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I saw this little gadget recommended in a magazine (Shape, I believe). These little pods make it possible for you to fry eggs with less fat by using the steam from cooking to poach the top of the egg. I personally have never tried this, and I love a perfectly cooked yolk but could use all the help I could get. My husband loves Joseph Joseph brand kitchen tools (they’re often sold at HomeGoods), so these are worth trying for me! A set of 2 is available for $16.99 at Macy’s and for $12.85 plus $7.32 shipping at Amazon. Froach Pods This post contains affiliate links and CorporetteMoms may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. For more details see here. Thank you so much for your support!Sales of note for 4.18.24
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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?
GCA says
Completely different but more tasty egg hack: I recently discovered I can make shakshuka in my Instant Pot. GAME CHANGER. (Saute the aromatics, dump in the sauce, crack the eggs in, cook for *one minute*, never babysit a pan of spattering tomato sauce again.) You’re welcome.
Cb says
Holy moly! That is game changing!
Anonanonanon says
Can you share your whole recipe?!
GCA says
I’m one of those horrible people who cooks freestyle, but I used the proportions on this recipe: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/263600/instant-pot-paleo-and-keto-egg-shakshuka-with-kale/ You can adjust the salt, spice etc. to make it more kid-friendly!
Workmom says
Another amazing egg hack: crack two eggs into a 2 cup (smallish) Tupperware, put the lid on and shake vigorously to mix, pop the corner, and microwave for 90 seconds. Absolute simplest “scrambled” eggs ever, and my daughter happily eats them for breakfast. No pan, no stove, no spatula, but the kiddo gets good protein.
So Anon says
Ooohhhh, I’m trying this tomorrow. My son loves scrambled eggs but it generally doesn’t happen during the week.
HSAL says
I like that – I microwave in a coffee cup but I was still scrambling with a fork so this sounds even better.
anon says
Oooh, great idea. I wonder if this would work with a Pyrex container. (I’m weird about microwaving plastic.)
ElisaR says
yeah me too
Anonymous says
I use a ceramic ramekin for the same thing and it works very well!
Anonymous says
By the time you do all the sautéing and let the pot get up to pressure and depressurize, wouldn’t it take the same amount of time as a frying pan?
GCA says
Maybe, but it feels shorter because I’m not watching over a pot of bubbling sauce (interminable) and trying to make sure the eggs aren’t undercooked (for some reason I can never get them to cook quite right).
lsw says
If I’m reading it correctly, it’s just using the saute feature of the IP.
Anonymous says
Plus one minute of pressure cooking.
lsw says
Ahh. I only read her description, not the recipe.
Redux says
My colleague is listening to a Celine Dion album w/o headphones and I am dying laughing but check on me in 40 minutes in case of murder.
Workmom says
Start singing along?
So Anon says
YES! And then tell us how it goes!
Anonymous says
I don’t know, I heard My Heart Will Go On on 90s on 9 a few weeks back and totally thought it still held up ;)
Anonymous says
That’s the Way It Is remains on my workout playlist. power sprint at the modulation/key change at the end. lol
Pogo says
Amazing.
Anonymous says
Anyone ever successfully get dry erase marker out of clothes? My daughter managed to get it all over her new dress. She’s normally super neat AND her preschool doesn’t use permanent markers buttttttt here we are.
I tried rubbing alcohol, which was a good housekeeping tip i found online. no luck at all. It’s currently soaking in shout.
Anon says
No experience, but for ink my go to is typically alcohol, so that is not encouraging (sorry). My next step would be to soak in oxyclean and hot water overnight (at least 12 hours – just make the water hot at the beginning, no need to refill), rub blue dawn in the stain and launder. Then I might try Fels-Naptha. Then I might try laying out in the sun while wet for a couple hours (no idea why the wet makes a difference). And if that all fails, I think it’s probably toast. Whatever you do, don’t put it through the dryer until you’ve completely given up, because that will definitely set the stain further.
Anonymous says
I’ll give it a go. It’s on an all cotton Lilly Pulitzer dress, ugh.
Anon says
I’ve found that all cotton (typically hanna) is pretty resilient and will eventually give up stains, so best of luck! Let us know how it goes!
Anonymous says
Yeah, I’ve definitely noticed the same with less expensive all cotton shirts (Old Navy). The stains don’t come out at first, but kiddo still wears them, and eventually the stains come out a few washes later. That’s mostly with food stains, though.
I’m not sure what the concentration on the rubbing alcohol is, but the higher concentration the better. So you could try Vodka or Everclear, too. I used to use 200 proof (100%) in the lab to get Sharpie off of storage containers.
Anonymous says
Ah, I used rubbing alcohol. I’ll try vodka. There are worse things to add to my shoppping list ;).
Pogo says
Nail polish remover is the next strongest solvent most of us have in our homes, so that could work too. I found sharpie came off storage containers easier w/ nail polish remover than alcohol.
Would for sure test on the inside of the hem first, since it may have a bleaching effect.
rye says
Rubbing alcohol is typically 70% alcohol while vodka is only 40%. (Feel free to ignore if you wanted to refresh your liquor cabinet anyway.)
Anonymous says
I haven’t tried it with this specific ink but the Carbona Stain Devils solutions have worked well for me on other tough stains. They are formulated for specific stains rather than one size fits all. I’ve definitely used the ink one before. https://carbona.com/products/staindevils/
Spirograph says
I don’t know if this works on dry erase, specifically, but throwing it out as a last resort.
Contrary to all the “blot with cold water” advice, I’ve had good luck pouring boiling water through stains. Don’t soak, just stretch the stain over the sink and pour a kettle-ful on it.
Ms B says
Adding on – how do I get tinted sunblock out of clothes? Two drops apparently fell of of my face onto a white athletic shirt. Bleach and vinegar have failed so far, probably because of the high oil content.
Pogo says
MIL swears by Lestoil for anything containing oil. It smells awful, but it does work.
Anonymous says
Blue Dawn works on grease spots on clothes. I’d also try some of the stain devils- I just ordered the whole lineup to keep on hand.
Coach Laura says
De-solv-it is my go-to for getting out grease stains. Get it at hardware store or amazzon or even Home Depot.
Anonymous says
Dish soap or Fels-Naptha for grease. Try not to dry it until it comes out (or really ever since its technical material, IMO).
Salary Q says
Is there a salary level you could be offered for a 40-hour-per-week desk job that would make you accept and do it without hesitation or second guessing? (i.e., no asking those questions like is this really the best thing for my family, should I be staying home, should I cut back to part time) If so, what would that be?
Anonymous says
I would never be asking if I should just stay home or cut back to part time, so no. And I certainly would never be thinking 40 hours a week was too much.
ElisaR says
$5 million?? I’m kidding but those other factors are always going to weigh in for me. Location, safety (physical and mental), this question is a little too vague.
Anonymous says
This, especially location. I would accept a much lower salary to work 10 min from home than an hour from home, for example. I’m not sure there is a realistic salary I would accept to work an hour from home, actually. Current salary is 200k and was poised to quit when my job changed to 1.5 hours away 2 days/week, wfh the other days.
Boston Legal Eagle says
I can look at market guides to see what my role, with my level of experience and location is worth, so I’d base any salary negotiations on that. I’m not sure what you mean by those questions – see the discussion yesterday about not basing your entire staying home decision on salary. There is so much more to it than that.
Ultimately, what’s best for your family is what you and your partner want to do with your respective lives, including work.
Anon says
So I have a 40 hour per week desk job (attorney at a nonprofit – it’s a culture thing) and make just barely six figures, which I think is pretty good for the industry (Although others might know better!) And I’m really wondering if I should go part time or stay home but I do value that household contribution…I think I get where you are coming from with this question. If it was 150 or 200 I’d be even more okay with my decision to work full time tied to my desk in a job I don’t particularly love.
CPA Lady says
I don’t think I’d question it unless I were making less than 40k a year, and possibly not even then. I have zero desire to stay at home and am 100% sure that I would be a horrible SAHM.
CPA Lady says
That said, I live in a LCOL, and daycare is only about $900 a month here.
CPA Lady says
Reading all these responses I’m wondering if I misunderstand the question? Or am I a sociopath? Am I literally the only person on this board who would prefer to work full time on purpose?
Boston Legal Eagle says
I’m not sure I understood the question either. I don’t like the mindset of women thinking that they should only work if they make a certain amount. Women are traditionally paid less, so they quit, and then they are paid less still, like that article linked to mentioned.
I mean sure, if we won a sizable enough lottery, I think both my husband and I would quit our jobs and do more hobby-type work, or at least freelance where we could set our hours. That’s not our situation so we both work and aim to get paid for our level of experience and location. Commute and work-life balance are also considerations.
ElisaR says
i may not have worded it well, but that was my point CPA Lady. That the dollar amount required for me to change my job situation would be silly-high ($ 5 million) because what is important to me is not necessarily the money. But a silly-high number would make me think about taking an otherwise less desirable job.
CPA Lady says
Are you saying working 40 hours a week is so undesirable that you’d have to make five million dollars to do it? I’m extremely confused. Don’t most people work more than that?
If I were asking this question it would be more like “what salary would you have to earn to work 80 hours a week” … because that’s for me where the five million dollars would come in. But 40?
I must be reading something wrong.
ElisaR says
sorry no CPA Lady, I’m not saying that (and I realize I’m not wording anything right!). You’re right, it’s unclear. I got the impression her question was “what dollar amount would make you take a job that isn’t right for you.” and my response was $5 million. that was kind of a flip remark. My real response was what came after…. I meant there are other factors at play than just compensation (location being one) that would make me change a job.
I think most of us work more than 40 hours on this board!
Anon says
I think you interpreted it as “how low would be too low to work” and other people interpreted it as “how high would be high enough to make you ignore all other factors.” I generally agree with both your $40k for the former question and ElisaR’s $5M for the latter question.
CPA Lady says
OHHH. Okay. Thank you! I get it now.
Salary Q says
OP here — I don’t think you’re a sociopath at all. The way I imagined the question, it sounds like your answer would be $0, or “it doesn’t matter,” because you inherently want to work. My question was more toward those who (1) choose not to work full-time, or (2) do work full time but frequently question whether it’s worth it, whether there’s a salary level at which they would change their mind and either (1) be willing to work full-time if it was for that amount or (2) stop stewing because the benefits of earning that amount are so obviously worthwhile.
Basically, for my situation, I’m trying to figure out, do I earn so much that I should get out of camp (2) and stop stewing? Maybe just looking for a little reassurance/validation. But it sounds like the overwhelming consensus is that whether working full time is “worth it” or not is not in any way tied to salary level.
IHeartBacon says
I work full time on purpose and I really don’t factor my salary into it. I negotiate my salary annually based on my work performance. When I have a stellar year, I demand more. When I have a less than stellar year, I know I have less negotiating power.
Pogo says
It would have to be solid $250K+ for me. I value flexibility, commute and company culture more than money at this point in time. Like if it’s $250K and I work for a sadist and have a 90 min commute every day? Probably still a hard pass.
Anonymous says
fwiw, I make about $250k with bonus, and I’m looking for a new job because of failings in the flexibility, commute, company culture, and boss areas. My absolute minimum is 70k because of HCOL, but I’m willing to take a huge pay cut to have a flexible job that is close to home and doesn’t stress me out as much.
anon says
so i earn a lot less than most people on this board. i posted yesterday asking for reminders for why it is good that i work even though my salary doesn’t cover childcare. i am also not in a position where my income will go up substantially over the next 5-10 years (think like teacher – though that is not what i actually do) – which is one reason people gave for why it is good to stay in the workforce. i might feel differently once my kids are school aged (i have 11 month old twins) and would actually get some time to do stuff while they are at school, but i would be beyond miserable staying home all day. especially with young twins it is so hard to get out of the house by myself to even do things like go to the grocery store. so i am justifying the fact that i earn less than childcare, by being grateful we can afford for me to do this, realizing it is vital to my mental health, at some point we would want to put them in preschool whether i was working or not which costs $, i would likely spend $ on other things if i didn’t work, i get a bit from my employer for my 401(k). our situation does create a bit of an imbalance with regard to household stuff bc it clearly makes sense to prioritize DH’s career since he significantly out earns me, though he does really appreciate everything i do and does a lot when he is around. i do sometimes worry i am setting a bad example for my girls by being in such a “traditional” situation, but i’ve read on here about people who had sahm and then end up in high powered careers so i’m trying not to feel too much guilt about that
Anon4ThisOne says
I’m in a similar situation in some ways. I make in the low six-figures, but it’s like 1/3rd of what DS makes in BigLaw. His salary and bonuses will increase exponentially compared to my more gradual and paced increases. Thus, I become the default HH manager/primary parent, even with him doing his share.
There is also the opportunity cost – when you leave the workforce, you forgo potential earning power and work experience for when you return. As in, if you leave and then come back, you will likely command a lesser salary (whether that’s right or wrong, I don’t know, but it is what it is for now) than if you stayed in the workforce in a lower paying role/sector and then went for a higher-paying role. Plus considering your 30’s-40’s are often what set up the higher earning years in late career — that’s a lot of time to forgo!
I see a lot of SAHM’s starting side hustles to stay engaged. I’m all for more women-owned businesses, but most of these are more like hobbies (e.g. a site/social media dedicated to baking, non-toxic beauty products), etc. As a mentor of mine said recently about this, “I will support, I will buy, but meanwhile, someone has to be in the meetings, at the office, checking the email so we can takeover the C-Suite and really change things.”
anon says
i’m the anon you replied to and not to be rude, but i do not earn anywhere close to low six-figures – if i did, then my salary would definitely cover childcare! that is still a substantial amount of money, so other than also sharing the default HH manager/primary parent role and DH earning a lot more, i don’t see much of a similarity between our situations. i know this was not your intention, but your reply actually kind of made me feel worse about mine, though i know it is me being insecure about the amount i earn.
Anon4This says
So sorry! Not my intention. I probably have my own insecurity vs. DH’s share of our income so I have to often remind myself. Again, apologies. Perhaps there’s some solidarity in knowing the insecurity pervasive and relative?
The focus of my comment was that in addition to all of what you mentioned – helping cover expenses, mental health, etc. there’s also the opportunity cost and reality of exiting the workforce and the long term impact.
IHeartBacon says
“I will support, I will buy, but meanwhile, someone has to be in the meetings, at the office, checking the email so we can takeover the C-Suite and really change things.”
THIS. THIS. THIS. THIS. THIS. THIS. THIS.
TO. INFINITY.
Anon says
Hi, just wanted to say I’m in the same boat! I make $50k and my salary is not expected to rise over my lifetime, except for annual cost-of-living raises (less than 2%). It’s about $30k after taxes (due to DH’s tax bracket) and daycare for our infant is $24k. So yeah, I’m working for essentially nothing now and it really really $ucks.
anonanon says
Just want to say I’m in a similar boat with this same income level. I know many people on this board earn a lot, and it’s nice to hear from others who have a different situation. We’re here too.
anon says
love hearing from all of you fellow low earners :-) . I have 2 ivy league degrees so sometimes it makes me feel particularly crummy/guilty, like yes i am privileged to be able to earn so little given the cost of my degrees and didn’t properly take advantage of opportunities available to me, etc. but i do generally like what i do and kind of ended up in the position that i’m in due to life circumstances/being a trailing spouse. i have some regrets with decisions i’ve made relating to my career, though i do think i made the best decision i could’ve made given the circumstances at the time and that is all we can expected to do – or at least that is what i tell myself
Anon says
I’m the Anon at 2:26. I’m a trailing spouse too and am not using my expensive graduate degree. I like my job and truthfully we have more than enough money between our combined salaries, savings from my prior high-earning job and the fact that we live in a LCOL area, but it does bum me out some days that my current earnings barely cover daycare and the argument that my future earnings will eventually make up for it doesn’t really apply. I’ll be very lucky if my salary keeps pace with inflation.
Anonymous says
My husband is a teacher and next year for various reasons will be working just under full time at a GROSS salary that will be less than our daycare costs. Given the schedule we can’t reduce daycare to reduce costs (two afternoons a week). But he’s still working for the following reasons : 1. Sanity 2. Adding something good to the world 3. Retirement and social security 4. Developing in his profession 5. School culture 6. Role modeling for our kids .
Anonanonanon says
Hmm interesting question. So many factors go into these decisions it’s hard to say.
I’m the deputy director of a nonprofit so I’m low six figures right now, which I probably wouldn’t want to go much lower than in the future. However, I’m spoiled by a relatively flexible schedule and the ability to telework etc. when necessary, and I’d be hesitant to go back to a “butt in seat” 8-5 job for less than a $50K raise most likely. I live in a major metropolitan area, so the ability to beat traffic home is the difference between seeing my kids during the week and… not.
PTO is a huge consideration for me, though. I currently have horrendous PTO, and while the flexibility of my job is nice, I haven’t gotten to take an actual day off in over a year. I’d make a lateral salary transfer, and potentially give up SOME day-to-day flexibility, for more guaranteed PTO. There’s the potential I take the role of my government counterpart when they leave, which would bring me down to about $95K, but would still have the flexibility I currently enjoy, wouldn’t be supervising people, much better PTO/benefits, and is a retirement system I left funds in because I left state government right before becoming vested.
Health Insurance is a huge consideration for my family. I have a chronic illness that is well-controlled thanks to our Kaiser Permanente insurance. Currently my husband carries that, but if he left his government job for a position that didn’t offer Kaiser, I would strongly consider finding a job that did.
Anon says
I work for Kaiser in the DMV! Glad to read this :)
Cb says
Can we talk about raising boys in an era of toxic masculinity, me too, etc? My toddler gets really worried if other children are crying and I was reassuring him and someone overheard and told me he’d have to toughen up! I want to encourage empathy, comfort with emotions, gentleness but it seems like the predominant cultural narrative encourages the opposite. How do you counter this?
Anonymous says
It’s really hard. I even caught my normally feminist mom saying ‘big boys don’t cry’. She was so in tune with gender equality from a female perspective but has total blinders about toxic masculinity. DH is a great role model. In that situation, he immediately said ‘I cry sometimes when I feel sad’. I say things like ‘Mommy is proud of you for showing your feelings.’ ‘It’s okay to cry when you feel sad’. etc.
anon says
With a cold, hard icy stare? Gosh, my blood is boiling for you because I think you handled the situation really well.
My son is quite a bit older than yours, but we continue to talk about emotions and validating that it’s OK to have hard feelings. We also have talks about how even bad feelings are temporary and will pass. Emotional intelligence is underrated, IMO. (I don’t think my parents prepared me well in this regard at all. I want both my son and my daughter to be better equipped to handle their emotions than I was as a child and long into my adult years!)
My FIL, unfortunately, tends to be of the “toughen up” mindset and isn’t afraid to communicate that to his grandchildren. He has a very limited vision about who a boy should be, unfortunately. We’ve had some pretty blunt conversations about Grandpa growing up at a time when boys had to pretend to be tough all the time, even when they were sad/upset/anxious, and that’s why he says that stuff. It’s taken time, but now my kid just sees it as sad/unfortunate that Grandpa wasn’t allowed to have feelings, so … that’s a win?
Cb says
Thanks, I know it was just an offhanded remark but I’m so proud of his sensitivity to others and want to encourage it rather than repress it. If he sees someone sad, he’ll say they need a cuddle.
Grandparents are tough, my dad likes to say my son is ‘all boy’ and I’ve been gently calling him out reminding him that I was an overall wearing, mud loving toddler as well.
Anonymous says
Parent how you’re going to parent and ignore the noise.
Anon says
+1000
My son is 4.5 and we fortunately have not come across that example. But we have been talking about how your body is yours, if someone says stop, you stop, if you don’t want someone doing something, you say stop, etc. We also explain that he doesn’t have to like or be friends with everyone in his class, but he has to be polite to them. These are all ongoing conversations.
So Anon says
I think calling it out in an age-appropriate way can be a very powerful message. Something like, “some people think that boys should not cry, but that’s silly! Its ok to cry. It is part of being a person!” As they grow older, I think it is important for the conversation to continue to evolve, just like anon at 10:07 describes. I know that I was raised in a way that we talked around issues, but never actually talked about what was going on. I am determined to change that for my kids. Being blunt and to the point is weirdly challenging for me, but its something I’m working on.
lsw says
Appreciating and following this thread. I’m trying hard to do things like positively reinforce when he talks about emotions, I try not to say, “You’re okay!” when he falls or something and cries but instead ask if he is okay, I encourage any “non-typical” boy interests…I probably go a little overboard (buying him Ahsoka, Rey and Leia Star Wars toys and talking about how brave and strong they are, haha) but this is so important to me.
Anonymous says
Oof. I talk about this with my husband, who sometimes does the “toughen up” thing at my son in a way that is really not helpful, but I don’t know how I’d handle it with a stranger. Maybe point out that you’re proud of your son’s empathy and caring? It’s probably just an off-the-cuff comment that they would apologize for if called out on it.
In any case, keep doing what you’re doing, and make sure the people who see your son frequently (daycare teachers, close friends and family) don’t undermine your message. When your son is older, he will at least know that it’s safe and OK to show a full range of emotions around you.
Anonymous says
I will add that there’s some nuance to sometimes kids do need to toughen up. It is totally OK to be sad. It is not OK to have a wailing tantrum because you can’t find the socks you wanted. I don’t want my kids to stifle their emotions, but I do want them to have proportional responses to life’s setbacks, and to adapt and overcome. The message has to get more nuanced as they get older.
Not really what you asked, but I’ll also point out that Daniel Tiger is a really great source for promoting emotional intelligence.
Irish Midori says
Agree with this. I do have to sometimes tell my boys to “toughen up,” but it’s not because they are boys. It’s because they are overreacting to a minor issue, i.e. screaming like it’s death for 20 minutes and then dramatic limping for the rest of the day over a tiny scratch. I think I’d say the same thing to a girl. The problem, as you point out, isn’t the “toughen up” part; it’s the “because you’re a boy” part.
Anonymous says
I feel like “toughen up” is never that useful though; it’s not actually teaching them how to adapt or overcome. Even saying, “you don’t need to panic about this, calm down” seems more useful.
Anonymous says
Also, I think it is helpful to acknowledge emotions even if you don’t want to play into them or solve them. E.g., I see that you are really sad/angry/etc that you only got half a blue crayon. That’s disappointing. What do you want to have for dinner?
Anon says
My daughter gets told (by me) to toughen up (or more typically, pull it together) regularly by me – but the littlest thing will send her into a tizzy. My husband is the one consoling for all the (fake) crying while I’m over here trying to build some resilience and self-soothing.
anon says
Well, yes, there’s definitely a fine line between over-validating your child’s feelings and doing the knee-jerk “oh, just toughen up” thing. I think you can acknowledge the feelings without getting dragged into the drama.
Cb says
Yep, totally! I don’t want a kid who whines all the time, but I do want him to be able to show and name his emotions so we can address them together.
SC says
This is a really tough balance for me. Our son is in play therapy, where they work on emotional intelligence and empathy, and we try to identify and validate feelings as part of that. Our son also overreacts to some situations, has a hard time expressing his feelings in words, and lacks resilience. I’ve started to see validating the hurt/emotions as part of building resilience (and it models empathy). Instead of “toughen up,” the message is, “Yes, I hate it when I can’t find something. It makes me feel so frustrated!” or, for a minor injury, just “I’m sorry that happened! Is there anything I get for you?” He seems to get over things a little sooner if we acknowledge the feelings, even if we secretly think he’s overreacting.
We also don’t respond to whining or yelling, and Kiddo has to come to us and calmly ask for help before we get up and help him find something or make a toy work a particular way or help with whatever is frustrating him. If we can’t interrupt what we’re doing to help, we just tell him that he has to wait. He sometimes whines about it, but we ignore that. If he has a tantrum about it, we send him to his room to calm down, and tell him he can come back when he’s ready to play without yelling (or hitting or whatever he was doing).
When he describes a feeling, we praise him for using his words before focusing on the feeling itself. So, last week, when Kiddo saw what we served for dinner, he said, “I’m so disappointed!” It’s a little dramatic and definitely a rude way to react to dinner, but we started with, “Wow, you did a good job using your words to say how you’re feeling!” (And we’ve come a long way from throwing food on the floor.) We talked about his disappointment, and it turned out that he wanted his favorite dinner, and had somehow turned that desire into an expectation. We told him we could put it on the list for next week, and he ate what we served. We bought the ingredients for his favorite meal over the weekend, and we’re having it tonight.
Boston Legal Eagle says
My husband is a lot better with expressing and acknowledging emotions than I am so I definitely don’t think it’s an inherently gendered thing – I was raised more along the lines of how stereotypical boys are but I’m trying to raise my kids in an environment where negative feelings are more accepted and acknowledged. I think ultimately how you and your spouse (especially your spouse in this case) react to his and each other’s emotions will help.
We tell our 3 year old that it’s ok to cry and yell and be mad and sad, but that certain behavior (i.e. hitting, throwing) is not acceptable.
Cb says
I love the Mom and Dad are Fighting line of ‘all feelings are okay, all behaviours are not’
Redux says
One of my friends who is approaching 40 recently started trying to work through his own emotional atrophy, after a lifetime of toxic masculinity stifling his emotions. He is a sweet and kind person, but grew up in the US where he was taught to toughen up, to leave emotional things unsaid, and to build relationships with people in a certain masculine way. The NYT recently profiled a men’s group (link to follow) that focuses on tearing down these harmful structures.
My conversations with my adult friend have changed the way I parent my very young son. We do things suggested above– cry when we’re hurt or sad, validate those emotions in the moment, etc. But also I’m trying to get him to talk about his emotions in more neutral settings, too. For example, we often do a high/low at the dinner table where we go around saying the best and worst things about our day and say how they made us feel. E.g., “today’s high was when I played with Friend at recess and it made me feel silly!” “Today’s low was when Friend grabbed the scissors from me and it made me feel frustrated.” Also, when my kids fight with each other we try to make them work it out between themselves by telling the other person how you feel, not just what you want. E.g., Son will come to me to say that Daughter won’t let him color in her coloring book. I send Son back to daughter and he tells her how it makes him feel (“lonely”) and Daughter tells him how she feels (“worried that he’ll rip the page”) then we come up with a solution that responds to the emotions, like letting Daughter tear out the page for Son to color, then they color together. I will say that it’s much easier to do in our family than with friends’ kids, and my adult friend says most of his struggle is in communicating with people in an emotional way. But it’s a start.
Redux says
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/08/style/men-emotions-mankind-project.html
AwayEmily says
We do a similar thing after storytime and before bed — we talk about the Something-est part of our day, with something being a feeling. So sometimes it’s the saddest part, or the part where we got the most hurt, or the proudest part, or the happiest part, or the silliest part. I like it because it normalizes emotions and shows that we all have them, plus helps to put names to different feelings.
Anonanonanon says
I don’t know, it’s so hard. I tell my son not to cry in certain situations, not because of his gender, but because I think crying over certain small things in front of your peers regardless of gender is setting you up for bullying. (For reference, he’s 9). However, we’ve established a system where he saves it up and talks to me about it when I pick him up, and saves the tears for the car or home, which I think is fine. I like to think it’s teaching him coping mechanisms, not shutting down his emotions. Adults can’t burst into tears in the workplace whenever they’re frustrated or disappointed, and at some point you have to learn to keep that in check until you’re in a place where it’s appropriate. If I see tears starting out in public over something small, I quietly whisper to him something along the lines of “Hey buddy, I know you’re disappointed because that’s not what you were expecting to hear, and I promise I’ll get you to the car to talk about it soon. Do you think you can wait that long, or do we need to step outside for a quick hug and talk?”. My goal is for him to know that he has his support system to cry to at the end of the day.
Pogo says
I like this approach a lot and it resonates with me as I was that kid who cried over everything! And kinda still do! Sigh.
Anonymous says
You don’t need this. Add some water to the pan and cover it with a lid. That’s how I learned to fry eggs as a child, and it is still how I do it. If my frying pan doesn’t have a lid, I just use a saucepan lid that will cover the eggs. But these days, I pretty much only eat poached anyway, which is so easy.
Anonymous says
Oh my god. Thank you. I feel like an idiot. I’ve been struggling to fry eggs for like 15 years and I only flip them correctly 1 out of every 10 times. I’m going to try it this weekend!
OP says
Just use low heat and don’t overcook them. It can take a few times to get it right, but when in doubt, use lower heat.
EB says
Can I get a “chin-up, you’ll be ok?” Was up early this morning finishing a research project in not-my-area of law for a partner because I had to leave early last night because my husband had a migraine and couldn’t watch our son and I am 8 months pregnant and too tired to do work after son goes to sleep these days. Didn’t really finish (and totally blew my time budget because 4 hours is not enough when you don’t know the law and there maybe isn’t even an answer to the question) before I had to leave for work. Then I couldn’t find ANY pants to wear (like literally, not I couldn’t find any I liked), and when I did finally dig a pair out of the laundry hamper, I fell over trying to get my foot in. At which point I started crying. Husband gave me a hug and tried to make me feel better, but life is just such a grind sometimes, you know?
Anon says
I definitely had days like this when I was pregnant, and it does get better. For me, it was approximately 1.1 seconds after I was no longer growing a human inside of me and we were able to each exist (sort of) independently. Also, partners who give indefinite research projects with no real answer are my least favorite kind.
ElisaR says
that stinks i’m sorry. a year from now maybe you’ll laugh at the ridiculousness of it all but not yet. reward yourself this weekend or week if you can. you earned either an ice cream cone, cup of tea, foot rub, prenatal yoga class? hang in there!
Anonanonanon says
Oh noooo! There’s something awful about the day you reach the “I literally don’t have pants to wear today” stage. It’s just horrific. You’re already so tired and trying to keep so much together and then this very basic thing falls apart!
You WILL be ok. This day will be over in a few hours :)
anon says
When I was pregnant, I walked around for like 10 minutes one morning whining, “No pants!” because I didn’t have any clean pants and couldn’t figure out how to resolve that situation. (I don’t even remember what I did.) Now yelling “No pants!” is an inside joke between me and my husband whenever we have that particular laundry issue, although the problem rarely takes more than a minute to resolve in some way :-)
Lemon Tea says
I’m curious if anyone here bf’d past 2 years? I’m still nursing my 2.5 year old, and it’s a strangely lonely place to be. I believe that it’s the right thing for my son and myself — I didn’t really plan on this, but here we are, and I don’t see us stopping anytime soon. But it’s so frowned upon for some reason. I don’t know anyone that has kept going this long. And because of that, I feel kind of like I have to keep it a secret — I’m just vague about it, or refer to “snuggling” instead… but it feels icky to lie about something that’s healthy and good as though it’s a dirty little secret.
Anonymous says
I bf’d my daughter (only child) until she was 2 years 9 months. But at that point, I had already been limiting her to wake-up only for about 3 months.
11:32 Anon says
I think in addition to a society that is conditioned to think bf’ing is only relevant for one year or two (depending on whether you look at US or international recommendations), part of the issue is also that so much of the information about breastfeeding is geared towards the infant year. By the time you’ve gotten to your point, presumably it is going really well and you don’t need much by way of resources and support. There’s no worries about latching or getting enough, etc. So there’s naturally a lot less conversation geared toward this time. I had a hard time finding weaning resources. I asked on here, which was really helpful. But in the end I just had to come up with a plan on my own that seemed best for kiddo and me.
Pogo says
I have an IRL friend who did for both of her children (to like 3? 4?) – so you’re definitely not alone! And I have another who I think stopped around 2.5. I think more people do it but just don’t talk about it?
Pogo says
Also, the first episode of Marie Kondo’s Netflix show features an older toddler who still bf’s!
Anonymous says
I just saw an article about how common it actually is. My own kids only managed nursing for a month or two, but my little brother nursed till 3 and I know plenty of my friends’ little siblings did too (in the 80s) so it has always been normal to me!
Anonymous says
I didn’t as kids initiated weaning between 18 mths- 2 years but I know a number of friends who did. Don’t worry about what anyone else thinks. As long as you and kid are happy, wean when it feels right for either of you.
CapHillAnon says
Me! Yes! Over here! I have three, and nursed two of mine until nearly 3 years old (My second baby was just not interested in nursing after 12 months.). I was at biglaw for the first two and in govt for the third one, and it is such a good way to connect after a long day away from them. No one talks about how easy it becomes when they’re a little older and the pressure is off from it needing to be a calorie-intensive event, or how comforting the little ones find it.
I definitely did feel like I couldn’t talk about extended nursing in certain circles (work included), which is just crazy but that’s how it is currently. Our collective thoughts about breastfeeding are so fraught with value judgements, unreasonable expectations for working mothers, unreasonable expectations for small children, and a general lack of empathy that I think it’s hard for people to see beyond their own experiences, which in the first year can be awful (pumping, ugh) or judged for combo feeding or choosing formula. I felt like if I talked about it, I was humble bragging that I was a nursing goddess (which I am not, and hated the pumping and hassle in general at first, all three times). It’s just fraught.
BUT you do you. If it works for you and your kiddo, then it is right for you. You know that it isnt a “dirty secret”! Extended nursing is totally normal, just like formula feeding is totally normal, just like combo feeding is totally normal, just like nursing until 6 weeks or 6 months. We just avoid talking about it!
Anon says
Yes! This!
Anonymous says
My friend is still doing it with her 2.5 year old at night and naptime. And she’s always almost apologetic to our group when it comes up and everyone tries to reassure her that there’s nothing wrong with extended bfing. It’s up to you how much you want to reveal to other people, but you’re not doing anything wrong. You may find some support online (or in person) through La Leche League and their meetings. Or other FB groups for extended bfing.
Anon says
I feel like a weird outlier nursing past age 1, so I can only imagine how you feel. I think my daughter will self-wean (she’s already dropped to morning nursing only) but if she doesn’t, I can see myself continuing past age 2. I also used formula from the very beginning and never pumped at work, so I feel like I’m in a weird middle place where my use of formula horrifies the committed EBF-ers and my BF-ing past a year horrifies my friends who are pro-formula and were incredibly relieved to stop pumping/nursing at 1 year on the dot.
Anon says
I’m still nursing my 2.5 year old (bedtime and morning). I would have liked to stop quite awhile ago, but he loves nursing so much and I don’t have the heart to say no. I don’t talk about it much, because it’s not very interesting to talk about, but don’t feel weird about it. I’m in a fairly progressive place and tend not to care a lot about what people think, though.
I did feel a little weird went I went to a lactation group for advice on weaning—everyone had their teeny tiny babies who had trouble nursing and I went alone, because toddler was in daycare and would understand, and get unhappy, about talking about cutting him off.
Student Loans says
I feel like I’m the only one on this board (or in the world) who just can’t bring myself to care enough about my student loans to pay them off aggressively. I have around $55,000 at this point, and so many other things in life are just a bigger priority. Maxing out retirement, daycare, furnace that doesn’t work, etc. etc. It isn’t enough to make me feel like we absolutely must address it, but it’s also big enough that it is not like I can just go ahead and pay it off this year or something. In the end it’s working fine for our financial situation and that’s what matters. But I often feel like I’m doing something wrong by just not caring enough about that debt.
More Sleep Would Be Nice says
So, we just paid off mine that had a slightly lower balance than what you have. We also are trying to save for a house, only have DS right now (and want another kid), etc., so having more money to save was a bigger goal for us. I think just taking a look at the interest rate, and making sure you are beating that in other places while taking care of other things is fine. You could even re-finance for a lower rate. There’s always a “better” option (you pay it off, and put the monthly payments into something with a better return rate), but doesn’t mean you HAVE to.
When they talk about the lower levels (yes, to me, anything other than $100K+ of debt is “lower”) of student debt in Farnoosh Torabi’s podcast, they talk a lot about the “mental load” of it as a benefit of paying it off vs. keeping the payments going. It’s clearly not a payment that’s keeping you up at night, that you can’t make, etc. so paying it off isn’t seemingly going to make you feel a big difference. You may enjoy some of the episodes that talk about this issue.
Cb says
Yeah, I’ve got $30,000 and they are a pain in the bum to pay (have to transfer money to the US) and I just can’t be bothered to aggressively pay them off. I try and make a few extra payments each year but we have a nursery bill that is nearly double our mortgage, want to move to a bigger place eventually, and I need to pay for naturalization and citizenship next year. I also only have another 15 months on my contract so anything extra (of which there is very little) goes into savings.
Anonymous says
We’re here, too. We paid off mine (though it was pretty small comparatively at $10K when I graduated), but we still have my husband’s grad school loans and we’re not in any hurry to pay them off. When we got married, he had nearly $200K in loans and we paid off the private with bonuses the first couple of years we were married. It was important to us to get rid of those, but we still have government loans and at this point I think we’ll be writing checks to Sallie Mae for another 10 years or so. The interest rate is so low (like 2%) and there seems to be no real benefit to getting rid of them other than not having the monthly payment. Neither of us is “big law” (or ever has been) and we no longer are in jobs with bonuses, so I think we’ll just keep grinding.
CCLA says
If the interest rate is relatively low, it often makes sense to do what you’re doing and not be aggressive about paying them down. We refinanced ours to ~3% and have 12 years left on a 15 year plan. Zero intention of paying them down early even though we could comfortably do so. We make the standard monthly payment to stay on track and that’s it. Our current and prior financial advisor endorsed this. If they’re sitting at 7-8%, I’d consider refinancing or being more aggressive (after funding emergency fund and retirement), but of course it depends on your individual situation!
Anonymous says
I have a question about this – we refinanced my grad school loans which were 8%(!!!!) to 5.6% through SoFi a few years ago. DH and I continue to have excellent credit, is it worth trying to refinance through a different company? I have 5.5yrs left with SoFi and we throw extra towards the loans if we can. Has anyone refinanced loans twice??
CCLA says
We did! If there’s no pre-payment penalty, other than the paperwork and credit pulls, there’s virtually no downside. We did SoFi first, then First Republic (Eagle All-in-One I believe is the program). Catch is you have to live near-ish a First Republic branch, which mostly means major metro areas, and I think they may have more stringent income requirements than SoFi. Rates were about 1.0% lower for us at First Republic than SoFi, though that was about 3 years ago, but significant enough that it was worth it to switch. They did require us to keep a checking account with them, but their customer service is so great that we happily moved all of our banking over to them other than our online high yield savings accounts.
Anonanonanon says
Honestly I can’t bring myself to care either. I don’t even know what the interest rate is? It’s whatever it was when I got them I suppose. They’re stafford loans so I imagine it’s pretty low? I don’t know, I just pay what Navient tells me to pay every month.
Anon says
What is the interest rate? If it’s 2%, I think your strategy makes sense. If it’s 8% (which my loans were), it’s probably worth diverting money from retirement to pay them off ASAP. If it’s something like 5%, it’s probably a closer call.
Anon says
I have $50k of student loans at a locked in interest rate of~2.5%. I don’t care about paying them off early. I make more money in my retirement accounts, investments and 529s, and the monthly payment is not noticeable. You’re not alone. I think a lot of people have more significant debt and/or higher interest rates. In those cases, it makes sense to focus on paying them off. For me, I just keep paying the minimum.
Pogo says
At that interest rate I think you’re making the right decision.
This is one thing I’m glad we did aggressively pre-kids (well, pre-marriage even). I recall what a difficulty it was to set up auto-payments that exceeded the minimum payment, like I had to call and speak to a human and convince her I really did want to pay that much every month. Caveat that I did not max out my 401(k) at the time – just did enough to get the match.
anon says
my parents want to buy my twins one of those toys (well actually two) they can push to help them learn to walk, but i feel like they seem kind of silly because as soon as they can walk, which for one of them i anticipate will be quite soon, they won’t need it anymore. seems like a toy like that has a very short lifespan? any recs?
Anon says
Every now and then I still catch my almost 2 year old pushing buttons on the Vtech one – “Welcome to our learning farm, we have lots to show you, shapes and colors music too, there’s so much to do.” Fair warning – it will haunt your dreams. What she does push around the house constantly though is a doll stroller (which is often used for food, blocks, dolls, water (not so well) and other random items). I imagine a sturdy doll stroller (ours is second hand and not so sturdy but man does she love it) or a sturdy shopping cart would tick the “walking toy” box but maybe have ongoing life in the toddler years.
Anonymous says
Same! That song! Gah! But, we’ve had ours for 6 years now (6 year old and 2.5 year old). I had to pry it out of their hands to pass it on to their soon-to-be-born cousin. At $30 or so, it’s easily the toy for which we got the most bang for our buck. I’d say you don’t necessarily need two with twins though (caveat – I don’t have twins, but unless they want to actually be walking with it at the same moment, I think is a shareable one).
Anonymous says
We had only one for our twins and omg so much fighting! Luckily daycare had 2.
Anon says
+1 I was just with a friend whose 20 month old is walking very well and still loves playing with the Vtech one. I think it has more life than you think it does.
AnotherAnon says
Yep. Great toy but for that song… I finally took the batteries out of it so my 2.5 y/o would lose interest. We’ve also gotten a ton of mileage out of the Little Tikes push n ride racecar, to give you another option at a similar price point.
ElisaR says
yes yes yes. That darn v-tech one. now the song is stuck in my head. We bought it for my now 3 year old and for whatever reason he still plays with it. Mostly while sitting on his little potty in his room. He picks up the phone and calls the fire department each night. Who knows but that toy has gotten WAY more use than expected it to!
OP says
yea, was trying to avoid something with sounds for this reason…
DLC says
We had a Radio Flyer Walker Wagon that both our kids loved. Seven years later we still use it for, mostly for easy toy storage and sometimes the kids push each other around in it. It only rolls straight so it’s not as useful for running laps around the house, but I did appreciate that it has a front bumper so I didn’t worry about them damaging the walls or furniture when they ran into them. I also liked that it was functional and wooden rather than plastic/ shiny/blinky.
The other thing we have is the Melissa and Doug shopping cart that we’ve gotten a lot of mileage out of. it might not be the best option for pre-walkers since it has smart wheels, but once kids love it once they can figure out how to push it around.
We also had a traditional wooden walker toy that my parents brought back from Taiwan. It was super cute, but, yes, the shelf life was very short.
Anonymous says
Mula toddle truck from ikea is great for this. It’s been used as a walker, doll stroller, and grocery cart during playtime. Still going strong with my 4 year olds.
Anonymous says
+1 for vtech walker my daughter played with it until we put it away around 2. And I love the vtech alphabet train sit to stand. She’s 27 months and STILL plays with it.
SC says
Ha! My son is 4, and I keep putting that train in the garage, and it keeps finding its way back inside. It’s a good toy, but for whatever reason, the way that train rolls on our linoleum floor is super loud and gives me a headache. It’s not the song, but the wheels against the floor, especially when a 4 year old is rolling it at top speed.
shortperson says
a wooden doll stroller has a much longer playspan and provides the same function for early walkers. we got ours from land of nod.
Anonymous says
we have a fisher price ride-on puppy. With the seat flipped up, it’s a push-walker, but kids can also scoot around on it. It also sings annoying songs, but LO hasn’t figured out the on/off switch yet :)
Anon says
I see these walkers like that at used toy stores all the time. Maybe see if your parents can look somewhere like that first? Then you can re-donate.
My son loved his little walker and still pushed it around after he could walk, but yes, short lifespan.
Anon says
I thought that walkers were frowned upon by pediatricians these days? Might be worth checking AAP/with your pediatrician if they recommend walkers and to see if the argument against resonates with you.
Anon says
Different kind of walker. Things like this (https://www.walmart.com/ip/Safety-1st-Ready-Set-Walk-2-0-Developmental-Walker-Whale-Bay/230068659) are frowned upon because your kid isn’t learning to balance/walk independently and I think they can be dangerous because even a baby can move really fast in them. Things they can use for support while walking alone are fine. My ped actually told me that our reluctance to get the independent type of walker probably contributed to our lazy baby walking late, because she didn’t have anything motivating her to walk.
Anonymous says
Shopping cart serves that purpose but has a longer lifespan.
EB says
My son is almost 2.5 and STILL plays with his. It’s in our backyard now, and he pushes it like a lawnmower. Kids love pushing things around, whether it is that walker, a pretend lawnmower, shopping cart, pram, whatever. You can turn the music off on the one we have (it’s a zebra?).
Anonymous says
Maybe too late in the day…we got my son a Janod Crazy Dog wood pushcart and it’s been over 2 years of fun for our family! He pushed it as a waddler, he and his older cousin pushed each other around in it when she visited, and he still plays with it now as a 3.7 year old (into construction and uses the pushcart to transport his construction vehicles, wood “tools” around the house)
Anon says
TMI Q: I know there’s been discussion of toddler constipation here before, but we have the opposite problem. My 16 month old goes 2-3 times/day and at least one is usually very loose and messy. This isn’t illness, it’s been going on for months (since we stopped her iron supplement around 12 months). The ped said it’s within the realm of normal, and probably related to her diet (lots of fruit, lots of water, no cow’s milk despite our best efforts). It’s so frustrating because I really thought we were past the blowout phase. Anyone in a similar situation? Any advice, besides encouraging her to eat bread and meat?
shortperson says
it may be a sign of food allergies
Anon says
Really? The ped said as long as she seems happy and has no other symptoms, loose, frequent (at least up to 3x/day) stools are not concerning. There is no blood or mucus in them and they seem a normal color (occasionally a weird color, but that can usually be traced back to a food). What was the allergy and were there other symptoms?
shortperson says
my niece has a lot of food intolerances and allergies and she’s already been like that. but if it’s been looked into then dont worry about it.
Anonymous says
Cut back on the fruit to two servings a day and avoid peaches/plums/pears/strawberries/blueberries except in small qualities. Tomatoes are also techincally a fruit and can trigger loose bowels in my kids. It’s the pectin in fruit which can loosen the bowels. Try grain based snacks like plain cheerios, saltine crackers, chex etc. Grated cheese or thinly sliced cheese might also be popular. I’ve also used a cookie cutter on occasion to cut cheese into fun shapes.
Anonymous says
But, why? Why take a healthy kid who is happily eating fruit and give them cheese and saltines?
Anonymous says
Because a balanced diet is important. Dairy has a role as a source for calcium in young children. Breads/grains will help bulk the stool. Fruit has natural sugar but it’s still high in sugar. The recommended number of servings for fruit is 2-4 so my suggestion is within that. In terms of ‘cups’ equivalent, that’s 1 cup per day, including fruit juice amounts – https://www.choosemyplate.gov/fruit
Anon says
OP here – I appreciate the ideas. She does eat quite a bit of cheese and yogurt and is still nursing so no one is terribly concerned about calcium. She has a half bagel with tons of cream cheese for breakfast most mornings. I think the only area where her diet is really lacking is meat – she loves fish and would eat that every day, but ped wants us to restrict that to two times/week because of mercury (and the fact that my kid eats monster portions). Getting her to eat chicken/turkey/beef can be very difficult.
Anonymous says
The not drinking cow’s milk made me assume she wasn’t getting dairy. If she’s nursing, and especially if she’s getting cheese/yoghurt in addition, then no need to add cow’s milk. I wouldn’t stress too much about it but keeping a food diary might help you figure out if there are any particular fruits that are making her stools extra loose. One of my kids gets loose stools/almost diarrhea from watermelon but he’ s fine with all other fruits so I just limit him to two slices when we’re having it.
I also wouldn’t worry about adding meat too much. It’s a hard one for littles to get into. Try tacos or meatballs or chicken fingers as kid friendly options.
Anonymous says
Why mess with her diet when her doctor says she is healthy and happy as is? I poop at least three times a day. Pooping is great!
AwayEmily says
My 16 month old often poops 4x a day and it never occurred to me to be worried about it. He just likes pooping. It’s sometimes loose, but usually somewhere in between. Mostly I just am very grateful for daycare, who has to deal with the brunt of it (thank God he’s not an overnight pooper).
Anon says
Thanks, good to know. Has daycare ever expressed concern about the consistency or frequency? She’s actually starting in daycare soon and I’m a little worried she’ll be sent home for “diarrhea” when she’s not sick. But perhaps I’m borrowing trouble worrying about that.
AwayEmily says
Nope, daycare has never expressed any concern except for worrying about diaper rash (legitimately so! He is prone to it because of all the pooping, so we do baking soda baths and give him lots of diaper-free time). And mine also eats a lot of cheese and meat, and has yogurt for breakfast every morning. I think some kids are just poop-prone. My daughter was similar — she’s now down to 1x a day, but as a toddler she pooped at least twice a day.
Anonymous says
Keep offering cheese/yogurt because it’s the calcium that will firm things up. Rice?? My two year old didn’t like yogurt until she was close to two but we continually offered it. FWIW DD had soft-serve ice cream poos and the ped said it was totally fine.
Anon says
Saw the note above about encouraging meat. I have the most luck trying meat in different textures or spices. E.g., pulled, shredded slow-cooked pork or chicken vs. nuggets vs. grilled. Ground beef cooked with lots of garlic, ginger and soy sauce (for a asian-style bowl), taco meat, etc. And then keep offering vegetables. I nearly fell over when my almost 2 year old ate sliced bell peppers and lettuce out of the salad I was prepping for dinner without being offered them (yay learning tower) after months of refusing anything resembling those items. She also rotates between lima beans and carrots both of which can be cooked quickly in the microwave from frozen. I find that corn also bulks up toddler’s stools.