Oxo Tot Blocks. We can’t store food at daycare (maybe things like Cheerios, but not purees), so we brought it back and forth every day. We provided daycare with a spoon that we leave there, and we brought in a sippy cup that we bring home weekly to run through the dishwasher. I think in the beginning we provided 2 of the smaller tot blocks (one veggie puree and one fruit puree), but the amount will depend on your kid and how much s/he eats.
MDMom says
For cereals, I just kept a box of cereal there and provided one bottle to mix with it every day. My daycare provides spoons/bowls. I sent homemade purees mostly, speed frozen and doled out in cubes. I used little Pyrex containers because I like them for grown-up food too and they are easy to clean.
Now that baby is over 1 he mostly eats daycare provided food, except I still store baby oatmeal there for breakfast because he loves it. I also bought some of those food pouches to keep there in case he can’t/won’t eat the school food that day.
shortperson says
i wanted to avoid plastic, so we went with 4 ounce ball jars with tulids. (http://www.amazon.com/Tulid-Pack-Reusable-leak-proof-BPA-free/dp/B00II5TAUA)
Anon in NYC says
Teething toys suggestions? My daughter has become a biter (ack!) and daycare suggested providing a teething toy for her. She has been mostly uninterested in teething specific things (we have those rubbery ones that you put in the fridge and a Sophie). So far she seems mostly interested in gnawing on wood, but I’d like to get something for her that is meant for teething or otherwise safe to put in her mouth. I’m looking at the Barin wooden teether sticks, but would appreciate any other suggestions. Thanks!
layered bob says
my daughter likes the ZoLi teething sticks, and gnaws enthusiastically on her wooden toys/rattles, but her favorite thing to bite on is a wet washcloth.
JEB says
My daughter loves the teething banana (just search for that on Amazon). It’s like crack to her when her teeth are hurting. She also likes a frozen, wet washcloth. Good luck!
FTMinFL says
If you could arrange your 40 +/- hour work schedule in any way, what would your weekly work schedule look like and why? I’m preparing to negotiate a schedule change with my employer to one that is better for my family/sanity and wondering what that would look like for other mamas.
CLMom says
For me, I wanted to be in and leave early. There is less chance for traffic to be a problem, which it often is in LA. However, my early schedule only works because I found a daycare that opens at 6:30am.
I thought I would get “extra” time with DD because we’d be home well before bedtime, however she adjusted to the schedule and goes to bed earlier, which actually means DH gets a little less time with her since he gets home later.
CLMom says
It should be noted that, unlike many other commenters, I am currently non-exempt and I am not an attorney.
Meg Murry says
I’ve always liked “go in early and leave early” in theory, but it’s definitely the kind of thing where you have to know your office and know yourself. If it’s the kind of place where things always come up at 3:45 (or 4:45 or later) or you are the kind of person that will push through if you are nearly done on a project, or if your boss is the type that likes to pop in at the end of the day to give you more work, it can turn into my situation where I was officially on the books for a 7-4 or 8-5 schedule, but I was regularly staying 1-2 hours late, so I’ve eventually shifted to a 8:30 – whenever schedule.
I agree with everyone else though that if you committed to some kind of core hours + flexibility on the rest, that would probably be best. So something like “definitely in the office M, W, F from 9-3, work from home Tues, Thursday, and typically work 8-5 but flexibility to move things around when issues arise” would be key.
Oh, and it’s little but important – if you are thinking of scheduling a WFH day or a regular day off, make sure it isn’t the day your pediatrician’s office is closed, or whatever else you might try to do on that day is open. I negotiated working from home on Wednesdays (with flexible hours for that day) for a while, and figured I could make all the routine check-ups that day, and sure enough, that’s the day my pediatrician is in his office in the suburb on the other side of our city.
One thing that has made a big difference though is that my husband and I have made arrangements so there is at least 1 night per week when we can stay later at work without worry. So I know that if I’m otherwise behind on my week I can stay later on Thursdays to catch up, and I know that Tuesdays are my “nope, gotten get out in time for daycare pickup unless the building is on fire, in which case I have to call in backup for the kids, that’s H’s late day”.
Carine says
I know I’m late in posting, but I love this idea, each of us having a fallback night to work late and catch up. I think we will give it a try. Thanks!
CPA Lady says
The most helpful thing for me is true flexibility, rather than a set schedule. So the ability to work core business hours every day during a “good” week where no one is sick, no one has appointments, etc. but also the ability to work a variety of disjointed long days, half days, short days, that all add up to about 40 hours on a “bad” week. That to me is so much more useful than any set schedule.
Spirograph says
This is my current setup, and it is awesome. I’m in the office 8:30-5:30 most of the time, but I can telework, shift early/late, or log back in after the kids go to bed if things come up.
Betty says
This is what I do. On a “good” week, I am in the office 9-5. On a crazy week (i.e. this week), there are days when I get in at 7:00 and leave early or put in time later in the day or over the weekend. My boss has agreed that as long as I work about 40 hours, he doesn’t really care when that happens.
I’ve thought about whether 4 ten hour days would work better or whether some combination of four 9 hour days and then a half day on the fifth day would work, but I can barely keep track of where I should be when with a standard 9-5.
FTMinFL says
I’m thinking to propose four 9-hour days (effectively 10 hours – just coming in an hour early) and one 4-hour day. I only have one kiddo who is under one year, so our weeks are pretty predictable for the moment.
Maddie Ross says
Yup. Flexibility is where it’s at. Flexibility is why I remain, and likely will always remain, in private practice law and refuse to go in-house.
NewMomAnon says
I agree on total flexibility – I usually arrive between 9:30 and 10, and leave either at 5 or closer to 6:30 (depending on who has kiddo on a given night). But the ability to work from home, or take an unexpected half day, or “work” with kiddo in my office, is pure gold.
Anon says
I currently work ~8-4, with some flexibility. This means I have some time to myself at work in the mornings to sneak in an extra pumping session, check my email, and get “ahead”, and I also beat the other parents to daycare pickup and get some extra time with the baby before she crashes. This works great right now, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I adjusted slightly later when BF-ing is done.
SC says
When I was growing up, my mom had a half-day off every week (usually Wednesday afternoons). She used it to run errands, go to doctors’ appointments, hair appointments, etc. I’ve always thought that would be ideal.
AEK says
That small adjustment would have such a huge impact. So much of that stuff is just easier on a weekday. And then you’ve freed up weekend time.
SC says
I know! I could get so much more done if I could run errands at other than the busiest time of the week. And we were never rushing around running errands on the weekends like I do now. On the other hand, I have to admit that I grew up not knowing much about how to do typical adult things because my mom did them without me or outsourced them. I’m hoping that having to drag my son out to the bank and grocery store, our routine of cooking meals 4-5 times a week, our lack of housekeeper, my husband’s handiness around the house, etc., end up teaching my son some practical skills as he grows up. I spent my first year after college calling my mom every day asking how to do pretty basic stuff. And occasionally I’m still amazed at how much sh*t my parents, especially my dad, know how to do since I’ve never seen them do it.
Anonymous says
I worked part-time, 32 hours a week until recently, and I can vouch for the fact that free time on a weekday is infinitely more productive than on a weekend. I don’t miss that job, but I sure miss the schedule.
EB0220 says
Hormones! My favorite. So I’ve been breaking out on my cheeks since I weaned and simultaneously switched from the mini-pill to a regular BCP. I have tried two different kinds of birth control pills since then, without improvement. I’m 90% sure it’s related to the pills because it gets better during the placebo week. I didn’t have this problem when I was on BCP in my 20’s but I haven’t taken them in the 5 years since we started TTC. advice, experience?
MDMom says
No idea. The pill more commonly improves hormonal acne in a somewhat dose dependant manner-the more estrogen, the better. I respond in this typical manner- mini pill does nothing for my acne (no estrogen), low dose pills keep things stable but not perfect, and bigger dose pills or pregnancy give me great skin. The mini pill is all progesterone so it generally does no favors to your skin. But your body’s response to hormones is pretty individual. I think you should talk to your doctor. They can look at the pills you were on and determine if it makes sense to try yet another kind or if you’re likely you have this issue with all ocps. The ratio and levels of progesterone to estrogen varies among different kinds of pills so there might still be a good one out there for you. Since you don’t have a hx of hormonal acne, maybe a non hormonal contraceptive would be better ?
Weaning while on the mini pill did cause me to break out a lot for the first time since I got pregnant. But things got a lot better when I went on the real pill again.
CPA Lady says
Thinking about that tent camping question… do any of y’all feel like your kid’s schedule makes you into an inflexible psycho? We follow my daughter’s daycare routine on the weekend days too and she has the same early bedtime and wake up time every day. This makes it hard to participate in extended family activities with older kids (“a whole afternoon at the zoo!”- “sorry, no. interrupt nap time and you pay”) let alone trying to take her camping or anything like that. Maybe when she’s 3 or 4, but not now.
The idea of taking a “vacation” sounds terrible to me at her age. My husband couldn’t go with us, she’s too young to do anything, and it seems like her life is a series of near death experiences punctuated by tantrums. I know its going to be easier when she gets older, but right now I sometimes think I don’t have enough tolerance for hassle or change in routine and it’s going to somehow be to her detriment? My SAHM sister is always taking her kids places, doing stuff, going on hikes, camping, going to Lake Tahoe… and I just… cant.
anne-on says
Yup. We got a LOT of push back from family on not letting naps slide (we still don’t, and my kiddo is over 4). You know your kid best – they don’t have to deal with missed naps ruining your weekend, or the overtired hell beast your kiddo becomes after missing naps. There will be enough time when they get older to push/flex the naps, no point in driving yourself crazy to make family happy. That being said – we did push naps for 1 or 2 BIG occasions (like, brother’s engagement party level big). The resulting freakout that night/next day was enough to reassure us we did not want to mess with his schedule for small things.
For this age (0-4yrs), vacations for us are all about having lots of space (think renting a house, or a big suite) and having LOW expectations. We go to Disney and do 2 rides a day? Fine. We go to the beach and are only at the actual beach for an hour? No big deal.
Anon in NYC says
My BIL and SIL are like that. Will arrive late to family functions or start times have to accommodate nap time, etc. I don’t know if their kids are inflexible or they are (probably a combo of both). But I think the aftermath for them is just not worth it.
My kid is just turning 1 and has always had a more flexible schedule. We always knew, generally, when she needed to take a nap and she fortunately will still sleep most places. So we will try to push a nap if we know that she can sleep in the car on the way home, or we will ask family to start dinner a little early so that we can put her in her car seat on the way back at around the start of bedtime and only have to wake her up briefly when we get home. It was important to us to be a little more flexible, but I also think that our kid’s personality/general temperament made that easier to accomplish. The toddler room at daycare has a set 1 nap per day, so that will be an adjustment and I’m not sure that we will be as flexible after she transitions.
Anon in NYC says
Also, just wanted to add that my BIL and SIL still do a lot with their kids…. they just started from about 3+ on. It was easier for them to just not do things when the kids were young. Now they take vacations, weekend trips, go to children’s museums, etc. Their youngest (almost 5) still naps and they mostly accommodate him, but now they will push it if they have to.
Lkl says
I think it just really depends on the baby. Yes, we make sure we stick to nap schedule, and that means being home for naps and either missing things or being late/leaving early. But our baby would not nap in a stroller even as a tiny baby, would rarely fall asleep in the car, could not be transferred from the bucket seat without waking up FROM BIRTH, and stopped agreeing to fall asleep in the Ergo at 10 months. And he turns into a total hellbeast if he is tired. So… I am not sure how much of our “parenting philosophy” of prioritizing naps at home is an actual philosophy or just dependent on this particular kid who made his ways apparent to us right from the beginning.
Faye says
THANK YOU! So glad to hear I’m not alone in this thought. My extended family thinks I’m a psycho because I skip things all the time.
I can’t do a Saturday brunch, because the thought of getting up at regular 6am to feed kids, then try to keep them on best quiet sitting behavior at their most active time, and then come home and immediately feed them lunch, makes me want to die. I can’t do a Sunday afternoon dinner, because they’d be “off” the bedtime routine right before stressful Monday mornings and I’d lose my time to prep for the week. Let alone crazy ideas where they try to plan something like “watch the parade and then go to X’s house for lunch and then go to the beach until going out for dinner”.
I wish I could be one of those moms who can shuttle kids from brunch to a hike in the park to a birthday party in the afternoon, but that’s just not at all my life right now. I just… can’t.
Anonymous says
We were like this with our first kid. Said no to stuff, planned trips around naps, walked around the park in the pouring rain because baby was still sleeping, etc. He was an awesome sleeper and a happy baby and we attributed it to our strict scheduling. But then we had a second and just don’t have the same luxury. And to our surprise, he is still an awesome sleeper and a happy baby, even with naps on the go, etc. I still say no to dinners that start at 6:30 and what not, but he taught me to be a little more flexible.
All that said, maybe you guys could split up for activities? We do this all the time. I’ll stay home with the baby so my husband can do something fun with the 4 yr old. Obviously not for vacation but maybe that way one of you could enjoy brunch or sunday dinner with the older kid. I say this only because now I regret not pushing ourselves a little more to do these things.
hoola hoopa says
I promise you that you’ll be able to do more as they get older, so don’t worry about not doing hikes, vacations, etc now. I agree with anne-on that with infants/toddlers, we keep our days pretty light.
We were very much like you with our first. She was not a child who could sleep anywhere, and we were fine working with that. We’d break the routine for really important things but not just to meet a friend for ice cream. So yes, we’d ask if we could meet at different time or miss ice cream; big whoop. My second was a sleep-anywhere, flexible kid, which was awesome because we could be more on the go, which is helpful when you’re doing things with the older child but also cemented the “it’s not you, it’s them” truth. Our third is more like our first. We do the best that we can and very much consider his schedule when making plans, but there are plenty of weekend days where he is just overtired and a monster because we just can’t accommodate. I’d be doing the same thing that we did for our first if we could and not regret it at all.
Don’t worry at all about whether it will be to her detriment. For starters, I do think it’s good to make sure that your kids get the sleep that they need. But in general: Do what you need to do to be the best parent you can be. That’s what’s best for her.
Spirograph says
Yup. I feel especially bad about it in the summer because it’s still daylight, but bedtime. We’ll let things slide by an hour or so sometimes, but naptime is 1:30-4 and bedtime is 7-8 even on the weekends. It has to be a very special occasion to skip nap entirely or stay out late. They are pretty good about sleeping anywhere, and we’re OK with planning for them to sleep in the car. We do not plan on them sleeping in the stroller or ergo because it’s hit or miss — they’ll do it if they’re bored, but if something is that terrible in-between where it’s too much stimulation go to sleep but not enough fun to keep them happy, we’re in for trouble. We do lots of stuff, just limit it to morning or early evening and plan to be on our way home again by the witching hour.
TBK says
I’m actually looking forward to the end of naps for just this reason. The whole main part of each weekend day — 11:30am (when the kids would fall asleep if in the car, but then not go back down for a nap even if they fell asleep only for five minutes) until about 4:00pm, or about 45 min after waking up from nap, which means getting new diapers, getting milk, getting a snack — we’re stuck in the house. Sure, we can do anything between 7:30am and 11:30am, but what’s even open then? Target. That’s it. So yeah don’t know how others do it. And while I enjoy my afternoon down time, I won’t miss naps when they’re gone.
mascot says
My child napped until he was 5 and we were ready for him to be done with it for good. It’s really a game-changer to have that mid-day time back. Although I wish sometimes he would be a little more agreeable about “quiet time” because I would love a weekend nap.
TBK says
Ugh, I’m hoping my kids don’t nap for that long. I’m crossing my fingers they’re done by age 4, or even earlier. But then they were supposed to be taking shorter naps now they’re 2, but they nap a solid 2.5 hrs every day.
mascot says
Part of it was that he’d been in daycare his whole life so there was always a naptime built into his daily schedule. Even in pre-k, they had a “rest period” and half of those kids (mine included) still needed that hour of sleep. By 4, his weekend naps were 60-90 minutes and we could survive if he missed one so it wasn’t that bad.
CPA Lady says
Yeah, this is why I’m excited about Saturday swim lessons at 10 am this summer. Finally a thing I can do with her out of the house at a time when she is awake and in a good mood!!!
Spirograph says
Oh yeah, me too. Being able to plan an itinerary that requires a commitment of more than 3 hours is going to be golden. But since you asked (maybe rhetorically): Most Smithsonians open at 10, and Zoo grounds open at 8. We also go to parks/hike early because those are technically “open” as long as the sun’s up, and popular spots are so much better before the crowds are awake. These are our favorites because there’s no need to “get your money’s worth” by staying a long time. Not useful for getting errands done, but to just get out of the house with the family, you’ve got options! Bonus, my son likes riding the metro as much as any possible destination. (Probably because he’s too young to care whether he gets anywhere on time…)
anne-on says
Really? I kind of love getting out of the house early. We can go to the local bakeries/diners for breakfast at 6:30/7am, (or take a 7am gym class for one parent while the other one does breakfast) hit up the grocery store right after, throw in some laundry, and still be ready to hit the local kid museum/parks for 9 or 10am. We then usually stay for 2ish hours, and either have lunch there or come home for a quick lunch before nap. Afternoon naptime is either grown-up nap time, or time for doing chores/random items/reading around the house.
Sigh. I will miss afternoon nap time. Plus I really really love knocking out those annoying errands before anyone else hits the stores.
Anon in NYC says
We get a lot done in the mornings too. Grocery shopping at 8am is so nice!
Anonymous says
My gym has babysitting starting at 7. I almost never get there that early, but Saturday morning means getting up with the kids, eating breakfast, and then walking to the gym (sometimes via playground). Home again by 9 or 10 with workout and a hot, relaxing shower behind me. Husband sleeps in and/or takes care of stuff around the house that is difficult to do with small children underfoot. It’s a great day for both of us!
TBK says
We’ve started doing this, too. Saturday is my husband’s day to sleep in so I often schlep the kids to the gym, work out, and get back by about 10:30. On Sundays, it’s my day so we opt for the 11:00am church service, not the 8:00am (much as my husband would love the 8:00am, but I want my day to sleep in!). As for groceries, we do online shopping so getting there early isn’t helpful. And I’m not sure we could get into the city for museums and home again without someone falling asleep/having a meltdown. Mostly we don’t do errands with kids.
NewMomAnon says
I take my kiddo to the farmer’s market (opens at 6 am) when she wakes up super early on Saturday morning, or we walk to a nearby bagel shop that opens at 6 and have a leisurely breakfast. I have come to really enjoy those early mornings, because you can usually be out and about with a toddler without disrupting too many other people.
My mom used to take us to 8 am church service on Sunday morning; I think she surfed churches to find the one with the best children’s room because I don’t ever remember sitting in the pew. The one we attended served donuts after the service, so it would turn into breakfast as well. We stopped going regularly about the time that my younger brother’s mid-day nap ended…
Sarabeth says
God, yes. So bitter about the children’s museum, swimming pools, and libraries that are open from 12-5 on weekends.
MDMom says
I feel the same way. My kid just turned 1. It’s the first grandchild on my husbands side and I really have to fight to keep a normal schedule for him because they don’t understand why we don’t go to parties/dinners that start at 730. If its a big event we need to attend, we will take the pack and play and put him to sleep in a back bedroom at his normal time. There are a lot of grandkids on my side so my fam is open to a more kid friendly schedule.
Its also just my personality- I’m kind of a disorganized homebody. I hate packing/unpacking so taking baby on extended trips out of the house is stressful for me, not fun. And I think he’s happier being home where he can crawl around and play instead of being stuck in a stroller for hours.
It is frustrating when there are events I’d otherwise be excited to attend but I feel like I have this adorable little albatross weighing me down. We have 6 weddings this summer and after the first one this past weekend (baby’s first hotel stay)… ugh. Id rather just stay home. It wasn’t even that bad, but I’m so tired from the the hassle of it all. I need like 2 days off to recover when we get back but instead went straight back to work on Monday.
SC says
Yes, I totally feel like this. Baby is still napping twice a day, so I feel like we only have small windows to get out of the house. By the time I get him up from a nap, feed him, and get our stuff together, we have to be back home in a couple of hours. Most of the time, it’s just not worth it to push the nap.
And +1 to “it seems like her life is a series of near death experiences punctuated by tantrums.” There aren’t that many places I want to take Baby right now, since I usually have to hold him or put him in a high chair or pack n play to keep him from getting hurt (or because it’s not a place where it’s appropriate to let your kid crawl around and wreak havoc). Of course, he throws tantrums anytime he is not allowed to crawl around and wreak havoc, or even when he is but he’s not allowed to go through a gate or a door. I’m fully planning to hold his current enthusiasm for laundry rooms, dishwashers, and trash cans against him when he’s old enough to do chores :-)
We did buy the Lotus travel crib, and we put Baby to bed at friends’ and grandparents’ houses and have dinner there about once a week. He fusses a little more, but once he’s asleep for the night, we usually don’t have a problem transferring him to his car seat and then his crib at home. That, at least, allows us to see other adults after 6:30 p.m., which is when we would need to leave most places to get home and do the bedtime routine.
farrley says
We’ll let nap start/end time slide a little, but are less flexible with bedtime. We are fortunate because many of our friends have kids the same age (18 months to 2 years) and they are on the same plan, so we have the opportunity to socialize with the kiddo and not feel like we are missing out on everything. Since having the kiddo, our vacations have consisted of visiting my siblings who have kids the same age, as well, so naps and bedtimes didn’t have to be messed with. I did just say no to a vacation suggestion with friends that I thought would wreak havoc with kiddo sleep, though, and I know my husband was really disappointed. But in my mind, a week of cray-cray sleep-deprived toddler is sooo not worth it.
Onlyworkingmomintulsa says
Love, love, love this thread! My kids are 3 and 15 mos now and last summer we drove to Colorado for a week and it.was.hell! Mainly because of the baby not sleeping through the night and a potty-training toddler, but it was also so hard to do anything with nap and bedtime schedules. I do not want to go on another vacation again until no one is napping anymore and everyone wipes their own butts!