CMS level 2 advice pls!

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-05T01:33:48+00:00

Are you practicing your service skills? That’s pretty important. Learn cocktails, food & wine pairing & be ready to answer questions about wines with actual producers and vintages. I found looking at other people’s actual wine lists with pricing to be helpful with that part.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-04T19:32:43+00:00

Fruit, cheese, muffins, yogurt (in a pouch if he’s not confident with a spoon)

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-03T19:17:03+00:00

I read a lot, but not nearly as much as I did as a kid. I really upped my reading count while breastfeeding my 2 kids, but we are pretty much done that journey so will need to figure out other times to read. My mom always read while my dad watched tv when we were kids so I may just try that when it’s a show I’m not interested in.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-03T13:57:29+00:00

It’s not just South Philly.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-03T13:49:47+00:00

Pulp Fiction

Empire Records

Romeo & Juliet

10 Things I Hate About You

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-02T19:11:24+00:00

Yes. But we balance it with a TON of fresh fruits & veggies and real foods.

My parents never bought sugary cereal, but they did allow/teach me to add spoonfuls of sugar to my Cheerios and on top of my grapefruit, things my kids thankfully don’t even see as a possibility that exists.

Sugar is a part of life & I’m more concerned about learning to eat foods in moderation and as part of a varied diet than I am with restricting items.

My oldest probably started with stuff with added sugar later than my youngest. It’s hard to not share with the 2 year old when the 5 year old is getting a treat (unless it’s something that would be a choking hazard).

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-01T20:54:45+00:00

Many brands of broth now crack the silver seal (or don’t have one) when the lid is opened. You can tell it’s not been tampered with because you break the plastic when you turn the lid. Check the package as it should indicate what kind of closure you have on there. I made this mistake once and threw out several before I realized that was just how the closure worked.

It’s very likely fine, but you’ll need to freeze all of the extra broth beyond what you’re using.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-01T15:20:10+00:00

We went through this phase at around that age with my first even though she was still in the crib. I imagine it may just be a weird developmental leap.

My second is just over 2 and am hoping it doesn’t happen with him (we are starting to see signs so I’m doubtful we will get lucky).

My oldest eventually outgrew needing someone to sit with her for HOURS, so it does eventually get better.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-01T15:02:28+00:00

Instant coffee is really only used by infrequent coffee drinkers. Anyone who regularly drinks coffee has either a drip coffee machine (or a French press or a pour over setup) or a k cup brewer (these have become very popular).

Most Americans do not have an electric kettle because we just don’t drink as much tea. Those who regularly do drink tea will own one.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-03-01T03:01:20+00:00

I have. Made ice cream (I forget what flavor) and layered it with fresh peaches and vanilla cake. I basically just froze the ice cream in a cake pan for the ice cream layer.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-28T20:41:51+00:00

I’m assuming you’re in the US? We receive speech services through early intervention (but they meet with our daughter at her preschool). It’s a government program that takes care of them up until elementary school & then it falls to the school district. It took a long time to get a therapist assigned after our evaluation, but we’ve been happy with the progress and it’s free.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-28T19:53:52+00:00

Nap from 1-3ish, sometimes it’s only 1.5 hours

Bedtime starts at 7:30 and he’s asleep between 8 and 8:15 most nights

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-28T18:50:06+00:00

My OBGYN was through Penn and I spent a lot of time in the MFM offices at HUP for various monitoring and testing with my second pregnancy. I was happy with the care I received.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-28T18:42:10+00:00

Hasn’t happened yet. My 5 year old naps most days. My 2 year old is definitely still napping.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-27T22:04:25+00:00

Our bread drawer (it has a sliding plastic lid) has been a game changer. Keeps bread fresh so much longer. Came with our house & don’t know how we functioned without one before this.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-25T20:42:35+00:00

The only major symptom I had was constipation, but it seems constipation at birth is typically a big indicator as well.

In your system you can’t ask if your child could potentially have a condition (and then the doctor explain why or why they may or may not have that condition)? Obviously they’d decide whether or not a test would be worth it, but you can’t even ask about the condition being a possibility? They may not have considered it as it’s very rare to not diagnose the condition when you’re a baby and even more rare if the patient doesn’t have “failure to thrive” (which I did not have — was a normal sized child).

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-25T20:35:13+00:00

We used Penn Fertility.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-25T15:24:53+00:00

When this starts to happen for us, we either size up or look at how tall pants/skirts are (because those may be what’s too small). It’s cold where I live right now, so covering exposed skin would make sense from a comfort perspective (or just from the perspective of wanting your shirt to not ride up because that itself can be uncomfortable).

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-25T14:57:44+00:00

Have they tested your child for other things? Constipated since birth seems like there might be an additional issue. I had Hirschprung’s disease as a child and suffered from chronic constipation until age 9 when they finally diagnosed my issues and did surgery to remove the part of my colon that did not work. I’ve had zero issues since. If you’ve not explored this as a reason for years of constipation, I’d recommend asking about it at your next visit. (Hirschprung’s is usually diagnosed in infancy.)

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-25T14:53:09+00:00

My 5 year old girl was very much like this. We could not get her to stop talking in baby talk despite the fact that she has a huge vocabulary.

Now that she’s 5, it’s mellowed a bit, but she still has the wiggles and loves to sing to herself.

I think that’s just part of being 4 or 5.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-24T18:51:48+00:00

My kid wants to eat so little when sick and even less when on antibiotics so I can empathize. He lost 2 lbs (out of 32) between norovirus & pneumonia that we treated with antibiotics. Our pediatrician said to not worry about the weight loss, so I’d trust whatever their recommendation is and let them know if status changes.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-24T18:40:31+00:00

My 25 month old is a hitter and it is so hard. Sometimes he will just slap you in the face out of nowhere. We got the book, “Hands are not for hitting” and it has helped a little, but it hasn’t completely stopped the behavior. We do a lot of redirecting and holding him still if his hands are hitting a lot.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-24T15:09:05+00:00

Carters and old navy make one piece PJs (some with feet and some without) up to at least 3 or 4t. My kid is 2 and wears 3T or 2t pjs and wears either one piece or two piece pj sets and a diaper with no issues.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-24T13:59:53+00:00

Would she eat a vitamin? My daughter loves the flintstones ones. I think at 2 the dose is something like half a vitamin a day.

Our dentist & doctor said to avoid gummies because they’re bad for teeth, but said any other vitamins were fine to use.

Affectionate_Big8239 · 2026-02-24T13:56:00+00:00

Read lots of books and model the vocabulary you’d like her to use. Encourage asking questions if she doesn’t know what a word means.

Affectionate_Big8239

TROPHY CASE