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One of my first posts for CMoms was about a set of thermal nursing pajamas I absolutely loved (and still love). However, as the weather gets warmer (and my time at home stretches longer), perhaps a PJ update is in order.
If I am going to splurge on a set of triple-digit-priced pajamas, Eberjay’s Gisele PJ sets are it. Given the warmer weather, I wouldn’t mind finding this set in my Easter basket. It comes in seven neutral and pastel hues (I’m eyeing the Sorbet Pink) and is made from a cool, soft modal jersey.
The pajamas look so comfy, yet refined — I could see myself wearing them all day long.
The set is $118.
Sales of note for 4.18.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Ann Taylor – 50% off full-price dresses, jackets & shoes; $30 off pants & skirts; extra 50% off sale styles
- Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything; extra 20% off purchase
- Eloquii – 50% off select styles; 60% off swim; up to 40% off everything else
- J.Crew – Mid-Season Sale: Extra 60% off sale styles; up to 50% off spring-to-summer styles
- Lands’ End – 30% off full-price styles
- Loft – Spring Mid-Season Sale: Up to 50% off 100s of styles
- Nordstrom: Free 2-day shipping for a limited time (eligible items)
- Talbots – Spring Sale: 40% off + extra 15% off all markdowns; 30% off new T by Talbots
- Zappos – 29,000+ 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 – Up to 70% off baby items; 50% off toddler & kid deals & 40% off everything else
- Hanna Andersson – Up to 50% off spring faves; 25% off new arrivals; up to 30% off spring
- J.Crew Crewcuts – Up to 60% off sale styles; up to 50% off kids’ spring-to-summer styles
- Old Navy – 30% off your purchase; up to 75% off clearance
- Target – Car Seat Trade-In Event (ends 4/27); BOGO 25% off select skincare products; up to 40% off indoor furniture; up to 20% off laptops & printers
See some of our latest articles on CorporetteMoms:
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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?
Anon says
Couple product recs needed.
1) Headphones for a 3 year old? This is for airplane travel later this summer but want to buy them and start practicing now, because my kid does not adapt quickly to new things.
2) Zinc oxide sunscreen for kids? We used ThinkBaby and loved it but it has a citrus scent and my kid’s teachers were convinced it was attracting bees and she got stung a couple times, so we switched to Coppertone Pure & Simple, but I feel like it doesn’t work as well and I don’t like the runny consistency. I prefer something with a thicker consistency like ThinkBaby, just ideally unscented.
anon says
We have the JLab JBuddies headphones and they’ve been great for our kids. Cheap, too, in case they get misplaced or broken.
I don’t have a sunscreen recommendation, as we’ve always used the Coppertone stuff (daycare required).
Anonymous says
I use a Banana Boat sensitive skin one on my kids. It’s a combo if you’re okay with that. I found the pure mineral sunscreens and the rubbing in process tended to aggravate their eczema. I think aveeno also had a pure mineral one if you’re looking for 100% mineral.
Anon says
Babo Botanicals Clear Zinc Sunscreen! I think it should tick all your boxes. Slightly less thick than ThinkBaby, which I’ve also used, but not runny by any means. Barely any scent at all, just kind of the bare bones zinc scent.
anon in brooklyn says
Babo Botanicals Clear Zinc is my favorite, and the stick version of that is good too!
NYC Girl says
Babo is the best. I use it on whole family, including myself.
Anonymous says
Babo makes a stick sunscreen that I LOVE. Great for squirmy kids and for adults too.
Pogo says
I bought the brand “CozyPhones”. Haven’t used in awhile, but LO seemed fine with them.
anon says
We have the Buddy Phones Travel for my twins and love that they’re foldable and have a slightly higher volume limit than some other kids phones so work better on older noisy planes. For our family it’s also super useful that you can connect multiple pairs to use one tablet with two sets of headphones without needing an adapter, but for an only kid that’s probably not a feature you care about.
AwayEmily says
We have the Nenos kids headphones ($15.99 on Amazon) for both kids. They work fine, and I like that you can hook them together without a splitter so that two kids can listen to something at once.
AwayEmily says
Oh, I have a sunscreen solution for you! Just get “ThinkSport” instead of ThinkBaby. It’s the exact same formula; the only difference is the fragrance (ThinkSport doesn’t have the weird citrusy smell).
CCLA says
1. puro headphones, started when kiddo was three and with a little practice she could keep them on. they have noise cancelling and volume modulation.
2. elta md (which is also what DH and I use, so yay one less thing to buy – asked at our derm office and the PA said that’s what she does too). i use the sport version on the kids to hold up to water play.
octagon says
We got the Kidz Gear wired headphones because they came with a lifetime warranty. The volume toggle broke and Amazon sent a replacement with no fuss.
Anon says
Puro Labs headphones. Pricey but a solid build and the volume limiting actually works. Bluetooth or wired connection. My 3.5 year old has no problem with them.
Neutrogena baby sunscreen. Cerave or neutrogena baby stick for faces. I use those on my kid and as an adult with psoriasis that reacts to chemical sunscreens.
Anonymous says
Blue Lizard sunscreen was our favorite
Hair product recs? says
I‘ve been feeling kind of blah about my hair since becoming pregnant. I have a ton of very heavy, naturally wavy hair. Cutting my hair short brings out the texture and makes it much more high maintenance, so I’m going to keep growing it out. I was hoping that someone has a rec for a leave-in styling product for air drying their hair that they like. TIA!
Clementine says
Miss Jessie’s Multicultural Curls. It’s a leave in styling cream that you put on wet hair and it just… makes curls incredible.
(Note: it was designed for multicultural hair specifically, but it’s just a nice, good quality leave in styling lotion/cream that does fabulous things to a variety of hair types. Also, it’s available at Target/Walgreens and doesn’t have a heavy scent.
Spirograph says
Bumble and Bumble grooming creame. My hair is similar, although not as wavy as it used to be pre-pregnancies. I put this in towel-dried hair, scrunch a little if I want to encourage the waves, and air dry. Otherwise, it tames flyaways and minimizes humidity-induced pouff.
octagon says
Yes! Curlsmith weightless air dry cream. I recently discovered this line based on a friend’s recommendation and it’s great. I’ve been using the air dry cream daily.
Mary Moo Cow says
I have very similar hair! I’ve used bumble & bumble air dry or surf leave in for a few years. The surf leave in accentuates the waves without getting crunchy like salt spray. I’ve also been using the conair heat styler/wrap brush thing when I want sleeker hair (although I have so much hair I have to say a rough blow dry with my regular dryer first and it still takes a solid 10 minutes with the styler.)
Katala says
I’ve found doing a minimalist “curly girl” routine works well with my waves. I just started after cutting off 12″ so can’t say for longer hair though. Basically the changes I made were using lots of conditioner, upside down and scrunching it in (I already used SLS free shampoo but that helps dryness and frizz), then a little leave in conditioner, a curl cream, and LOTS of gel. 2 big gobs for my above-shoulder length hair. Getting it really crunchy while it dries maintains the wave and reduces frizz. Once it’s 100% air dried I scrunch it to break up the crunch. May be too high maintenance for you but I like how my waves look now.
Anonymous says
Anyone have a recommendation for a rain coat for an 8 y/o girl? She’s really a size 6x/7 but I think in a rain jacket she’d be a 7/8. She finally outgrew her beloved unicorn one.
Anonymous says
Hatley if she likes patterned stuff, The North Face if she likes solids/is very active (more breathable).
Anonymous says
Her current one is Hartley and I think she’s on the border of being “too old” for it.
Mary Moo Cow says
Columbia switchback rain jacket: very light and breathable, and if you shop through their outlet, a good price (certain colors are on sale now.)
Anonymous says
Her current one is Hartley and I think she’s on the border of being “too old” for it. I like one of the LLbean ones but apparent everyone has it.
SBJ says
I’m moving and will need to buy area rugs for my kids’ rooms. I haven’t had to buy a rug in years. Any recommendations on places to look? I prefer natural fibers, looking for relatively thick (they’re going over slate floors and are partially to protect daredevils), and need to be ordered online. Any specific rug recommendations also welcome if you have something you love!
anne-on says
We’ve had really good luck with both Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel kids rugs (we skip the more cutesy designs but they have some nice good quality neutrals). Fair warning – EVERYTHING is backed up. A rug I ordered in February won’t be getting delivered till end of April and I consider that ‘fast’ now.
Pogo says
I’ve actually had really good luck with Wayfair. All of my recent rug purchases have been from there and I’ve been really happy.
Boston Legal Eagle says
+1
Lily says
We love Pottery Barn Kids’ 100% wool rugs. Very good quality, look expensive. You can usually get them at least 20-30% off if you wait for a sale. But they are backordered usually by 2-3 months. As with all wool rugs, there is a shedding period where you need to vacuum the rug pretty frequently.
Anonymous says
I have a PB kids rug that is like 10 years old and still shedding every time we vacuum (multiple times a week). So this is an anti-recommendation for that from me. I prefer to do high quality rug pads from Rug USA to add padding
Katala says
I was wondering if the wool rug we started using about a month ago was ever going to stop shedding. Now second guessing putting that in the nursery. Was hoping having it out and being regularly vacuumed for a few months prior would do it but sounds like no.
FVNC says
I’ve had good results from Overstock — wool or wool blend rugs. I also order a nice (at least 3/8″) rug pad to make them nice and cushy.
Anonanonanon says
second for overstock
Anon says
I have an OB appt today (33 weeks) and I was told to bring all my questions about my upcoming scheduled C-section. What do you wish you had asked your doc in advance about your c-section?
Anonymous says
The medications you’ll want to have at home after. Tylenol, stool softener, etc. They’ll likely give you a presciption for stronger pain meds, but I’d recommend only getting that filled if you need it. My husband filled mine right away, I never needed them, and it was an event to get rid of them.
Anonymous says
As an aside, I really resent how difficult it is to dispose of controlled substances properly. Where we live, literally the only way to get rid of them is to take them to a once-a-year event hosted by the sheriff’s department, which I never hear about until after it’s happened. It seems like it would be very easy to require pharmacies that dispense controlled substances to take them back at any time, and would probably help at least a little in the fight against opioid abuse. I never fill prescriptions for narcotic painkillers, but a couple of times we’ve been surprised with a medication prescribed for another purpose that turns out to contain narcotics, which I don’t discover until I’ve read the label and it’s too late to refuse to accept it from the pharmacy. Then we don’t use it because narcotics are not worth the risk and side effects, and it ends up sitting in the medicine cabinet for months or years until we can figure out how to dispose of it.
Anonymous says
Same in my state. A good friend who is a pharmacy tech has suggested throwing away unused medication with our used cat litter when we change the box as a last resort.
Anon says
You can usually drop them off at the police station if you miss the “dr*g takeback” event.
Nonn says
I’m in Massachusetts. They have a medical sharps deposit box and a Rx drug take back box in our police station lobby. It’s very easy, and in fact I just dropped off like 12 of my grandma’s old bottles this afternoon. I didn’t realize it was more challenging else where. Such a shame.
Lyssa says
It’s great that your doc is inviting questions like that. Planned c-sections are great; I found the process really smooth for both of mine. One thing that would have been nice to understand better is the process when the baby comes out – what do they need to do first, can you see the baby immediately, when can you hold the baby, that sort of thing. It’s sort of awkward knowing that there’s thing huge thing happening to your body and baby right behind a curtain that you can’t see or feel well enough to understand. (For my first, they were able to hold him up and show him to me right away, but for my second, there was some concern that she was cold, and they wanted to clean and dress her before anything else. My doc kept saying “Oh, Lyssa, wait until you see the hair on her; oh, they’ve got a cute little hat with a bow for her!” which was so frustrating, because I wanted to see!) Also, if you don’t have the details about your spouse or support person being present, get those.
Good luck and happy baby!
Anon says
what is the plan if you have to go early? i had a scheduled c section and then developed preeclampsia and so had my scheduled c section unscheduled. ask if your hospital does the TAP block post-c section. it is supposed to make a huge difference in recovery. my hospital does it, but they screwed up my epidural so i couldn’t get it. but from all my friends who’ve had c sections both with and without, they’ve all said with is the way to go.
TheElms says
I had an unplanned C- section and didn’t end up delivering at my hospital or with a doctor from my OB practice, so you might not need all this, but things I wish I had known:
1) What would happen during the C-section in the sense of the order of things and any sensations I might feel. There was a point after the baby had been born that I found it hard to breath for a minute or two. Apparently it was related to pushing my uterus back into position to get ready to close up my incision and its pretty common but I had no idea that it would happen and I nearly had a panic attack as a result.
2) Side effects of the medications / anesthetic used. I reacted poorly to one of the medicines and was really itchy for a few days and I don’t know if there was something I could have taken to help with that.
3) Pain management options. I was really out of it post C-section and the first few days at home and I think it was because I was getting too much pain medicine (narcotics and advil). I struggled to stay awake at all in the hospital and I think if I had been told I could take fewer narcotics it would have helped a lot. But because I was so out of it I didn’t know to ask and I don’t think DH could tell that perhaps there was an alternative.
4) What to have on hand at home in terms of supplies. ( I ended up alternating advil and tylenol and taking none of the narcotic after the first couple days at home, wearing depends, and having multiple sets of things so I never carried anything up or down the stairs and didn’t need to get things from upstairs. I was told to only go up and down the stairs once a day for the first week I think, maybe two weeks).
Not necessarily related to asking the doctor, but think through the routine once you are home. How will you get out of bed at night to nurse. Do you need a chair in your room or will you nurse in bed (that’s hard I found with a C-section). Make sure you have a spot for water and snacks right by where you nurse at night and a small light and an upstairs nursing pillow. Make sure you have a quiet spot to nurse downstairs with all the same supplies and another nursing pillow. We also had a fully stocked changing table upstairs and downstairs and used the bassinet from the stroller as a place to put baby down to try and get baby to take a short nap. We also had a swing downstairs so I could put the baby in that while I got myself food or whatever else. I napped on the couch since I wasn’t supposed to be climbing stairs. So I had a blanket and pillow that lived on the couch to make that more cosy.
I don’t say any of this to cause concern. I had a healthy baby and once I figured out I didn’t need anything like all the pain meds I was given I felt much better. I managed to go to the closing to sell our house a little after a week after the c-section. By 2 weeks post c-section I had no pain and felt basically normal (other than breastfeeding which was still going badly at that point-ended up fine and I breastfed until around 9 months). So the first 5ish days really really sucked but it got rapidly better after that.
blueridge29 says
plus 1 to discussing your pain management. I have had 2 planned c-sections and also found that I really only needed the narcotics occasionally if I tried to do too much physically. I think it helps to be able to feel your body a little because it will stop you from overexerting your body, which will make you feel worse the next day. Do you have a preference in narcotics, if so what are your options. For example) percocet doesn’t agree with me so if I have an option I avoid it.
You may want to ask if your partner/support person will stay with you during surgery or go with the baby. It was important for me that by spouse went with the babies, but you may feel differently.
Both of my scheduled c-sections were smooth and the recovery really wasn’t bad. I wish you the best of luck!
Anon says
They’ll address this with you, but I remember my biggest concern was how you’re not supposed to eat at all past a certain time the night before, how early I could make my appointment because of that, and how soon after it all I could eat. I was oddly really into figuring this all out. I think my OB was rightly mildly amused by this focus.
(I had an unplanned c prior to this so I had the basics of the procedure and recovery my down).
Anon says
I had an unplanned c-section after a failed induction, but here are some of the things that I’d have wanted to know:
What is the cut off time for eating and drinking the day/night before? Does that include clear liquids? Do I call in to the hospital at a certain time beforehand to see if I’m being bumped to a later time or do I come in at the set time regardless? How long between the time I arrive and when the c section will actually occur as long as everything is on schedule? What type of anesthesia will I be receiving? Will I have to have a separate meeting/appointment with the anesthesiologist prior to the c-section date? Do they use clear drapes so can see when your child is born? Can you have skin to skin right away if everything is going well? When does your doctor like to have you walking around afterward? When can you shower? How long will you be in the hospital? What are his/her recommendations for aftercare? Will you have a follow up appointment sooner than 6 weeks? What are some of the signs you need to be looking for at the incision site? How long until you can lift more than the baby? How long until you can drive? What meds are being prescribed at the hospital and at home and for how long?
In my experience, take all of the answers with a grain of salt because some things can and will change and some things are matters that, quite frankly, the doctors will give you one answer to and the nurses in L & D/Post Postpartum would give you completely different answers to.
momofthree says
I did not have a c-section, but my friends who did also recommend asking about 1) whether it makes sense to take an anti-anxiety med (ie xanax) before you get the anesthesia (many found it helpful and 2) if they have warming blankets for use during the surgery.
octagon says
Oh yes, warming blankets. I had a side effect immediately after the C-section where my entire body was so cold I couldn’t stop shaking. Apparently that’s not unusual as the anesthesia wears off but it totally freaked me out.
Anon. says
Ask about when your spouse can be in the room. With my first, unplanned he was with me literally the entire time. With my second, he wasn’t allowed in until they were confident the spinal block was in place and working. It would have been nice to know up front the second time but I didn’t think to ask.
Anon says
Ask about drape options. I definitely did not want to see a thing, but if you do, that may be able to be accommodated.
Ask about skin to skin and what they will be flexible on. DD was skin to skin in the OR while they finished stitching me up, then they bundled her up and DH and her went to recovery and I followed along shortly behind once transferred to a gurney, etc., and then I was back to skin to skin with her and able to try BFing right in recovery.
Epidurals can give a lot of people itchiness, which definitely hit for me in recovery, so they dosed me up with Benadryl and that helped a lot.
Pain med options. Some pain meds (apparently) don’t work for me, and I wish I had raised my hand sooner because I was in agony when they took the epidural out and the first stuff wasn’t working. As opposed to some of these other responses, I was on prescription stuff around the clock for the first week, then just at night the second week, then tylenol and advil after that. My C was planned, but there was an absurd about of rocking, tugging and pulling because DD did not want to come out, so I chalk the extra pain up to that.
Confirm lifting restrictions. I think I wasn’t allowed to pick up anything heavier than the baby for 6 weeks (so baby plus bucket seat was a no, accordingly, I couldn’t run errands or go to the doctor as just me and baby for those 6 weeks, either my mom or DH had to go with me even though I was cleared to drive at around 2 weeks once I was off the prescription pain meds and confident in my ability to slam on the brake if needed).
What is needed for incision care. I ended up having some leakage around the incision as it healed, so gauze pads, tape, etc. were necessary for a few weeks.
I was surprised that they did the epidural without DH in the room, and I have a crazy fear of needles but the nurses were really good at keeping me calm. Also when it kicks in you feel a warming sensation like you are going to pee, it’s really weird. I also freaked out because I was afraid they were going to cut and I could still feel things until the doctor explained that I would not be completely numb and would still be able to feel pressure, just not sharp pains. And then on the table I freaked out that I couldn’t feel myself breathing but the anesthesiologist was great about showing me my respiration rate and assuring me I was still breathing (I have a short torso, so I think I may have been more sensitive than most). It’s really an odd thing, but the nurses in my experience were excellent.
anon says
yes, I also needed a lot of pain relief including opioids, which are remarkably safe for baby (and less pain can increase mobility, speeding recovery) so take ’em if you need ’em.
anon says
if you’re planning a c-section, then I would make sure your OB is willing to do what they can to make it pleasant, otherwise find another surgeon! Things I loved about my planned c-sections (2 so far):
1) husband, midwife, and/or doula can be with me the entire time
2) OB narrates what is happening – she pauses for just a second before actually delivering the baby to say, “[baby name], you’re going to be born now!” and drops the drape so I could see.
3) OB does delayed cord clamping – delayed for at least a minute; you usually can’t do the 3-5 minutes some people want because they’ve got to keep moving to stop the bleeding.
4) baby is placed on my chest *immediately* – the pediatrics team does a quick check while baby is on my chest and baby can start to nurse right away – the nurse puts a warmed blanket around us both while the surgical team is working on the other side of the curtain.
5) after baby nurses for a while, the pediatrics team does the full check completely in my line of sight and then baby is given to my husband to hold (and wipe down with the gauze we prepared for vaginal floral seeding) while we all move to the recovery room.
6) husband and baby stay with me in the recovery room and the nurse brings me my placenta to look at (I don’t want to dry it or eat it or anything, just like to see it since I think it is the coolest organ).
7) everyone before, during and after is calm, quiet, and cheerful – I chose a hospital and surgical team that *loves* delivering babies and is happy to make c-sections as pleasant and healthy as possible for me and baby.
In both cases I had hemorrhages from placenta issues, and baby had mild, temporary breathing concerns so you can definitely have these things even if it’s not the “perfect” situation. But some OBs won’t even consider doing anything to make it more pleasant or less stressful for you, and that is a deal-breaker for me.
anon says
What are they doing for pain? I’m not at risk for addiction, but later I was really annoyed that there was zero conversation about them putting me on an opioid painkiller. And I didn’t know enough/wasn’t emotionally stable enough and was too exhausted to ask those questions in the moment.
AnonATL says
I can’t speak to the quality, but I saw this coat in Target and it made me wish I had a little girl to buy it for. Or an adult size for me.
Girls’ Rainbow Print Rain Jacket – Cat & Jack Navy
Anonymous says
so cute! sold out in her size though. Maybe we’ll come across it in a local store.
Boston Legal Eagle says
In general, I really like the Target Cat&Jack raincoats – very cute styles and they’ve held up pretty well for my kids. I’m not sure if they go up to the young kid sizes, I typically see them in the toddler section.
AnonATL says
This was a threading fail, but they had some cute other raincoats. One has a fruit print but it’s like the see-through poncho type material and may not be substantial enough for cooler climates
TheElms says
Are the Cat and Jack raincoats waterproof — like for standing in the actual rain which my toddler likes to do? I got a raincoat from Old Navy and it doesn’t seem waterproof at all. So confused.
Easter Food/Baking says
We don’t celebrate Easter as a religious holiday, but I do like to celebrate it as a kickoff to spring. Anyone have fun recipes for either baking or meals that are easter-y? I’m thinking about brunch but open to dinner recipes as well.
Anonymous says
To me, spring is all the asparagus. In quiche, soup, grilled, sautéed with mushrooms.
Other Easter-ish foods: quiche, homemade scones, and lamb (not all together)
Anonymous says
Here’s my menu for this year. All recipes are easily searchable on the web, with the exception of the pie.
Brunch:
D@mn Delicious lemon blueberry baked french toast
Fruit salad
Lunch:
Dye hard-boiled eggs using How Sweet Eats whipped topping tie-dye method, then turn them into egg salad sandwiches (Pinch of Yum avocado egg salad recipe)
Dinner:
Barefoot Contessa roasted chicken with vegetables
Barefoot Contessa garlic sauteed spinach or Joy of Cooking creamed spinach
Bon Appetit Parker House rolls if I have the energy
Lemon angel pie (family recipe)
Mumm’s brut rose; Welch’s sparkling rose grape juice for kids
Anon says
I love the whole meyer lemon tart from smitten kitchen for easter. something about the bright yellow color and lemon flavor say spring to me (plus it’s quite easy for how impressive it looks).
Meg says
We make waffles with ice cream!
Anon says
We are having the following, for 5 adults (3 fully vaxxed and 2 partially vaxxed) and one kid, which will mean a lot of leftovers but food is one thing I have been able to control this past year so we are having a feast on fancy china even though we have half as many people as we normally would:
Spiral Ham
Turkey
Stuffing
Gravy
Broccoli Cheese Casserole
Roasted asparagus
Salad
Scalloped Potatoes
Rolls
Cranberry Sauce
Brownies
Vanilla or lemon cake (TBD)
techgirl says
We will be having hot cross buns toasted with butter for breakfast, and then later bbq slow roasted lamb with flatbreads and salad. Typically we would have a lamb roast dinner, but with COVID restrictions we will be celebrating outside this year!
Bookworm Mom says
My 8 year old has developed a fascination with disasters lately – he’s constantly sharing new facts about the Titanic or Pompeii or similar harrowing events. He recently discovered the “I Survived …” book series; he checked out one about surviving the Hindenburg disaster from the school library yesterday and read the entire thing (91 pages) in an afternoon.
I don’t have a question or concern here. I just think it’s sort of delightful and wanted to share.
Spirograph says
It *is* delightful, and must be typical for that age … my 8 year old needed his Kindle reloaded the other day and I stuck some “I Survived” books on there thinking that it was a step up from Magic Treehouse (he liked the Pompeii and Titanic stories there, too). Jackpot, he loves them!
So, since our sons have similar taste in books: any other recommendations? Mine likes “The One and Only Ivan,” which I guess he read in school. I now need to check it out for myself
Chl says
My kid who seems to have similar interests likes the Nathan Hales hazardous tales series.
Anonymous says
I was the same ages 8-12!
No Face says
I was also into disasters as a kid. Loved the movie Titanic (but only the second VHS tape, not first one with the boring love story), the asteroid movies, the volcano movies. I definitely read library books about natural disasters.
Pogo says
omg, I forgot how it was on two VHS tapes. I feel old.
Anonymous says
I saw that movie in the theater in college. I feel really old.
Cb says
I love when kids nerd out about things. The Horrible Histories are supposed to be very good. There are quite a few historical fiction books by British authors which might be good (Check waterstones online for titles, their middle grade and teen recs are very good).
So Anon says
This is my son too! He’s 10 and developed a fascination about the Titanic a few years ago. He has done class presentations and research on the Titanic. I think he has read most of the I survived books and is now into historical fiction about WW2.
And then came the amazingly insightful question a few nights ago: “Mom, do you think there will be a I survived COVID-19 book someday?”
Anonymous says
I have been telling my kid that one day there will be a COVID-19 American Girl character, and that her grandkids’ teachers will assign them to interview their grandparents about what it was like to grow up in the time of COVID.
Anon says
My kids got a subscription to Honest History for Christmas (with some back issues as the present to open) and it’s been delightful. We all, adults included, look forward to the new issues. Not necessarily disaster, but my disaster-loving kids were very intrigued by the story of Cheng I Sao, the woman Chinese pirate.
Momofthree says
I remember being in 4th grade & having exercises in a reading comprehension book about disasters. I just googled it and unfortunately couldn’t find it, otherwise I’d recommend it. This was also around the same time Titanic came out & I devoured even non-fiction books about the event.
I generally tend to lean in when kids express an interest in something (i.e., obsessively request 500 books from the library on the topic), so I’d be all about looking up other books to pursue the interest or doing some sort of home experiment/ talking through the science.
clara says
This is a little different, but I was also obsessed with disasters at that age and loved The Kidnapped Prince: The Life of Olaudah Equiano
EB0220 says
Ha! My 3rd grader just spent 20 minutes cheerfully telling me about all of the cities that were destroyed by the Mt Vesuvius eruption. (Not JUST Pompeii, mom!!!)
anne-on says
If you haven’t seen them yet, the ‘horrible histories’ books are a BIG hit with my mildly bloodthirsty 3rd grader.
Anon says
Our boss has been telling us for six months that our offices will be converted into something else and we should go and clean them out, but knowing how fast things move at my employer (glacially) I think it might easily be another six months to a year before they do anything. Is it tone deaf to ask if I can go back to working out of the office until then? I’m fully vaccinated and going stir crazy at home, but with many people in the general public still unvaccinated I don’t think I’m comfortable working out of a public space, particularly a place like a coffee shop where people will have their masks off to eat and drink.
momofthree says
Is your office open at all? If so, do you even need to inform your boss that you’ll be going in? I’d be prepared to move out quickly in case some construction crew shows up or something, but otherwise don’t see a problem.
If not, maybe you could frame it as “I’ll clean it out today, but can I use it until the conversion date?” or something. Basically, do what they want and then make the ask.
Anonanonanon says
I think this is a very know your workplace situation. Can you just start going in and if anyone notices be like “just getting everything packed up!” haha
anon says
recs for face shield for a 3 year old?
Anonymous says
Why? A face shield is mostly just for show and eye protection unless you are doing something that could get your mask wet.
Anonymous says
A mask.
AnonATL says
Not sure if this will work for you, but there are some cute bucket hats with face shield attachments on Amazon.
Anon says
Fave retailers for elementary school aged boys’ clothes?
Anonymous says
Nordstrom, Peek.
Anonymous says
Land’s End Kids and Dick’s. My son generally refuses to wear anything except athleticwear because he must be ready to do sports at all times, but we have a couple pair of elastic waist Iron knees pants from land’s end that he will tolerate when his sweats are all in the laundry.
Anonanonanon says
H&M. The jeans have internal adjustable elastic at the waist but don’t look it. Good selection of clothes without characters etc. on them. Reasonably-priced, so when they get stained or torn up I’m not too heartbroken. Usually easy to get a “mix and match” type wardrobe going if you order a good amount at once.
Anonanonanon says
For summer, I reliably get 2 pairs of Navy Chino shorts, 1 pair of khaki chino shorts, and usually 1 pair of patterned chino shorts for my kid (the past few years they’ve had light blue ones with small dark blue shart silhouettes on them). I get short-sleeved henley shirts or t-shirts that coordinate, and usually one or two of the collarless white linen (or linen-esque at least) button-up shirts to sort of “dress up” the shorts if needed. Then I’m done!
anon says
Target, Old Navy. I buy pants from Oshkosh and Carter’s, but I feel like their graphic tees are very juvenile.
Anonymous says
Target & Carter’s
Anon says
Primary
Anonymous says
Reccs for longer books for kindergarten age that aren’t too scary? My son (5) has decided he’s interested in chapter books. He loves magic treehouse but I find them mind-numbing. We just finished the Winnie the Pooh collection. Any suggestions for what we could read next?
Anon Lawyer says
Beverly Cleary feels timely and my 5-year-old niece has really been enjoying them.
Mary Moo Cow says
My kindergartner (and little sister) enjoy the Mercy Watson series. I like them, in part, because daughter can read a few pages of them, but they aren’t the simplified Ready to Read books. We also like the Henry and Mudge series and Frog and Todd series. We’ve started the Tales from Deckawoo Dr. series, a Mercy spinoff, but since it has fewer pictures, interest waned more quickly.
Anonymous says
My just turned 6 year old has enjoyed a lot of Roald Dahl this last year (entry points were James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but has enjoyed all). FWIW he did not like any Beverly Cleary. Has also really enjoyed the All of a Kind Family books.
Boston Legal Eagle says
Did you find yourself editing James and the Giant Peach? I feel like I saw “a**” in there, as well as lots of references to idiots and fat shaming, which I guess was more accepted at the time, but I felt weird reading it.
Spirograph says
That is very true of every Roald Dahl book I can think of. I mean, no surprise… he wrote a book called The Twits! I loved him as a kid (and still love the stories!) but I had not remembered how casually cruel the descriptions of people tended to be. Agree it felt weird reading it aloud in 2020. I didn’t edit, but I did editorialize to comment about what a mean description that is, or how it seems like they’re saying that you can make an assumption about how smart someone is by what they look like, and I don’t think that’s true. etc etc
Total side note: I googled The Twits to make sure I was remembering correctly, and top ad result is a book called “The Beautiful Poetry of Donald Trump” with the following blurb:
What if there’s a hidden dimension to Donald Trump; a sensitive, poetic side? Driven by this question, Rob Sears began combing Trump’s words for signs of poetry. What he found was a revelation. By simply taking the 45th President of the United States’ tweets and transcripts, cutting them up and reordering them, Sears unearthed a trove of beautiful verse that was just waiting to be discovered. This groundbreaking collection gives readers a glimpse of Trump’s innermost thoughts and feelings on everything from the nature of truth, to what he hates about Lord Sugar. And it will reveal a hitherto hidden Donald, who may surprise and delight both students and critics alike. Now with seventeen all-new poems! As we lurch deeper into the Trump presidency, this timely publication also includes Sears’ scholarly footnotes and introduction, in which he excavates new critical angles and insights into the President’s poetry which the casual reader might initially overlook.
Anonymous says
Op – we do talk about what was done at the time the book was written but not now. I come from a family of literature professors so kiddo already gets a fair number of lectures about satire, the grotesque, etc. but yes, we do talk about these things pretty openly (including specifically misogynistic stuff) and for us, it hasn’t been enough to give up the books. Language like the word you cited doesn’t bother me at ALL though. Almost every book written before recent times requires some editorializing, it turns out— the Little House books definitely do (Farmer Boy was particularly enjoyed at 5 but I had to skip some of the first two chapters with corporal punishment and kids trying to kill the teacher), and tons and tons of mid century books have kids dressing up like “Indians.”
Anon Lawyer says
Farmer Boy is worth reading still if only for the food!
AwayEmily says
I also can’t stand Magic Treehouse.
Chapter book favorites of my 5yo (that I read aloud to her): Sophie Mouse, Zoe and Sassafrass, Kitty’s Superhero Adventures, Mia Mayhem, Wind in the Willows.
Cb says
The Kitty’s superhero ones are so good. Also, does he like animals? We read books from the Jasmine Green series, where they rescue different animals. Some of the later Harry and the Dinosaur books may fit the bill, they are a British series by Ian Whybrow. Some are shorter, but there are some longer ones (The Snow Smashers etc)
Katala says
My 5 yo has been enjoying the Upside Down Magic series. It might be scary sometimes, though. He’s using them for his silent reading time so I don’t know what’s in them. There is a movie that has some scary parts, but I can’t tell if that was just disney trying to make it “more exciting”.
GCA says
I finally put my finger on why Magic Treehouse irks me so much: it’s dreadfully over-written. I have condensed entire chapters into a few sentences (don’t tell my kids) with no loss of information.
My kindergartner also enjoys Mercy Watson, the Princess in Black series, Frog and Toad, Zoe & Sassafras. Also, not chapter books but he enjoys all the facts and humor in the Magic School Bus books. Time to start on Beverly Cleary next, I think.
AwayEmily says
YES! Totally agree on the Magic Treehouse. TBH I kind of feel like this about Mercy Watson, too. People are constantly repeating things to each other several unnecessary times. I can easily cut reading time in HALF for those with some strategic edits.
Anonymous says
Thanks so much! I hadn’t heard of many of these and others would be fun to reread.
Anon says
My 3.5YO likes Beverly Cleary (Ramona) and the Clementine series, and I also find them delightful to read to her.
So Anon says
The Humphrey books were a great hit when my kids were 4-8. They are a series of chapter books about a classroom hamster (and later a frog) who observes class and goes home with the kids and teacher over the weekends. We listened to the audiobooks on car trips, and I even found them cute. There is zero scary in these books.
Anon says
We’re reading through the Dragon Masters series now with my 5 and 7 year old. We usually do half a book in a night, so we are moving through at a really good pace.
Along that line, look for the Branches line of books from Scholastic. Diary of a Pug and Last Firehawk have also been big hits. For bigger books, we’ve read aloud the first Harry Potter (illustrated edition), a few Roald Dahls, Junie B Jones (I know she’s annoying but the kids have loved her), Boxcar Children, and Zoe and Sassafras.
If he’s into comic books like my 5 year old is, try DogMan, Narwhal and Jelly, and the “Marvel SuperHero Adventures” books. If he’s into facts/ history, the I Am… series by Brad Meltzer has been great too.
Anonymous says
Wings of Fire is another dragon series, and my 6 and 8 year olds really enjoy it. The overall gist is that there’s a world war and a prophesy about some young dragons who are going to bring peace back to the dragon world, so there’s some dragon-on-dragon violence, but no scarier than early Harry Potter. They’re bigger chapter books.
Anonymous says
Omg I hate Dragon Masters with PASSION. They are written in the most boring language imaginable and I finally had to tell my kid I would not read them anymore and he was free to read them himself.
DLC says
For reading aloud (vs read independently), some we have enjoyed:
How to Train Your Dragon series is hilarious.
Ms. Rapscott’s Girls (four girls at a boarding school go on adventures) is also hilarious.
Mr. Popper’s Penguins
Tuesdays at the Castle
Edward Tulane
Nim’s Island
Fantastic Mr. Fox