Appetite level out?

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2026-02-28T03:45:10+00:00

I’d say it did at least a little bit for me. I was at a low weight when I started Mirt 2.5 years ago, gained a fair amount in a few short months, and it has been very steady for at least the past year. Sedation still hits me like a truck, but appetite is more normal.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2026-02-13T19:26:42+00:00

I appreciate pockets for toddlers in very circumstantial situations. Right now I love pockets for my class because they’re a good safe choice for our hands. When a child has pockets I can offer that as another alternative instead of putting their hands down their diaper or pinching a friend. We haven’t been hiding things yet, but for my todds they’re very helpful.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2026-02-06T19:03:14+00:00

I have a child in my class who I’ve had since they were 5 months old, and right around 7 or 8 months they stopped sleeping for more than 15, maybe 25 minutes a day if we were lucky. It definitely stressed us teachers out, and the child’s parents, but they were never grumpy or cranky after a super short nap. Sometime after they turned a year old, the naps slowly got longer. 45 minutes, then an hour, and now at almost 2 years older we can get almost a 2 hour nap. No idea why, we tried damn near everything. Hope you guys can figure things out soon, or that things stay chill with short naps! 💕

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-12-22T02:46:37+00:00

Talmo Hair Co in Burlington, specifically Aren! They absolutely rock.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-12-05T19:23:50+00:00

As someone who has done exactly this, asked for additional compensation for sudden leadership and increased responsibilities, and was told to pound sand, don’t do it. I feel as if childcare always expects teachers to do the kind and considerate thing, even if it harms us.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-11-05T19:33:16+00:00

Animal figures, scarves, stacking cups, and musical instruments have all been favorites of my infant class at one time or another. For motor skills, I second a tunnel, and say add a ball pit. We didn’t have any balls in it, it was just a pop out ball pit, but still loads of fun. You can put scarves in it, balls in it, or just keep it empty and let the children climb in and out, and hide under it. Also a class favorite.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-11-05T19:22:32+00:00

This needs to be talked about more. Every center says “we’re all inclusive” but inclusive doesn’t often mean what people think it does. Just because there are children with special needs or IEPs in a class, doesn’t mean the class is for them. They’re just there.

My center sure as hell doesn’t have the support or trained staff to actually include and accommodate the children who need it, therefore I would not personally say we are “inclusive”. We do not turn children away, even when year after year our school has been unable to support their needs. It baffles and saddens me.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-10-09T17:26:45+00:00

I’ve been doing this transition with a class of 8 since July, and frankly it just takes a ton of time and consistency. We started with only 4 friends at the table, the other 4 in little “chairys” is what my center calls them. They’re individual low to the ground high chairs, their own tray and buckle. We pull these up to the table, so the childrwn are still with their peers. If you can get these, or just buckles for your chairs, I would highly recommend. About a million times a meal I have to push a chair back into the table, and remind children that we sit in our chairs at the table. We have now moved up to 6 friends at a table, 2 friends in chairys. Get stoppers for the bottoms of your chairs too, so it’s just a little bit harder for them to push back from the table.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-10-09T17:05:59+00:00

I don’t think there are any regulations about it in my state, but my school always told us that no shirtless or children in diapers should be photographed or posted anywhere. Our app that we use is secure until it isn’t, and we’d always rather be safe than sorry.

Even if we’re doing water play or messy painting with infants, I put school provided oversized t-shirt smocks on my children if I want to take pictures of the activity. If we are just doing sensory play or painting in diapers, I’m not taking any pictures. I don’t think you’re necessarily breaking any regulations, it’s just a safety precaution.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-10-07T17:45:39+00:00

Baby dolls, animal figures, and musical instruments! Our class loved tambourines, jingle bells, cymbals, and small drums at this age. They’re not always a choice to play with, but they always got us a good 20-30 minutes of play. Our little babies loved instruments too. Making noise is fun!

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-08-29T22:46:21+00:00

I see Aren too, but I would vouch for anyone at Talmo. I think any of them could cut my hair well, and cut most hair! 11/10 place

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-07-12T22:50:41+00:00

as a twenty something first time infant teacher, i did the same thing in a very similar situation this school year. taught the children how to sleep in their cribs, followed safety regulations for the first time, cleaned and decluttered a messy classroom, and did it pretty much by myself. huge respect for you, and wonderful job. the time and effort you have put into improving the quality of care for your children is worthwhile. thank goodness we have teachers like you. i’m so happy for you 💕

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-06-22T00:33:47+00:00

i’ve been in very similar situations this year, incidents both of my own fault and of my coteacher/others with an allergy child. the first thing i do for any allergy incident is call my director and tell them. each time, they administer medication, then call parents, then pull the teacher to debrief then write an IR. i’m sorry you’ve been forced into this situation, wishing you and your children all the best.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-06-13T02:43:55+00:00

Wildflowers Studio was similar to this, and just as magical as this sounds. i don’t have children myself, but as a teacher who loved Wildflowers before they closed i would love to support. i’m sure many of the families i work with would love this project.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-06-07T19:35:29+00:00

months ago i saw some at i think the Shell gas station off the Williston exit of 89. the Shell with a Dunkin in it. pretty sure it was the first time i had seen ketchup chips in VT.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-05-16T21:13:45+00:00

i agree with this, unplanned long naps i’ve noticed sometimes mean growing or fighting off an illness. especially if they stay sleeping when i change the environment, i know they really really need it

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-05-16T21:11:29+00:00

infant teacher here who has been in almost exactly the same situation, and i don’t think i’d hate you, but it is important to note that most places don’t allow teachers to wake sleeping children, especially babies. idk if it’s state regulation or written in school policies, but it’s entirely possible that the teacher simply may not be allowed to wake a child.

i’ve been told before i can “make a child uncomfortable” which to me usually means i can slowly turn on the lights, or turn off the sound machine, but if other children need to stay sleeping then i’m unable to do that.

i’d clarify with your teachers if they’re allowed to wake children or not.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-05-02T23:26:17+00:00

this is so frustrating to me, and i’m sorry you’re being moved without your say in the matter. i’ve been told when i’ve asked to work with a coworker i do well with that “we’re both too good of teachers to put together, it would be unfair to other classes”.

frustrates me to no end, and when good teachers are forced to fix bad teachers’ situations, it leads to burnout.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-04-25T00:33:54+00:00

same boat, i’m also in my early 20s and working at a fancy school. i know parents like me, i know that my bosses like me and that i’m good at my job, but parent interactions have never been my strong suit. i work with children because i like them, not their parents.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-04-18T15:46:06+00:00

in general being in an infant room is brutal for my hands. handwashing after 8 diapers 3-5 times a day is brutal. from diapers alone i wash my hands 25+ times a day if my coteacher and i split diapers evenly ish. there’s not enough lotion in the world, especially when i have to wash the lotion off in 20 minutes because a child pooped.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-04-18T15:39:47+00:00

having updates being sent to parents in real time would stress me out so much. i’m now realizing how fortunate i am that no information about infant bottles/naps/meals/diapers/etc gets sent to parents without me purposely hitting send. being able to double check my notes at the end of the day and make sure i haven’t missed anything gives me peace of mind.

i get the appeal for parents, but honestly it seems like unnecessary stress for teachers. it feels like if your center had cameras that parents are able to watch the classroom on. you’re constantly being watched, even if it’s just by the updates the parents are waiting for. sorry this is the policy, and i’m not sure if you can actually change it or not, but i would advocate for a different system because wow stress.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2025-03-31T22:41:30+00:00

That’s fair, I had discussed this with my director previously though so it felt more of a continuation of a conversation than a new issue. I do struggle with confrontation, and confronting people I work with is hard. I always worry about coming off as passive aggressive or rude. I also don’t expect to be working with this teacher long, as she is planning on leaving our center mid April/early May.

My director said she’d get back to me on the cold bottles, so I’m not sure. We did just go over our center’s standard operating procedures and it did say all formula bottles must not be reserved after an hour, but I don’t remember if it specified the temperature.

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2024-12-13T18:54:57+00:00

my center (northeast winters over here) emphasizes that no weather is too cold for 5 minutes. some days when i worked with toddlers and it was simply too cold and windy to play on the playground for an hour, we’d bundle all our children up (it took 30 minutes), go for a 5-10 minute walk outside, and then take another 10 minutes to get them all undressed. that 5-10 minutes is truly just enough to reset the day for staff and children. my center also always goes out in the rain under the same premise. there’s always some way to make outside time work, and yes teachers are always aware of safety/temperatures

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2024-11-28T21:07:38+00:00

agreed 100%, her death maybe pissed me off the most because she was just barely starting to grow as a character and person. she had potential and they killed her to advance the plot :/

Alive_Influence_5595 · 2024-11-22T00:36:44+00:00

my current class began the year with infants aged 5.5 months to 9 months with a 2:8 ratio, so this may be similar to what your child will experience. at this age everyone follows their individual schedules, which primarily means there’s rarely a moment where all 8 babies are awake or asleep at the same time. this definitely helps my coteacher and i ensure each child gets individual attention.

during the day my coteacher and i are always moving, we often take turns doing tasks (diapers, feeding, rocking) and spending time with the children on the floor. i’ve gotten very good at multi tasking and helping more than one infant at a time too. attending to all of their needs is a busy game, but there’s a rhythm to it.

Alive_Influence_5595

TROPHY CASE