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For a person who hates wearing heels and has legs on the shorter side, I am anxiously waiting for the midi-length skirt to go out of style. Even though I’m sitting out this particular trend cycle, I actually love seeing it on other people. This particular skirt has great elements to it: pleats, plaid, elastic waistband. I love how the embroidery softens the plaid + pleats combo. I also love how it is styled here, with a black, ribbed, turtleneck, long-sleeved shirt. My only change would be closed-toed shoes (practicality!) — and I’d throw a belt on there. This skirt is $69.90 at Zara, but (at least online) it looks like it should be more expensive than that! It’s available in sizes XS–XL. Pleated Plaid Skirt This plus-size skirt at Nordstrom also has a floral against a plaid. 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
(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
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- 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
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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?
Anonymous says
This is probably been discussed before, but….
We are moving into our newly built house tomorrow after living with my in laws for a year while it was under construction. I have a 3.5 year old and a 6 month old. Throw all of your moving tips at me! Older child will be in daycare all day but I will have the baby with me. I’m trying to pick up things today that we will need immediately (ie cleaning supplies etc)
Annie says
Get your toddler’s room set up first so he/she can sleep in a familiar set-up. Create an “open first” box with everything you’d need for a couple of days so you don’t have to deal with a ton of other boxes. Label each box with what room it should go to and make sure the movers bring it to that room so you’re not lugging boxes around your house after the move. Good luck!
anon. says
Make all the beds within the first hour. Don’t get distracted, you’ll thank yourself later. (This includes gathering whatever animals, dolls, blankets the kids need to sleep and putting them in the beds too.)
EB0220 says
Moving day, exciting! Not sure exactly what the situation is (movers, stuff from storage, etc.) but I totally agree on setting up the beds first. Make sure you have towels and toiletries. Everything else can wait (including kitchen stuff). If you drink caffeine make sure you have a way to get it in the morning if your coffee maker is packed. :) Otherwise I go with paper plates/takeout/other easy food for the first few days. Baby carrier if you can so you can be doing stuff even if your baby is fussing. If your SO won’t be there, discuss room layouts beforehand so you can show the movers where to put furniture and don’t end up moving it again. Arrange the internet service setup ASAP. Bring some camp chairs to sit on.
lawsuited says
Today:
1. Pack overnight bags for everyone – you, your partner, toddler and baby – with everything each person will need for 3 full days and nights. For baby and toddler that includes everything they need for feeding, bathtime and bedtime, etc.
2. Decide where furniture will go.
Tomorrow:
3. Make the beds first.
4. Unpack boxes going into built-in storage first, like kitchen cupboards and linen closets. This will get boxes out from underfoot and make maneuvering furniture and other boxes easier.
5. Don’t worry about cleaning until the movers are done.
Anonymous says
Thanks everyone, this is all very helpful. On the advice of “make beds first” I’ve just dug out the new sheets for the new beds for both myself and my 3.5 year old (who will finally be out of a crib!) to wash so we can put them right on the beds.
Almost everything is in storage and we are hiring movers so I’m hoping the actual moving part isn’t hard. It’s more the part of moving with two tiny humans that I am stressing about :)
HSAL says
I moved this summer with two month old twins and a 3 year old, so I know your stress. My tips are:
1 – Have help! My mom basically packed and unpacked us.
2 – Have multiple baby containment devices at both houses.
3 – Your situation might be a little different since you have so much in storage, but moving slowly made my life much easier. Our new house is less than a mile from our old house so we had plenty of time. We closed on a Friday, moved boxes and small stuff over the weekend, and then had movers for the big stuff the following week. We were pretty much out by the second weekend. If you’re having to do it all in one day/weekend, godspeed!
Anonanonanon says
Work bag recs in the $500 or less range? I have the lo and sons seville tote and I have really enjoyed the size, look, and functionality. However, this is the second one I’ve had where the strap became very very frayed. They replaced the first one but this time it waited slightly over a year to unravel so I don’t think they will. Plus, I’m done with it. It’s a shame because I loved the pockets and the sleek look. I especially appreciated the ability to carry file folders and a laptop
Any recs for a similar bag?
Anonanonanon says
Any input on LODIS? They seem to have what I’m looking for, but I don’t want to just get something else where the straps will get torn up quickly
IHeartBacon says
I had a Lodis for about 3 years and really loved it. I used it for work every day. If I recall correctly, the straps held up well, but I may have snipped a thread or two on the straps over the course of those 3 years. The handles never looked frayed though. I only got a new bag because I needed something that held more court files inside. I ended up with a Kate Spade bag, which I’ve now had for about 6 years. It still looks flawless. I want a new bag just to get something new, but my Kate spade bag is in such great shape that I don’t want to get rid of it.
Anonanonanon says
Which Kate Spade bag do you have?
IHeartBacon says
I don’t see my exact bag on the Kate spade website anymore, but it looks like the Kingston Drive Bartlett is the replacement. A couple of noticeable differences are that the straps on Kingston Drive Bartlett look like they are a little softer whereas my bag’s handles are more stiff. I also notice the Bartlett has a top flap to close the bag. Mine doesn’t, which is the only complaint I have.
Anon in NYC says
Cuyana structured leather tote. I bought the insert, which I have found very functional.
Anonanonanon says
Oh that’s really pretty! I wish it zipped (I do not have my life together and I just know it will be in my passenger seat and I’ll stop my car and everything will fly out) but the insert looks great. I like the black and camel look too! Definitely going on the short list, thanks so much!
EB0220 says
They have a zipper tote too! (I am also on team zipper.)
Anon in NYC says
Yes! I have the zippered one!
Anonanonanon says
OH! I clearly should have looked around the website more, this is great news!
Anon says
Just FYI – I bought a little purse hanger off of A mazon that goes onto the headrest of the passenger seat. I hang my purse on there – life changer! And it’s small enough that I don’t have to take it off when someone rides with me.
AwayEmily says
Thanks for the rec! Just got one for my MIL’s christmas stocking.
ElisaR says
what a great recommendation – just ordered for myself
EB0220 says
I haven’t tried their bags, but I have a wristlet from Leatherology and really like it. The leather is thick and high quality and the wristlet strap is in good shape so far despite daily abuse. I think it’s been about 6 months.
Anonanonanon says
Also, do I just have unrealistic expectations? I carried this bag daily for a year and while I don’t think I was particularly rough I also wasn’t particularly careful. The rubbery stuff on the inside edge of the leather straps completely peeled off of both Lo & Son bags I had (though the second lasted about a year before this happened). Should I be expected better, or is that the life span of a bag that gets hauled around every day?
Anonanonanon says
And here’s the LODIS I’m looking at (seems very similar to everything I loved about the Lo & Sons bag). I wish I could justify the Plum, but should probably get Black
https://www.lodis.com/collections/business-bags/products/bel-air-rfid-beth-work-brief
IHeartBacon says
Wow, that is gorgeous. Get it! The straps look sturdy and should stand up to daily use. And in response to your question about using a bag daily, yes, a good quality bag should stand up to daily use for years. Like I said in my post above, I was pleased with my Lodis and the only reason I didn’t get another one is that I need something with a larger capacity.
EB0220 says
Ooo I love that! The green color is gorgeous.
Chi Squared says
Before I bought my MZ Wallace Kate, I tried out the Lo & Sons OMG. I thought it felt cheaply made for the price and sent it back. I carried my Kate every day for multiple years and it still looks new – leather handles and all.
June says
I second MZ Wallace. I have a Kate for a diaper bag (in a fun color) and just bought a black one for work. I also have a Large Abbey tote for when I have lots of work to carry. I love that the Kate and Large Abbey have pockets on the side for water bottles/coffee cups, the organizational pockets are great, the fabric is durable and water/stain resistant, and the bags are so lightweight.
Anon says
Not sure if it’s similar, but I love my Tumi Voyageur and it has held up well to 3 years of semi-abuse.
Small Firm IP Litigator says
Yup, this.
Anonanonanon says
“Semi-abuse” summarized my treatment of bags perfectly
ANP says
Re: Lo and Sons, they will DEFINITELY replace even if it’s been over a year. I called them to get a referral on where to get a bag fixed after 18+ months and they offered to replace it without my even asking.
Anonanonanon says
I definitely had a positive customer service experience with them the first time, but I don’t think I want to keep going through that. It’s been a year since the replacement, but not since the initial purchase. I’m sure they’d replace it but it’s kind of a “fool me once….” situation at this point. I’ll still use it for flying and stuff, it’s great for that, but I need something I can rely on day-to-day
I have the catalina deluxe and whatever they call their solid black backpack and really really like/recommend those for sure, but they need to figure out the straps on the seville.
Anonymous says
The stitching came out in the bottom corners of my MZ Wallace after about a year of daily use, including taking my laptop to and from work. I wanted something similarly lightweight and got a Knomo tote, which I love. Looks brand new after 2 years of daily use. (FWIW I am on my second Lo & Sons OG for travel and experienced a similar issue with the straps. The newer one, bought in last 18 mos. seems more cheaply made.)
anon. says
Hey all – I posted this on the main page too. As my parents get a little older and don’t want STUFF for the holidays, thinking about gifts that keep on giving. Have any of you bought a subscription to Story Worth or similar apps/services? I think my dad would like filling out the prompts/ writing memories and I’d love to have them for my kids. Thoughts on this or other (perhaps less expensive) options? Thanks.
Anon in NYC says
I haven’t, principally because I know that my parents would never do it. But I love the idea!
Anonymous says
Does anyone know of any brands of prenatal vitamins that do NOT have iron? Am I limited to gummies? I’m willing to take a separate, higher quality iron vitamin if it means I’ll be regular again.
Anonanonanon says
I did the gummies without Iron (I have GI issues and just couldn’t add another thing on top of it). Of course then I became severely anemic (see: GI bleeding) and they prescribed me iron supplement that also had Vitamin C with it and was supposed to be somewhat gentle on your system. I’ve heard good things about “Slow Fe” for helping with the regularity issue. I ended up on Iron infusions which was much easier on my stomach
Anonymous says
I took Slow Fe, which did not make me nauseous or constipated the way other iron supplements did.
Anonymous says
I’ve taken both Megafood brand iron and liquid iron (Floradix) before, though not while pregnant, and have had no issues with those, so I’d try supplementing with one of those choices.
Anonymous says
Are you also pregnant? With my doctor’s blessing, I took Colace my entire pregnancy because I never could get the prenatals iron balance to work with and not against my system.
Anonymous says
I took miralax after about 24w when they put me on supplemental iron. Continued until about 2mo PP.
Anonymous says
I am. Thanks, I’ll look into it.
Anon says
Not sure if they have iron, but Rainbow Prenatal One is the only one that I could tolerate for that reason.
Anonymous says
They do have iron, but it’s good to know that you tolerated it well.
Anonymous says
Although on further investigation, they do mention that the iron is a non-constipating form. Hallelujah.
NYCer says
Same here.
New Here says
I’m currently pregnant with my first. I did a lot of searching and couldn’t find any prenatals without iron except gummies. After getting really sick of the taste of the gummies I did more searching and finally found a brand with a form of iron I could tolerate. (My issue is more crushing heartburn from the cheaper forms of iron, not so much the regularity issue.) One other option is to take a regular (non-prenatal) multivitamin plus extra folic acid, but I also had trouble finding a regular multi without iron.
anon says
I have been sleep training LO and while I see some improvements things are… not great. Please tell me what I am doing wrong. LO is 5.5 months old. Started three weeks ago.
LO naps 45 minutes generally, maybe once in a while an hour or so. Goes down awake with nap routine and noise machine. Sometimes he will fuss/cry for 5-10 mins still. Wakes up crying and still tired.
LO typically goes down for night without much fuss, maybe 5 mins of fussing. He generally wakes up a little after midnight to eat, and then again sometimes between 3-6 (so eating two times). He generally eats for 10 minutes, and seems hungry, so my guess is this is not for soothing? And then up for the day at 7:30. Sometimes he wakes up in the middle of the night, fusses a couple minutes, and goes back to bed. I have been trying to wake him up and have him put himself back to bed after eating recently, hoping that will help.
Also I have work trips coming up, so will have someone else watching LO. What instructions should I give?? I don’t want them to ruin all sleep training done thus far and be inconsitent but also don’t want LO to be a miserable mess.
Here is a log of my last three nights. I have experimented with adding formula to test whether wake ups are due to hunger or habit or soothing. Naps are generally 2-5 mins of crying or so, and then naps for 45 minutes to an hour.
12/1
7:00 PM fed breast, topped of with 4 oz of formula (finished 7:30)
7:45 PM – asleep immediately
10:00 PM – fuss for 5 mins, ignored
11:35 PM – cry 4-5 mins, went in
11:40-11:50 PM – feed; cry 1 minute to sleep
5:35 – peeps
7:30 – woke up
12/2
7:55 – finished eating, breast and formula (3 oz)
8:15 – put to bed fussed/cry 2 mins , ignored
10:57-fussed/cry for 2 mins, ignored
12:00 PM – cried for 5 mins, not calming down, so fed 10 mins, put down, cried for a min, fell asleep
5:50 AM – up, fed 10ish mins but didn’t eat much, only ate from one side
6:30 AM – up again, fed again (bc he didn’t eat much last time and sounded super hungry, decided to go in.
7:45 – woke him up
12/3
7:30 – finished eating, breast only (did not want formula)
8:05 – bed, fussed/cried for a couple of minutes, fell asleep
9:52 – alternating crying and fussing for 4 mins, ignored
12:15 – up, crying, ate for 10-15 minutes
3:30- up, playing /whining, not really crying
3:45 – started crying, so went in to feed. Ate well for 15 minutes. Put down awake
7:00 – up crying, fed, fell asleep while eating
7:45 – woke him up
12/4
7:30- finished eating, breast + 3 oz of formula
8:00 – stirred 10 mins and fell asleep on his own, no crying
12:15 – up, stirred/fussed 10 mins, started crying, so went in and fed. Woke him up after and put self back to bed
4:45 – peeps, maybe fuss for 1 minute.
6- woke up to eat, stirred/fussed for 10 minutes, but not going back to bed, so fed.
Anonymous says
my 5 month old has nearly identical wake-up, nap, nighttime feeding behaviors as the ones you’ve just listed (including at similar time). the difference is his last meal is 6:30, breastfeeding only, and asleep by 7:15. so your LO’s habits sound normal to me, for whatever that’s worth!
OP says
Thank you! I just feel bad I slept trained him and let him cry and there’s no benefit? But I guess he can go down by himself and also I am not replacing the paci a ton at night.
And i also don’t know if I should be letting him fuss for 5-10 minutes before feeding, but often he will put himself back to sleep so I try.
Pogo says
Even after sleep training my 5.5 mo ate 2x a night (fwiw, Weissbluth says this is totally normally and doesn’t advocate CIO for the two feedings at this age). He went down to 1x a night by himself at 6mo.
A piece of good news – I had a work trip at 7mo (so he’d been doing about 3-4w of 1x night feeding) and he dropped the last feed! So honestly, just leave the instructions of “feed him when he wakes up crying, but otherwise don’t worry”. I think the first night my son woke up at 3am and husband came in with a bottle and the next night he was like, eff that! and slept right through.
Good luck! My 16mo still cries and fusses before falling asleep sometimes. Sleep training is not a panacea for all kids – some are tension decreasers and they just need to fuss it out. It sounds like you have a tension decreaser too (or CIO wouldn’t have worked at all), so trust your LO that he knows what to do to fall asleep!
Anonymous says
This sounds normal and fine.
HSAL says
Honestly, I don’t think you’re doing anything wrong. You just have a 5 1/2 month old. My twins are 5 1/2 months and this looks pretty normal for the evenings. Up to eat twice doesn’t seem that crazy. Mine have started sleeping through the night a few times, but also have nights with one or two wake-ups. Perhaps try a dream feed before you go to bed if you want to avoid the pre-midnight wake-up?
Are you the same poster who asked about transitioning from the Snoo? I really do mean this so nicely, but you should maybe chill a little. You come across as a little hyperfocused on sleep when babies can just be unpredictable. Some babies work with extinction CIO, some need other methods. Is your goal 7-7 with no wake-ups? Sleep training means different things to different people, so knowing your goal will be helpful.
AwayEmily says
Agreed with all of this. What are you actually trying to achieve? If you want an 11-hour stretch with no wakeups, then check with your doctor to make sure she’s ok with it, then shut the door at bedtime and don’t come back until morning. That’s what I did with both my kids at around 3 months (with their pediatricians’ full blessing) and a few days later they were sleeping for ~11 hours at a time and have done so ever since.
But if you DON’T want to do that, then that is fine too! Your baby’s schedule looks super normal and they will almost certainly sleep through the whole night at some point (though maybe not as early as you’d like). And it’s awesome that your baby is already putting herself down.
Re: nap length — I think this varies by baby. My first didn’t take naps of longer than 45 minutes until she was 10 months. My second took lovely long naps pretty much from birth.
You are doing great and your baby is lucky to have a parent who cares so much about their sleep.
OP says
Yes it’s me. I just want a rested baby who can soothe herself /fall asleep independently without mommy, because mommy will be interviewing for residency soon and will be gone a lot of the time for the next month – and in the past only mommy could soothe baby to sleep, baby would cry unconsolably for anyone else. I don’t mind waking up in the middle of the night if baby is actually hungry, but don’t want to be baby’s sleep prop because I am afraid of what will happen when mommy is gone.
I also hate that baby is still crying herself to sleep some night, even if it’s 5-10 minutes, after sleep training. But maybe that’s just how some babies are.
HSAL says
Totally fair. I do think some babies need to cry it out a little before bed – I think there was a discussion on here about that recently. If it helps, they’re not going to remember it? We never really did sleep training with my first, who’s a great sleeper, but my distinction with her and with the new babies is that I’ll let them fuss for a few minutes, but I don’t let them cry for more than a minute or so – but that’s mainly because I don’t want the first baby waking up the second.
Mine are still actually eating when they wake up, so I’m cutting them some slack until it seems like they’re just waking to wake, then I might take a stricter line on getting them to sleep longer. What about having your partner try and go in with a bottle during one of the night wake-ups? That’ll help determine if it’s hunger or just wanting you. If it’s hunger, the caregiver can just take that over while you’re gone, if it’s you, maybe the baby will just have to get used to someone else.
But it’s really great that the baby puts herself to sleep – I think a big part of sleep training is teaching babies how to do that. If she already can sometimes, the rest will follow in time. Good luck!
mascot says
Regarding the fussing/crying- some kids are like that. Mine was. They need to work it out before they go to sleep and your trying to intercede just draws it out. Little babies can’t do all the things that bigger kids do to go to sleep (flop around, play with stuffed animals, ask for water, sing to themselves, whatever) so they cry. The fact that baby stops on her own and goes to sleep is great. That’s what the sleep training is meant to accomplish. Self-soothing isn’t always silent. I think you are doing fine here.
Pogo says
Yes!! I posted above, but this is 100% my experience.
Anonymous says
You don’t have to CIO if you don’t want to. DH and I took turns putting the babies to bed right from the beginning so they are used to us switching off nights even at elementary school age.
I liked No Cry Sleep Solution by Pantley. I didn’t feel comfortable with CIO when baby was alone but felt differently about baby fussing/crying with a person comforting them (even if it wasn’t baby’s preferred person).
Hope you find what works for your family.
Anonymous says
Our twins have been sleeping through the night since ~4 months and go through phases of falling instantly asleep, babbling for ages and then falling right asleep, babbling for a bit and then fusssing for a few minutes before falling asleep, and screaming the instant we leave the room, but falling sound asleep within 5 minutes.
My general point is that yes, sometimes babies need to fuss/cry for a bit before they can settle themselves down to sleep, but also that just because she’s doing it right now that doesn’t mean she’ll do that forever (or even next week).
Sleep is hard and everyone has opinions about the One True Way to do it, but it sounds like you’re doing a great job!
AwayEmily says
also, a caveat to my comment: just because extinction worked for my kids doesn’t mean it will work for yours! some kids need different approaches. Good luck!
Anonymous says
Re nap length- have you considered doing anything to extend naps? Both my kids struggled with the “45 minutes intruder” from 1 month onwards (until 5 or 6 months with the first, second is 16 weeks and still has it). I would let them cry 10-15 min to give time to figure out how to settle, then rock or put in carrier (depending on which baby) for remainder of nap. Getting enough daytime sleep can definitely help with nighttime sleep! Although babies are all different… Older child stopped eating at night independently at 16 weeks and this one definitely still wants a feeding. Also, consider whether you’re ok with slightly more crying. We found current baby will cry 10-12 min but then self settle if it’s earlier than 1. After that, he won’t settle so we feed.
Anon says
At 5.5 months I would have loved to have had your schedule which sounds great to me. I personally feel that so many myths are peddled about infant sleep. My child is an odd duck in so many way (super bright, super early teether, and don’t get me started on the 4.5 month of colic), but there was a recent study that came out about how something like 60% of babies are not sleeping through the night (8 hours) at 6 months and 40% weren’t sleeping 8 hours straight at 12 months. Some babies are just not good sleepers, despite every sleep training solution known to man. Mine only started sleeping through the night consistently at 15 freaking months and she’s definitely teething again at 16 months despite having all her canines and all her first molars, so I suspect the 2 year molars are coming soon too and our brief miracle period of sleep is going to go downhill again.
GCA says
Amen to this! My first is a fabulous child in many ways, but sleep has never been one of them. At 6, 12, and 18 months, he was most definitely not sleeping 8 hours straight or even 4 hours straight, and that first year he was pretty dependent on me… but now even he sleeps mostly through the night, most nights, at 3.5. I’ve seen him wake up, go to the potty by himself, put himself back to bed. (There is hope, y’all.) My second? Sleeps 7pm to 2.30 (something kid 1 never did), wakes up to nurse ravenously, sleeps in till 7am. Total luck of the draw. I’m holding my breath waiting for the 4m sleep regression to start, but I’m grateful for every good night we’ve got so far.
I think that if it’s not interfering with your sleep or your life, there’s no harm letting them fuss for a few minutes to see if they’ll put themselves back to sleep. Already, the fact that he puts himself down at bedtime and naptime is great – that’s half the battle really.
Anon says
Not even 4 hours straight by 18 months?! I can’t even imagine. Props to you.
Anonymous says
Definitely totally kid dependent. My twins were like your two – one awful sleeper and one great sleeper. At 4 they are the same way.
Anon says
I had one of those unicorn babies that slept 12 hours straight at 2 months old, but I chalk it up entirely to luck and genetics (DH and I were apparently both really good sleepers too). My understanding from my ped and friends is that 2 night feeds is developmentally normal for a 5 month old and you shouldn’t sleep train to skip necessary feeds – only to reduce crying that isn’t food-related in the middle of the night or tons of fussiness when going down.
Anonymous says
This. 2 feeds a night is developmentally normal.
AAP considers sleeping through the night to be one stretch of 6 hours sleep.
Anon says
I used The Sleep Easy Solution at 6 months with great success (although kid did better without check-ins, so we did a little more extinction than the book says to do). I particularly liked their night feed reduction plan (which is feeding them preemptively, then shortening each feed 1 minute each night). We were in a bad spot where she was only falling back asleep with nursing, and this plan phased that out in less than 2 weeks (although we still do a formula dream feed before adult bedtime).
anon says
a few suggestions. does your pediatrician say your baby still needs to be eating twice during the night? they get a mix of breast milk and formula because i never made enough breast milk. i actually think you going out of town for a few nights might help figure out if baby is actually waking up for hunger or for comfort. you could consider trying to do the 7:30pm feed with just formula or just with a bottle. you could also consider a dream feed around 10:30ish. This worked well for one of our twins, but not the other. in terms of the crying before bed. one twin did that and is finally starting to grow out of it around 7.5 months, though sometimes if he is super tired he will still fuss a bit. but it did make me feel bad always putting down a fussing child. as a med student you are probably much more accustomed to not sleeping through the night than i am, so kudos to you for surviving on that schedule!
Redux says
Does anyone have tips for what to wear for a brief television interview? I will be sitting in a chair facing the interviewer and much of the shots are full-body. My inclination is to wear a full suit (I am a lawyer and speaking on a legal issue) but I don’t have a great fitting one. Should I go buy a new one today? Other tips for tv interviews? I am a first-timer!
Anonymous says
Do not buy a suit unless you will have time to get it tailored before the interview.
Anony says
My managing partner does a lot of TV, usually short (less than 5 min) news interviews on a selected legal topic. Energy, energy, energy! Be louder and more animated than you would be face to face.
Talk to the producer about how much time they want you to fill and approximately how many questions they want to cover. Occasionally the time expectations are not communicated so he goes too long or too short.
Redux says
Good tips, thanks!
Anonanonanon says
How long do you have to prep?
Guidelines I can remember from Public Information Officer Training:
-Dont wear all white, black, or red (though I see news anchors wear red all the time so I dunno)
-Minimal jewelry (and make sure it doesnt make noise)
-No small or complicated patterns, or stripes
I tend to find that, if you’re sitting for an interview, button-up shirts always end up bunching or sticking out somewhere weird. I tend to go for a solid-colored Boden fit and flare knee-length dress and heels, which a blazer over the dress.
Anon says
I haven’t heard that you should avoid red. You should avoid green in case they do a green screen because then you’d blend in with the background and be a floating head.
Anonanonanon says
It may have had something to do with the context of the training I was in (speaking on camera in preparation for, during, or following emergencies/disasters) than a general recommendation. Or a weird personal preference of the instructor?
Redux says
These are my dresses: Black knee-length fit and flare, black sheath, navy sheath, green shif,. One of those, with a blazer, nylons, and black pumps? Or, I could do grey slacks with a neutral top and navy blazer?
Anonymous says
I would wear a sheath dress with blazer, nylons, and pumps. Fit and flare or shift will look less formal. I would probably choose the longer dress because you will be sitting down.
Anonymous says
my 5 month old has nearly identical wake-up, nap, nighttime feeding behaviors as the ones you’ve just listed (including at similar time). the difference is his last meal is 6:30, breastfeeding only, and asleep by 7:15. so your LO’s habits sound normal to me, for whatever that’s worth!
HSAL says
Anyone with three-across car seat experience? I currently have a Honda Fit and we have a Cosco Scenera Next (forward-facing) and two Cybex Atons back there. The babies will probably outgrow their infant seats by February or March and I’m trying to think of options to avoid buying a second van. I’m open to the Diono Radian or the Clek seats, but what I’ve seen online isn’t promising as to what cars will actually work. My main goal is to keep the Fit, but I’m also open to buying a new car or small SUV if they can go three-across. If you’ve managed it, what was the car/seat setup?
AwayEmily says
We also have a Fit but only two carseats…I would google honda fit carseat three across (or something like that) and check Fit forums and carseat websites.
HSAL says
I’ve tried that search but no luck so far. I’m still looking. I’ve seen the list of three across from the carcrashdetective, but someone on here told me that was based simply on the width of the seats as compared to the car and doesn’t take into account seat configurations and whatnot. The Car Seat Lady seems to suggest that very few cars will work, but she’s got pretty specific requirements the cars need to have before she’ll recommend them for three-across. Hoping to find real-world experience.
Anonymous says
We have two rear-facing Scenera Nexts in our Fit and have room for an adult inbetween them, but it would be really tight to squeeze in a third seat, I think. It would have to be something super narrow (so Diono, Cosco Finale if your 3-year-old weighs enough, maybe the Chicco MyFit). I’d suggest posting on the Carseats for the Littles fb page. They have tons of people with experience working out 3-across and may have done it in a Fit.
Good luck! We’ve always assumed we’d need to replace our car if we had a third kid, but I’m encouraged that you managed to make it work thus far.
HSAL says
This fb page is excellent, thanks for the rec!
And yes, it’s tight but doable – I love that car so much I don’t want to give it up!
Anonymous says
I am a felliw Fit devotee and glad you brought this up! We have two currently — huge preschooler in forward facing Chicco next fit and infant in Chicco keyfit. It barely works — seats bumping the front seats — and it looks like gigantic infant is going to outgrow bucket seat before preschooler is 4/eligible for a booster. (Would rather keep him in a carseat longer than 4, but either sn upper height limit of 49 inches we have only a few inches to go.). I’m stymied!!
Edna Mazur says
We’ve got three across in a terrain. One rear facing in a Diono radian, one forward facing in a Diono radian (just turned him around, he was rear facing three across too) and one in a booster with a back (I don’t recall the brand, but it is slender. Three Dionos would for sure fit across but they are going to be super tight. Our other car is a big truck which also fits three across and is bigger.
I recommend putting the rear facing ones next to the doors. Then the front facing one either “goes through the tunnel” and climbs in or goes through the front and climbs over. I then turn around and buckle him in from the front seat.
Not going to lie. My next car is going to be a mini van. Its super hard to get your hand between the seats to buckle the kid in the booster and he can’t manage it himself. It’s also pretty awkward to twist around in the front seat like that (sometimes I am straddling the arm rest thing). Another draw back to having to go three across is if one is forward and one is backward and they get mad, the rear facers can kick the front facer in the face.
anon says
Posting very late, but I had three Dionos in a Prius and an Audi A4 (both 2007 models), which worked as long as one was rearfacing. In the Prius, it was very tight, and to be perfectly honest, I worried about what would happen if I ever got T-boned, even gently. The carseats were installed properly, but they looked really squashed in there. Anyway, the Dionos really are very narrow, but we ended up getting a Highlander to go with our minivan.
Anon says
I got the Cosco Scenera Next for air travel on the recommendation of people here and I kind of…hate it? Installation was a b!tch, even with LATCH (DH could get a tight fit but I can’t), it really looks so barebones with minimal padding that I’m not sure I feel comfortable using it as a vehicle carseat at our destination if there’s any highway driving involved (which there usually is) and I think my 11 month old is going to outgrow it really soon – her head has plenty of space to grow before it reaches the top of the shell, but her shoulders are within an inch of the top harness slot and the manual says you can’t use it when the child’s shoulders are above the top harness slot. Any other suggestions for car seats for air travel? We have Britax Advocates as our regular car seats and I love them, so maybe it’s worth trying to check those in and just use a harness on the plane? Baby is both tall and chunky, around 30.5″ and 21 lbs. We fly as a family a lot (8-10 trips/year).
Anonymous says
Copied from Lucie’s List–Look into these: Evenflo Tribute ($70), Evenflo SureRide DLX ($91), and the Combi Coccoro ($240). They are on her “For Flying” list of convertible car seats.
Jeffiner says
We had the Evenflo Tribute until my daughter outgrew it around 3.5. We fly 6-8 times a year, and we loved it. It was lightweight and easy to install in airplanes and rental cars. It fit through the metal detectors at most airports (only got stuck once). It worked really well with the GoGo Babyz handle. Yes, it was not as cushy or comfy as her regular carseat, but it still met all the safety requirements and she was still able to fall asleep in it.
My biggest complaint was no cup holder for her. Now that she’s taller we have the Evenflo Chase or Maestro or something like that. Still lightweight and easy to install, and has 2 cupholders, but too big for metal detectors and hard to get the handle strapped to it.
Anonymous says
I’m assuming your child is rear-facing at 11 months. The manual actually reads: Harness strap MUST be at or slightly
below shoulders. If the lowest shoulder harness slots are above the child’s shoulders, do not use this child restraint.
The instructions you are looking at refer to forward-facing.
That said, I just bring my Britax along and deal with the weight even though it’s annoying. But the instructions about shoulder harness are pretty standard for all convertible seats so make sure you’re looking at the right stuff for your home carseat too!
Anonymous says
Disclaimer: we use our Scenera Nexts as our everyday seats because we fly a ton and don’t want a separate travel seat, so I have no personal qualms about their ability to protect my kids.
That being said, it should fit most kids rear-facing until 3ish, so as long as her head is more than 1 inch below the top. My experience with installing them in a bunch of random cars is that it’s much easier to get a tight install on cloth seats, rather than leather, and easier to use the seatbelt, rather than LATCH. If possible, recline the seat slightly while you install, and then bring it back upright to help make it tightly compressed into the seats. Also, the DLX versions have slightly thicker padding than the regular prints, though it’s still the same plastic shell.
Alternatively, you can bring just about any seat on an airplane, as long as you’re willing to deal with the weight in the airport, so you could just fly with your Britax.
Anonymous says
I don’t have a Coso Scenera Next, but I want to note that a lack of padding is not a safety concern, only possibly a comfort concern. According to Consumer Reports, the Cosco Scenera Next has a better safety rating than the Brtix Advocate Clicktight.
Book Lady says
I had a second kid and I’m considering switching from daycare to nanny for both children. I’m on maternity leave now and I’ve had my daughter home with me 3 days a week. I think she likes being home more and I like the idea of the two kids being together. I’m also just sick of the pick up/drop off grind and would like that time back. My daughter will be 3 when we would need childcare again and the baby will be 6 months (in March). The baby doesn’t have a spot at daycare until June so we will need to get a nanny for her anyways. I would put my older daughter in preschool but it wouldn’t start until the fall. Any suggestions or input about things I should consider? I feel like most people do nanny when kid is younger and then daycare when older and I’m a little worried about my daughter being bored at home.
anon says
If you can financially swing it and your only concern with the nanny is your daughter will be bored at home, keep her in part-time school or daycare even with the nanny. When hiring the nanny you can make it clear that your daughter will be in school/daycare some days and that you would like for the nanny to get more household tasks done on that day (groceries, laundry, meal prep, other specific shopping, other random errands (car wash, donation dropoffs, returns)). I was a parttime nanny a couple of years ago with a 2 and 4 year old–even with both kids I loved having stuff to DO with them.
blueridge29 says
We had a nanny when my youngest was born and my eldest was just under 2. The nanny took both kids to the library every week and frequently went to the park. When my eldest was 3, we started twice a week, half day preschool and that was a nice break. Our eldest was used to being with the nanny, she had been with our family for over a year before our youngest was born, so there wasn’t a huge change to the daily routine.
Avoiding the pick up and drop off issues was a huge stress relief. If you are going to get a nanny, it would be a good idea to overlap with your maternity leave. This will allow both kids to bond with the nanny and allow you some big kid time with your daughter. Good luck!
IHeartBacon says
I second the recommendation to have the nanny start before you return to work. It’ll give your oldest some time to bond with the nanny and give you a chance to see what the nanny is like with your children.
Book Lady says
Thanks! I’m going back to work and then my husband will be off two months for his parental leave so he will likely be doing most of the heavy lifting on the nanny search. But wanting to have some overlap is definitely something to keep in mind in terms of timing and when we should start meeting people.
Anon says
No one except my husband knows this in “real life,” but we are undergoing fertility treatments to conceive a third, and I just had my first procedure yesterday….Since we still talk about whether we are nuts to go for 3, I can’t believe we started the process yesterday!! So crazy. We did the treatments to conceive our first, the second one showed up out of nowhere, and here we are trying for 3! Having previously done this, it’s much easier — I don’t have as much time to think about the process and the wait — also I know it’s worked in the past, but still — ahhh!! I still think I’m going to end up pregnant and wonder whether we really do want 3 or not?!
anon says
I’m pregnant with my third and wonder it all the time! But I’m pretty sure once we get to know this kid we won’t be able to imagine life without her.
Anonymama says
You never know, you might end up with 4, happened to a friend of mine.
Mom Guilt? says
Any advice on how to combat “mom guilt”? I asked our nanny to stay a couple of hours later tonight so I can meet a friend for happy hour after work. I was completely excited about catching up with my friend until I had to say goodbye to my one year old this morning, and then I suddenly felt terrible for taking extra time away from her today. I never feel mom guilt about being away from her for something related to work, but I’m finding that I really struggle with taking any extra “me time” away, especially when my husband or another family member isn’t around to care for her.
anon says
Happy mom = happy baby. And a happy mom needs time to herself.
Allie says
Long-term I think it is so much better for a kid to have a parent with friends and outside interests than not. My parents were super devoted parents but also had a big circle of friends and a lot of outside interests — they’re engaging, happy, engaged parents to relate to in adulthood. By contrast, I have some friends whose parents were just totally focused on their kids with little outside interests and lacking strong personal friendships and I think that is not only much harder to engage with as adults but also puts a lot of burden on their kids for emotional and logistical support in old age.
anon says
This. My parents are the latter – they were completely devoted to their kids and would never in a million years leave us to hang out with friends. And now, the kids have all moved out and they’re older with no outside interests, no friends, nothing. We live a days’ flight away, and I feel so much guilt sometimes when I forget to call them one day to make sure they’re doing okay. It’s kinda the worst – so, go out, have fun, keep your friends and outside interests. You are doing your kid a favor!!!
AnotherAnon says
I’m experiencing really bad cramping today which means I’m not pregnant again; been TTC for…a really long time. I pretty much knew I wasn’t pregnant but I just feel so sad and frankly annoyed that I have to deal with 1) not being pregnant again, 2) feeling like crap, and 3) having to pretend everything is fine at work.
anon says
First, take some advil so the cramps will ease (if you haven’t already). Second, do something to take care of you tonight–candles, a bath, some wine, heating pad, a special sweet–whatever makes you feel a bit indulgent. Also, hugs.
Anonanonanon says
When I was TTC I started putting aside a set chunk of money (I want to say it was $50 or $100?) every month I found out I wasn’t. I was going to save up to visit a friend who lives out of state. It’s not even that I couldn’t have normally afforded it, but it felt good to have a “perk” when I was disappointed. Then, when I ended up pregnant before I could make the trip happen, I had a nice little pot of money for maternity clothes!
RNMP says
Big internet hug.
KW says
I’m so sorry. This just sucks, and there isn’t much that will help. I do hope that you can find something to relieve the physical discomfort. Hugs.
Anonymous says
Inspired by sleep training question above, for those who have done extinction, how do you deal with nighttime poops? I have a 3.5 month old and am considering the all night extinction method since he’s gone 10 hours a few times.but last night he woke up shrieking at 3 am with a dirty diaper. Do you just leave them in it?!?
Anonymous says
Dirty diapers never really bothered my kid. But of course you should change it if you know he pooped.
anon says
everything i’ve read said you change a dirty diaper in the middle of the night. though one thing that has always been confusing to me about that, is if you are doing extinction, the idea is not to even check on them, so how do you know it is a dirty diaper to begin with? most things i’ve read and pediatrician have also said to start sleep training around 4 months for most babies. some need to wait longer because they are small and still need to eat in the middle of the night.
Anonymous says
Yes. I guess my question is how the heck are you supposed to know if the crying is because of a diaper issue.
HSAL says
Yep, that’s what’s always bothered me about extinction. Babies have many legit reasons to cry, and even if you have a video monitor or something, you can’t tell what the problem is.
Anonymous says
Sleeptraining for us was really all about getting them to fall asleep in the first place, and then we could let them cry because we knew we’d just put them down with a clean diaper.
For middle of the night wakeups we never did extinction. We usually wait about 10 minutes to see if they’ll settle themselves, and if not go in to see what’s up. If they are upset about a dirty diaper at that point, we’ll change it.
anon says
^ this is what we did too.
Also, as they get older they typically go less frequently. So the 10 poop diapers a day that a newborn has all day and night eventually becomes the 1 poop diaper a day a one year old has.
anon says
This is what we did but waited longer, probably more like 20-25 minutes of crying. Our baby doesn’t like dirty diapers so if she didn’t fall asleep by then, we figured she may have pooped and most times we were right.
Aly says
I think this is a know your kid thing. My daughter would never, ever sleep in a dirty diaper. Very fussy and prone to diaper rash. We’d change diapers in a business like manner and then put her down.
AnotherAnon says
Um, gently, of course you don’t leave a baby in a dirty diaper if s/he wakes up shrieking over it. A friend who had a night owl baby said she did everything: nursing, diaper changes, and soothing without making eye contact – not be to mean but to signal “this is all business and it’s time to sleep now.” That seemed to work for them. Mine never poops at night unless he’s sick with diarrhea in which case we are all up anyway. We also didn’t begin really firm, no-checking sleep training until about 8 months because he was really small, I wanted to continue night feeds as long as possible, and he went back to sleep immediately/did a dream feed. YMMV.
Knope says
Also gently…I don’t think 3.5 months is the time for sleep training via extinction method. The “4 month sleep regression” you hear about is real, and it happens because babies change their sleep pattern at that point. So even if you muscle through sleep training now, I don’t think it would stick for more than a couple weeks. The poop issue is also why people typically don’t do sleep training until the baby is a little older. In sum, I think you should wait to do anything until the baby is a bit older than 4 months, and then see if the Ferber method works better.
Anonymous says
I’m thinking ahead — probably not doing extinction just yet! Right now we’re just giving him time to see if he settles. I know people who’ve done it at this she, though. This one was going 10 hours for a while, and is a huge chunk, which may tip us in that direction, or we may decide on another approach or honestly may decide not to “train” at all beyond waiting before going in.
Anonymous says
And adding– we’re definitely already in the regression.
AwayEmily says
Such a good question! I think this is a “know your kid” thing (which is kind of an unsatisfying answer but alas). My first never, ever pooped at night, so we felt totally comfortable doing full extinction with her pretty early on (~3 months) knowing her crying wouldn’t be about poop. She is now 2.5 and out of diapers, but she never once had a poopy diaper at night during her babyhood. My second we also sleep trained (full extinction) at around the same age, but he had been an intermittent night-pooper, so if he seems unhappy at night I will go and check on him. But he’s now 10 months and has pooped at night maybe twice since sleep training, so it definitely doesn’t happen often.
But this is also a great question for your pediatrician!
Anon says
3.5 months is still early. A lot of babies spontaneously night-train themselves before 6 months. I don’t think my daughter has pooped overnight since she was 4 months old (illnesses excluded, of course).
Anonymous says
We changed poopy diapers but not just wet ones (unless it leaked and pyjamas/sheets were wet). We nightweaned around the time we sleeptrained so it didn’t happen often.
MNF says
I’m 24 weeks pregnant and my doctor told me I need to eat more protein, although I’m not anemic. I thought I was eating a lot of protein, so I’m looking for specific suggestions of what you would add to my diet, which is currently as follows: (B) 2 hard boiled eggs, 2 prunes, 2 slices whole wheat toast w/butter, cantaloupe; (Morning Snack) Banana with almond butter – smear on each bite of banana; (L) green salad with leftovers protein (chicken, salmon or pork from dinner night before, or another hard boiled egg if no leftovers), carrot sticks, plain yogurt with walnuts added, seasonal piece of fruit; (D) basically two meal options – meat, starchy vegetable (e.g. squash, sweet potato, cauliflower), regular vegetable, or 2 fried eggs over beans.
I’m astonished that I’m low protein, because I eat it with every meal — and let’s be honest, often eat spoonfuls of almond butter straight from the jar (in my desk – it’s not a shared jar!) after my banana is gone. What else would you add to this daily mix?
AwayEmily says
What was your doctor’s reasoning? Was it based on a blood test or some other lab work? I only ask because sometimes I think doctors give blanket advice like that without inquiring as to what their patients already do. I remember my doctor telling me I needed to drink more water. I was like “really? I currently drink about three liters a day,” and she was like “oh, never mind, in that case you are fine.”
MNF says
It was based on a blood test – I couldn’t tell you exactly which one, but she called and had a long list of things that they’d tested for – b12 fine, iron fine, sugars (i think this was one?) fine, protein “xyz test” – not fine you need to eat more protein.
mascot says
Hmm, can you make any swaps of the foods you are already eating? Opt for bread with higher protein count? Use Greek yogurt instead of regular? Have beans more often? You can also add nuts or chai seeds to your salad.
New Here says
I’m about as far along as you and I think you already eat more protein than I do, so your diet doesn’t seem too low in protein to me! But as far as adding, some suggestions:
Nut butter instead of regular butter on your morning toast
You could add cheese, beans, or nuts to your lunch salad
Try greek yogurt instead of regular yogurt – greek yogurt should have more protein
You could add cheese to something in your dinner (over the veggies or eggs?)
Add an afternoon or evening snack that includes nuts, yogurt, or cheese
It’s also unclear how often your lunch/dinner protein is eggs vs meat. A serving of meat has more protein than eggs so if you’re relying pretty heavily on eggs, you could try having meat more often.
anon says
+1 to the eggs not having as much protein as meat. I may be off (and am too tired this late in the day to look it up), but I think it’s a pretty drastic difference.
I also second the questions about how your doctor knows you are low protein? Is it the result of a test or just blanket advice/advice given based on symptoms? It sounds to me like you are getting plenty of protein.
Finally, and this is probably obvious to most, but increasing protein is not the answer to increasing your iron. I say this because I pushed back hard on a doctor once about putting me on iron supplements (I wasn’t pregnant). I was determined I could fix it with food. Not so much.
Whatever the issue–good luck!
Anon says
Did you tell your doctor what you’re eating? What did s/he say? You might have to drink protein shakes during pregnancy, I did, because I just couldn’t gain weight. But I’d also add that I now know I have a thyroid disease and I believe that was at the root of my inability to gain weight (I ate a ton and didn’t exercise much beyond walking), so you might ask for thyroid labs before you go on a high-calorie or high-protein diet. It’s an easy test, just a blood draw and any lab can give you results in a day or two.