Weekend & Family Friday: Kiddie Play Supermarket Playhouse
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I bought my son an indoor tent at the beginning of quarantine, hoping that he would go inside and entertain himself quietly. Optimism — ha! It didn’t give me as much quiet time as I wanted, of course, but he does love it. All kids love a little space of their own to put their favorite toys in or engage in some imaginative play.
While it’s not the one I bought, I like this tent that’s printed like a supermarket. I think it would make a cute companion to a play kitchen, and you could even put some shelves inside to store all of the play food that comes with the kitchen.
It is $33.41 at Sears and available at Amazon for $24.89. Kiddie Play Supermarket Playhouse
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Sales of note for 1/16:
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Nordstrom – Cashmere on sale; AllSaints, Free People, Nike, Tory Burch, and Vince up to 60%; beauty deals up to 25% off
- AllSaints – now up to 60% off (some of the best leather jackets!)
- Ann Taylor – Up to 40% off your full-price purchase; extra 50% off sale
- Banana Republic Factory – 50% off everything + extra 20% off
- Boden – 15% off new styles with code — readers love this blazer, these dresses, and their double-layer line of tees
- DeMellier – Sale now on, free shipping and returns — includes select options like Montreal, Vancouver, and Venice
- Eloquii – $29 and up select styles; extra 50% off all clearance, plus ELOQUII X kate spade new york collab just dropped
- Everlane – Sale of the year, up to 70% off — reader favorites include their scoop tee, Dream Pant, ReNew Transit backpack, silk blouses and oversized blazers! New markdowns just added
- Hannah Andersson – Up to 30% off all pajamas;
- J.Crew – Up to 40% off select styles; up to 50% off cashmere
- J.Crew Factory – 40-70% off everything
- L.K. Bennett – Archive sale, almost everything 70% off
- M.M.LaFleur – Tag sale for a limited time — jardigans and dresses $200, pants $150, tops $95, T-shirts $50
- Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
- Talbots – Semi-Annual Red Door Sale – 50% off + extra 20% off, sale on sale, plus free shipping on $150+
And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- The concept of “backup care” is so stupid…
- I need tips on managing employees in BigLaw who have to leave for daycare pickup…
- I’m thinking of leaning out to spend more time with my family – how can I find the perfect job for that?
- I’m now a SAHM and my husband needs to step up…
- How can I change my thinking to better recognize some of my husband’s contributions as important, like organizing the shed?
- What are your tips to having a good weekend with kids, especially with little kids? Do you have a set routine or plan?
I’m in the market for a learning tower. Priorities are: (1) safe; (2) compact; and (3) looks nice.
My 8 year old daughter wants to be a vegetarian. I don’t actually care, but my husband is the stay at home dad and meal preparer. He has no interest in prepping different meals for her and is adamant that she’s not allowed. I am sympathetic that it would be more work for him (and I work a ton, so it’s really all on him). He’s a heavy slow cooker user, which lends itself to roasts or meats. I have a 6 year old also, who is not adventurous, and a slow cooker pot of veggies and rice would be looked in with disdain. We also avoid soy. Any advice? Do I let her skip meat, and/or provide alternate protein? Husband is angry about the thought of messing with his meal routine, 8 year old want to keep all animals alive… pandemic makes everything more stressful. Sigh.
I know some people are going to flame me here, either for asking the question or for the childcare arrangement itself, but whatever…
Pre-COVID, our childcare arrangement for our 3 yo was a nanny share hosted at our home. When COVID hit, the other family left town to stay closer to relatives in a more rural area, while the nanny continued to care for just our son. They had been paying our nanny their share, but now they’ve decided not to come back for the foreseeable future. Because it would be a huge strain for us financially to pay our nanny both families’ share, and because we didn’t want to cut her pay, we found another family (who we were distant acquaintances with before this, and who have been isolating and all that) to fill in.
Since now we and the other family are exposing ourselves to one another via our kids every day anyway, my husband floated the idea that maybe we could socialize with the other family in our respective homes outside of the nanny share hours. I’m unsure of 1) whether this would cause either family to be exposed to any more risk, and 2) even if the answer to 1) is no, whether it’s inappropriate in a time like this anyway to be socializing when most others can’t/aren’t. For what it’s worth, we are in a somewhat hard-hit area (not NYC) that is getting better but is still under a stay at home order. Anyone have thoughts?
Has anyone with a reopening daycare gotten info on how they’re handling room transitions? My kiddo was in a 0-2 room and turned 2 in January. She was supposed to move into the 2 year old room as soon as a spot opened up, likely in April/May. We haven’t gotten a reopening date, so this is all hypothetical for now, but I’m wondering if she will start in the 2 year old classroom whenever they go back or return to her current class and, if the latter, when/how they will transition her to the older room. Normally they do a gradual transition where the teacher and the kid go to the older classroom for increasingly long visits, but that kind of room mixing is prohibited according to the safety plans they circulated for a potential reopening. I’m in favor of her returning to school either way (she will be fine with younger kids and I’m sure she will also adjust fine to a new room even with a more abrupt transition) but just curious if anyone had info about how other schools are doing this.
Well, it’s happened. My boss has scheduled a big in-office meeting (including lunch) with someone who is supposed to fly in from out of state, the day after our state’s stay-home order expires. The guidance for the next phase of reopening has not yet been released, but if the state follows its draft plan the recommendation will be that professional services firms continue WFH to the extent possible after the stay-home order is lifted. According to the stay-home order now in effect, my employer should currently be directing everyone to WFH, but the office remains open and people must request to WFH on an individual basis. There has been no announcement regarding plans for social distancing, masks, cleaning, ventilation, etc. HR was involved in scheduling this meeting because the out-of-state participant is a new hire, so they are not just aware but complicit.
I had been waiting for the state’s updated guidance to be released and was planning to request an extension of my WFH status, but this is forcing my hand. What’s especially concerning is that the junior staff will feel pressured to come in as well. I am not sure how to approach this. I would like to quit, but my husband points out that we need my income especially now.
Help. I’m seriously considering quitting my job. I’m not sure what else to do, as they’ve called everyone back into the office (in an area with lots of cases where we have not reached peak transmission). There was little notice, no mask requirement, and no acknowledgment that schools and daycares remain closed.
I know a lot of places are laying people off, and they certainly aren’t required to allow people to work from home. So I get it, I do. I’m not angry; but I’m just completely demoralized. I want to do the right thing but I have no idea what that is right now.
Those of you who have hired a daycare teacher during the pandemic – how is that working out w/r/t the unemployment they are collecting? Do you pay them under the table and they’re just not going to report it? Are you paying them little enough that they can continue to collect?
Am considering doing this but don’t want to screw up anyone’s unemployment or break any laws ideally….Other option is to just hire a college kid who wasn’t previously employed, but it seems so silly when this woman that my kid knows and loves is just sitting around doing nothing bc daycare is closed.
I know it’s impossible to predict the future, but our schools are starting to kind of sort of talk about plans for this coming school year. My daughter will be entering kindergarten. The school is still deciding whether kids will be required to wear masks.
I personally don’t think masks are appropriate for such a young age, especially where I live: it will be HOT in August, and the AC at school isn’t totally reliable.
Am genuinely curious: what are yours thoughts on masks at school? Masks for all? Masks for none? Is there an age you believe it would be appropriate?
Does anyone have a recipe recommendation for an easy birthday dessert/cake I can make my 2 year old? We’re having a small celebration next weekend with the grandparents,for which I’ll order a store cake. But I’m looking to make something simple for his actual birthday on Monday. Not sure I’ll have time to order groceries by Monday so need something that uses pantry ingredients (my pantry is pretty well stocked). Thanks.
Maybe her other needs were so high because you refused to play with her? I don’t mean to be snarky… but it just seems harsh to flat out refuse to play with your kid.
We live in a fourplex where we pay $200/month in HOA dues that covers insurance and landscaping and exterior common repairs. The HOA manager owns 2 of the 4 units and never provides financials or bank statements or invoices. She came back a few days ago asking for $3000 for the last three years because she personally paid all this money and just now started to account for it. She had an excel document showing the costs but no invoices or bank statements for that time or before. The other owner is very wealthy and immediately responded that he would pay it. I said we would pay too but we need quarterly reporting going forward and that I’d be happy to do the books. I just feel so weird asking for this given that the second owner doesn’t care.
If any of you have been in a similar position, can you tell me if I’m crazy to request quarterly report on income and expenses, bank statements, and invoices over $250?
We’re putting down a beloved pet today. 6 YO son was always close with pet but even more so since lock-down since he can’t see any of his friends. Any words of wisdom on this? We explained last night that fido was in the hospital, and was very sick. Today we want to try and go say goodbye (assuming they let us in because of Covid).
1. Is taking son to say goodbye the right thing to do?
2. Do you explain “putting down” to a 6 year old, or just leave it as, ‘fido got really sick and died?’
Has pandemic made anyone want to have MORE kids? We have three and have always been open to four (would be happy with family as is but hadn’t declared it complete). Home and working we’ve gotten to see them in action and they get along great but the older two especially are such a unit. I’m sure relationships will ebb and flow but I like the idea of a fourth so there’s not one being left out from whatever combinations emerge. Also we’ve gotten so tight as a family unit, it’s made me realize having a big family could be great? We are pretty happy staying in and hanging out with our kids most nights and more limited travel has been okay? DH it turns out has always been down for four. I’m nervous we are making crazy decisions during SIP. And about messing up a great dynamic. But yeah, might go for it anyways!
The comments about going back to daycare the other day were very helpful. For those of you who are choosing not to send your kids back right away, will you pay tuition or unenroll?
We are trying to decide what to do for our 5 month old when our planned-on daycare reopens June 1. This would be her first time going, which adds to the weirdness of things like masked teachers and potential limits on cuddles. I have been able to handle WFH with her so far, especially since I don’t have to bill hours. I also dread the idea of pumping. So, overall, leaning towards not sending her quite yet. But then the question becomes, do we pay tuition to hold her spot until we feel more comfortable sending her, or just sacrifice the spot and figure it out down the line?
What age were your kids when they could reliably put their clothes on themselves? My 4 year old (just turned 4 last month) knows how to dress and undress, and we do strongly encourage him to put on his PJs at night now, which he does although with a lotttt of dawdling before. In the morning, we just dress him ourselves while he watches TV because it’s faster and during daycare times, we need to get out the door. Should we be expecting him to dress himself all the time though?