Feeding Tuesday: Cibo Placemat
This post may contain affiliate links and CorporetteMoms may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
There are many, many things I want from The Grommet, but this placemat is near the top of my list — goodness my sons are messy! Ladies, has anyone bought splatmats or otherwise found ways to control the crumbs? (My sons both hated the silicone bibs with food catchers on them, sigh.) The Cibo Placemat
(L-2)
Sales of note for 1/16:
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Nordstrom – Cashmere on sale; AllSaints, Free People, Nike, Tory Burch, and Vince up to 60%; beauty deals up to 25% off
- AllSaints – now up to 60% off (some of the best leather jackets!)
- Ann Taylor – Up to 40% off your full-price purchase; extra 50% off sale
- Banana Republic Factory – 50% off everything + extra 20% off
- Boden – 15% off new styles with code — readers love this blazer, these dresses, and their double-layer line of tees
- DeMellier – Sale now on, free shipping and returns — includes select options like Montreal, Vancouver, and Venice
- Eloquii – $29 and up select styles; extra 50% off all clearance, plus ELOQUII X kate spade new york collab just dropped
- Everlane – Sale of the year, up to 70% off — reader favorites include their scoop tee, Dream Pant, ReNew Transit backpack, silk blouses and oversized blazers! New markdowns just added
- Hannah Andersson – Up to 30% off all pajamas;
- J.Crew – Up to 40% off select styles; up to 50% off cashmere
- J.Crew Factory – 40-70% off everything
- L.K. Bennett – Archive sale, almost everything 70% off
- M.M.LaFleur – Tag sale for a limited time — jardigans and dresses $200, pants $150, tops $95, T-shirts $50
- Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
- Talbots – Semi-Annual Red Door Sale – 50% off + extra 20% off, sale on sale, plus free shipping on $150+
And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- The concept of “backup care” is so stupid…
- I need tips on managing employees in BigLaw who have to leave for daycare pickup…
- I’m thinking of leaning out to spend more time with my family – how can I find the perfect job for that?
- I’m now a SAHM and my husband needs to step up…
- How can I change my thinking to better recognize some of my husband’s contributions as important, like organizing the shed?
- What are your tips to having a good weekend with kids, especially with little kids? Do you have a set routine or plan?
I haven’t had to transition my daughter, but I have turned down a spot at a less expensive daycare because I didn’t like it as much as our current daycare. The daycare where we were offered a spot had a large room with dividers about up to an adult’s waist that marked off the “rooms” for toddlers and infants and a separate space for the kitchen and changing areas. It was $250 less per month and a bit more convenient. Where my 9 month old is now she is in a large infant room for 6 babies that is bigger than the infant “room” for 9 babies at the cheaper place, and it is an actual room with a kitchenette and a changing table there in the room. I turned down the spot in the cheaper daycare, because I thought it must get very loud to have all the babies under age 2 in one room and friends tell me that the teachers at their daycares cheat on the ratios when they have to leave the room to prepare bottles and change the babies’ diapers.
What is troubling to me about what you described is the staff’s behavior and how they don’t interact with the children. If I were in your shoes, I would go back to the old center. I wouldn’t weigh into the calculation that your child doesn’t get as sick or the fact that you will switch to a new daycare when you have a second child because it’s impossible to know when that will be. Maybe if you transition back she will be okay with it, because she already knows her old center. If you do decide to stay where you are now, I suggest you start bringing your own milk.
The EZPZ mats are AWESOME. They were also invented by a fellow mom, which makes the purchase special. They are available on Amazon and at Nordstrom. They aren’t foolproof (they can definitely be lifted by a persistent toddler!) – but they protect the table and make messes minimal. :)
We moved and our daughter, who is 2, just started a new daycare in May. She had a really rough transition period (i’m sure it was move + new DC) and now is finally settled at the center (ie doesn’t go to tears every day).
Problem is, I’ve become increasingly underwhelmed with the daycare. Her old daycare had sort of medium/run down facilities, but the staff was fantastic and truly “working parent friendly.” Communication was great, and the kids were all really happy there (my daughter included). Her new one is just…not. The staff doesn’t seem hands on- -they hang around and watch the kids play while chatting. They do things that annoy me, like tell me they’ll provide “school milk” and then 2/5 days each week they are out of milk or the milk is expired (apparently, all the other kids BYO milk and my daughter is the only one that drinks “school milk”– so I get it, but still– there is no milk in the entire school–ever?). The playground isn’t that nice. Many of the teachers have their own kids in the center and I get the sense those kids get special attention/treatment (I was there one day and the older kids were having an ice cream party….so a teacher came into my daughter’s class and picked up her son and said “[name] do you want ICE CREAM!?!?!?” so naturally the entire class said YES WE WANT ICE CREAM!!! and then they didn’t get to go to the party. I know they are only 2 but it still rubbed me the wrong way).
Pros to staying:
– center is right by our house- a 2 min drive
– daughter has finally adjusted, and since we are actively trying for #2 and will switch to a nanny + preschool once we have 2, moving centers again means another potentially really rough transition and then switching to a nanny in <1 year
– center is the cheapest of the options (we can swing any of them and are actually putting the difference in daughter's 529–but the savings is several hundred/month)
– daughter is safe and I presume happy
– she doesn't get sick a lot- not sure if this is the center or her immune system finally maturing
I only send her 3 days/week now and have a babysitter the other 2. We are moving her to 4 days/week in Sept. My other option is to keep the 3/week + babysitter (which is the same cost as a nicer facility).
For anyone that made the call to switch–what did it for you? Is it worth the hassle of a longer drive, a bit more cost, and the potential for a rough 3 month transition for what may end up being a different center with different problems?
Aaaand I have another question. My boys self-feed (one has refused to be spoon-fed since he was about 8 mo). So they eat things that can easily be eaten with hands: torn up bread, pasta, pieces of meat, cut up veggies and fruit, cheese. They loved yogurt back when they let me spoon feed them, but obviously not a hands-friendly food. How do people feed their young toddlers food that needs to be eaten with a spoon? I’m up for starting to teach them to use spoons (they’re 17 mo) but when I think about it, I just see bowls flying everywhere. We currently just feed them straight off their high chair trays.
That child’s bowl needs to be so much closer to the edge of the table! The pic is driving me crazy.
IME those types of products are more of a distraction than they are worth, so we scoot the child in, put the dish at the edge of the table, give them a bib/napkin (depending on age), and sweep the floor at night.
I’m in back to school planning mode, and I’m thinking I need a wall calendar again. My most important stuff is in Google calendar, but I want to teach my oldest (3rd grade) to start writing his stuff on a physical calendar, and have a bulletin board next to it to tack up birthday party invites, etc.
I almost bought this one last year – http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IS2Z11U/ but didn’t and now it’s sold out – and the 2016 one that starts in August isn’t available in the US yet. I like the week at a time format, with a section for each family member, and the acrylic sheet that you can move from week to week for recurring activities (although I guess it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world to have my son just write “karate” every week, or maybe I could make some stickers for that with address labels).
I need something with larger boxes than the standard “1 month per page” calendars, and I’d prefer one that isn’t cutesy and “mom-ish” – although the one I’m interested is called “Organized Mom” that is the only part where it says “Mom”. One month view spread over 2 pages might be ok, or something longer than average.
Any suggestions? Or anyone better at filtering through the 370,000 options at Amazon than me to find my unicorn?
Off topic, but I’d love some thoughts. Does anyone work with a cleaning person/service on a flexible task schedule? I currently have my cleaners come once a week to clean the whole house, but I’d rather have someone clean things on a staggered schedule and instead do other tasks around the house. For example, the kitchen really needs to be cleaned every week but the guest bedroom only needs to be vacuumed once a month. This seems like it could get complicated. Has anyone done something like this, and how would I find this type of person? Do the logistics get too complicated?
Tagging on to the previous poster’s question – we are in a 1 bed with a fairly large walk in closet (with exit to bathroom) and were considering keeping the crib in the closet. But, we store a lot of things on top of the high shelf (suitcases, large tupperwares of clothes) and now I’m thinking these are all at risk for falling on the baby. We need all the storage we can get, so does it make more sense to try to sleep the baby in the living room at a certain point? Fortunately our situation will only be until baby is about 5 months, but would love for anyone to weigh in.
Also, totally unrelated, but I am really not looking forward to the concept of pumping at work (even though I am trying to be open minded to all possibilities – even the possibility that I may not be very successful with bf at all). I guess I’ve never heard anyone really say “I only bf-ed for 3 months or while on leave” or something. Is it so taboo? I’m also just not sold that the benefits for my child will outweigh what seems to be a crazy-making pita… FWIW I am extremely fortunate and will have 18 weeks before I go back. I realize my feelings on this could all change after baby arrives… but it just seems like a lot….
I need tips on starting baby on table food (he’s 9.5 months). Honestly, we don’t typically Eat Dinner at home, and never at the table. Its either takeout, cereal, or at best – a bag of microwaveable steamed veggies and another bag of grain/protein (think a bag of broccoli with a bag of quinoa). My hubby and I prefer to unwind, eating on the couch while watching the news or something. We saw our pediatrician today and I was too embarrassed to ask about this. What do other people do? What are good foods I can make in bulk on the weekend to dispense during the week? I am in the groove of making homemade baby food purees, if that helps… Thanks!
Ideas for a gift for a caregiver now that we’re moving away? She’s been with our little one for over a year, since infancy, and they adore one another. I’d like to give her a token of our gratitude and friendship, other than cash. She’s in her early 70s, has been in the biz for years, small in-home daycare, and is basically a surrogate grandma. Ideas?
Help! My sons are now 17 months and seriously, seriously need haircuts (they’ve never had them). I asked on a local FB parents group for recommendations and tried calling the place a few people recommended. That place (1) doesn’t take appointments and (2) the guy said they can “try” doing a first haircut “if they don’t move around too much.” Have you ever met a 17 month old who doesn’t move around too much!? What do people do? There’s a place called Cartoon Cuts a little ways from where we live, but it has horrible Yelp reviews and the people on FB also panned it. There’s one other place I’ve heard recommended, but I’ve also been told that it’s just the one woman there who’s really good with kids and the wait to see her tends to be around the block. Where do people go for first haircuts? I’ve been tempted to cut their hair myself, but have never gotten them to sit still long enough to make even the first cut. I now understand why little boys used to just wear long hair back in the day.
THanks for the responses yesterday on going for 3 when you only ever planned on 2. I wasn’t able to respond or read them after work (can’t pull up individual articles or comments on my iPhone). I really think we’re a 2 kid family — I just have to remember that when I feel the serious baby-fever kick in. I also worry that I will really regret not having more when they are grown up, and realize how short this time was. I keep telling my husband that I want to do all I can to enjoy this time and spend lots of time with them so I don’t feel like I need another baby b/c I missed so much with the two we have. Oy – I don’t think parenting ever gets easier!!
Lawyer moms (or other moms with unpredictable work schedules): how do you make it work? I’m a first time mom to a 4 month old and I’m going back to work in 2 months. When am I ever going to see my daughter? Starting to really think about logistics and not sure how it’s going to work . . .
In keeping with today’s topic, any favorite table and chairs sets suitable for young toddlers?
Does anyone have a favorite splat mat? BLW is messy business!