Make My Life Easier Thursday: Kids’ Bento Box

What dishes do you use for your toddlers?
Someone here recommended getting plates all in the same color to avoid tantrums (genius!) but all sets I find online are mixed colors. Same at Ikea and the like. Any recommendations?
Alternativ: What is your experience with Corelle plates? Maybe getting a full set of those we could avoid special kid dishes alltogether?

How do you balance the general relief/excitement over the vaccine, and the reality that there’s no timeline for kids getting it? That we are reliant on herd immunity and the fact that most kids get asymptomatic or mild cases. I am relieved, I am pre-registered to get my shot as soon as they’ll give me one, but I am having a hard time actually seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

https://www.pinkblushmaternity.com/products/ivory-floral-button-front-maternity-maxi-dress

This is kind of ridiculous but I honestly bought a dollhouse (one the Hape ones) and it is just too big and heavy for our two-bedroom apartment. My daughter doesn’t really play with it a lot (maybe because it is on a shelf and we need to move it down every time she wants to play with the whole thing). We just don’t have room and we have a baby on the way and I want to get a much smaller dollhouse for her intead. I’m stressed about making the swap though! Has anyone successfully gotten rid of a too-large toy with minimal pushback from kid? Any strategies?

I am currently on mat leave at my new job, which I started very shortly before giving birth. My supervisor made it clear that I am welcome to return on a reduced schedule (80% or part time) if I’d like (I go back in June).

I am seriously thinking about going back part time, mostly because my commute is long (but not out of the ordinary for NYC suburbs) and I’d like to spend time with my child. How many of you went on a reduced workload and were able to go back to full time work later on? What are some things I should consider? Or should I stay full time and negotiate working from home half the week? Should I start off full time and scale back if it is unmanageable?

I realize some may advise quitting and finding a job closer to home but my concerns are: 1) I had a career change and this is my first job out of law school so I don’t think it will be very easy for me to find another job without having any post law school work product/track record and 2) this is truly a unicorn job and I selfishly don’t want to give it up.

I appreciate everyone’s honest/candid advice and thoughts!

I need tips on cutting ties with our nanny of two months. Husband and I are both essential employees without the ability to work from home, and we’ve found that we simply need the consistency and reliability of a daycare setting. We got a spot at a daycare starting next month (which is sooner than anticipated!) and need to give notice to our nanny ASAP. Thinking about the conversation makes me so nervous!

We host a nanny share in our home – nanny watches our kid and two other children. We will be out of town for two weeks in May, so we asked the nanny to relocate to another home during that time. She seemed surprised and told us that her host families have always allowed access to their homes even while they’re gone. What does the crowd think?

How do you know if a kid’s behavior is problematic/ needs intervention? I have 3 kids and my middle (turning 5, going to K next year) is just so different in a way that is really, really hard for me to parent. Part of it is our personalities clash, for sure, so DH has better luck than I do but he still struggles sometimes. Part of it is that she’s the middle child and has a lot of attention seeking behavior. Part of it is that she’s young for her class, so she’s sort of finding her way socially as well in a class of kids that are older/bigger. Part of it is COVID- these are weird times and she’s been in a bubble for the past 7 months.

I’ve talked to her teachers (I’ve asked for the meetings, not them) and they are sort of wishy-washy. They bring up some examples of where she needs to work on things, and they’ve let me know once when there was an issue, but when I ask if it’s age appropriate / something to be concerned about/ how do I help, I don’t get a whole lot either way. (Eg. I would think they would say “no, this is really normal for a kid young for her class.” or “we would advise you to get her tested” or “here are some behavior management techniques we think would be successful”). All they’ve really said is that she is looking for ways to be in control and she could use more playdates to learn to interact better with peers (which we know, and we can’t really do because of COVID). The school she is at does NOT shy away from flagging kids for intervention–we have known lots of kids that went to the PK including my oldest– but I don’t know these particular teachers and their style very well especially since COVID keeps parents out of the classroom.

At home, she acts out very impulsively, particularly when she is super tired or really needing attention. She’s basically impossible to discipline and when I try and pull her aside to have a serious conversation she will just do everything in her power not to pay attention (pull on my shirt, pick at lint on the floor, run away, etc). She usually does better in school/activities where there is a lot more structure and very clear expectations, but she also has had issues with certain instructors/teachers. My husband says she senses the “weak ones” and takes advantage. As an example, she is one of two kids in her gymnastics class and they don’t really have a structured session because of the low numbers. Last week she just ran around and did what she wanted vs listening to the coach. The coach didn’t kick her out or make her sit out, so she kept doing it. In her other activities she pays attention and follows along and does what the instructors ask without problem. We have the same issue with babysitters. She 100% walks all over some sitters (we don’t have them back) and others she has the utmost respect for and will do exactly what they say. We call our 13 year old neighbor the “[name] whisperer” because she is an *angel* when our neighbor is here!

I suspected some kind of ADHD-ish thing, but when I asked her PK teachers they said she has no issues with attention/focus in class. They shared that she takes too long to make decisions about what she wants to do, she will often take way too long to get ready/unpack (I’m not inside because of covid so I don’t see this), and when asked to do something she really just doesn’t want to do, she won’t do it, full stop. my oldest had behavior that was not too different at that age, but I was allowed in the classroom and worked on it with her. And the defiance (?) was really only toward me, never her teachers/other adults. And it mercifully was a 6 month phase at worst.

Anyway, I have two other kids that have their own personalities, but who never have this…defiance? type behavior. It’s totally possible I’m inventing trouble and what I have is a spirited PITA kid who did not fall from the tree. I do worry though because my sister is an alcoholic and was diagnosed with bipolar and several other major issues as an adult, so the impulsivity and control issues are always on my mind. Kiddo has also had Very Strong Opinions on food (eg refusing to eat because food isn’t her favorite) but I think with time and various strategies we’ve outgrown that.