Organizing Thursday: Create-a-Space Storage Center

Instead of using a supply holder that takes up space on a flat surface, I highly recommend putting up a rail and hanging Ikea utensil holders. We use a separate holder each for markers, colored pencils, regular pencils and pens, scissors, and glue sticks. They all can be lifted out of the holder to be moved elsewhere if we want to work at the kitchen table or on the floor for a big project. But when the kids are using their art table, the container can’t be knocked over because it’s hanging. Picture to follow.

I weaned the now 10-month old officially on Sunday. We’re done with kids, so happy to be done with the pumping/nursing part of parenthood (even though there are a lot of sweet times with nursing, pumping was the pits for me). I breastfed DS #1 for 12 months, and DS #2 for just shy of 10 months.

It was MUCH easier (and STILL a hard thing to manage, feeding babies is no joke no matter what the method) with DS #2 because I was not EBF. I supplemented, reduced at-work pump sessions, and then at one point was only nursing in the AM. I want to thank all the wisdom of this community that got me through it with both kids, including the brilliant advice to drop the before my bedtime pumping session I’d do (and fall asleep during with pumping horns on) for DS #1, only pumping 1x/day at work with DS #2, etc. The advice here I’ve also shared with other girlfriends, and I think it’s made their journeys easier as well.

TLDR – Fed is best, but if you do breastfeed/pump, this community is incredibly helpful, and I am forever grateful for it!

Any advice on three-across for a 2014 Honda CRV? We are eventually going to get a minivan but for financial reasons are hoping to hold out until summer (baby comes in February). When the baby is born the other kids will be 4 and 6 so I can transition the 6yo to a high-back booster. The 4yo is already in a Diono Radian, so pretty narrow.

I’ve checked the carseat lady, etc, but was hoping for any firsthand experience/advice people might have, especially in terms of a narrow infant seat and high-back booster. Thanks! I know it’s early but the supply chain issues are stressing me out and this is on my list to take care of soon-ish.

My 5 year old is a little pack rat. He wants to keep everything from cardboard boxes to packaging from toys. He doesn’t notice when they’re gone, so he obviously doesn’t actually care about them. It also extends to toys. No matter how little he uses them or how broken they are, he wants to keep them. Our toys are out of control and we have been trying to institute rules about getting rid of toys as new toys come in (which is constant from my in-laws).
He won’t let us get rid of anything! So far, we have just hidden things for awhile and if he doesn’t ask about it, we get rid of them. Only once or twice has he asked about the item. I have been trying to get him to actually choose which toys we give away. Is that foolish? Should we just keep sneaking stuff out? Or should we keep working to engage him (or both)?
For context, I tend to be overly concerned that kiddo behavior will turn into adult behavior, and I want him to be able to get rid of things as an adult. I try not to assume what he does now will be how he behaves in the future (certainly isn’t true for me!), but I also don’t want to fail to teach him important life skills.

We were in a car wreck and trying to decide what to replace the car seat with (as well as what seat to keep at the grandparents since she is now doing more solo trips there). DD is just turned 4, all torso, 45 inches tall and 58 pounds. She was in a Chicco NextFit and has roughly a quarter-inch left before the shoulder harness will be too low. We love our Chicco’s and find them very easy to install. The MyFit (harness booster combo) looks like it has an additional 2 inches on the harness height (one of the highest harness heights I have been able to find). Or we could switch her to the KidFit high-back booster which is just belt-positioning, no harness. We also have a Ride Safer Travel Vest we use in the third “fun” car. She still often sleeps on long car rides and I am not confident she is disciplined enough to sit properly with just a seatbelt. So my thinking is to fork over the extra money for the MyFit in hopes we get another 6 months to a year out of the harness. Anyone used this combo one? For my mom’s, I am torn between the travel vest (easy for them to move between cars and store but currently sold out in her size and of course don’t have the extra padding from the booster) and the high back booster on the theory that it won’t be many long trips where she could fall asleep? Keep reinstalling our car seat in their car until the travel vest comes back in stock? I’m probably overthinking this, but maybe I’m just channeling our energy over whether our car will be repairable or totaled.

My husband and I are attending our good friend’s indoor wedding next week. We have only one mutual friend who will be in attendance. She’s an old high school friend and I haven’t talked to her in years, but thanks to social media, I know she and her husband are strongly anti-vax and anti-mask, and do not practice social distancing of any kind. The bride told me that we will be seated with the mutual friend + her husband at the wedding, and it’s too late to make any seating changes. FWIW, the wedding invite did request all guests to be vaccinated, but the bride told me she knows some guests who chose to ignore her request. Hubby and I plan to attend the wedding wearing masks, even if we’re the only ones. We’re looking at transmission rates and know they’re dropping, but not quite to June levels yet. We are fine leaving the wedding early if we feel uncomfortable (ie if friend makes a scene over our use of masks). We have two babies at home. I feel like our plan is good, but I’d appreciate hearing how you all would handle this situation if you were in our shoes!