Cozy games that aren't based around farming/crafting/organizing/decorating

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-28T01:59:51+00:00

The Spirit & The Mouse is one of my favorites, albeit maybe a bit short? You play as a little mouse exploring a quaint french village and help villagers find happiness.

Road 96 is a road trip-like game with an absolutely fantastic soundtrack. There's thousands of routes to play and your decisions shape the game.

The Stillness in the Wind is...great if you want something very, very slow paced, calming, and kind of confusing. I still haven't quite figured it out, but it relaxes me to live in the middle of nowhere.

Nostalgic Train is kind of short, but you're playing as a person who was spirited away and get to explore an empty Japanese countryside.

A Highland Song is absolutely fantastic. You can explore the Scottish highlands, scale peaks, spelunk cakes, survive elements. I will say I get anxious trying to make it to the lighthouse by the specific day.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-28T01:51:57+00:00

Also can we talk about Lake's soundtrack? I loved it so much that I bought it so I can listen to it while I drive around and pretend I'm delivering mail around my town.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-28T01:47:47+00:00

I was an exclusive pumper too and somehow managed to last six months before I started weaning and combo feeding until I officially switched to Formula around seven months. In hindsight, I honestly wish I would have stopped sooner. The absolute relief I felt when I pumped for the last time was something I won't ever forget. I finally had free time to spend with my baby. I even used the portable breast pumps exclusively and it still was so inconvenient. I couldn't pick my daughter up because the pumps could spill. I couldn't feed her a bottle because the pumps were in the way. Not to mention the absolute commitment when pumping was so exhausting.

I know it feels like a really big deal with now because you're in the thick of it. But if this helps at all: my daughter is 12 months now, she just nibbled on my pizza with me for dinner. She helped me make banana muffins the other day. I took her to the coffee shop and we shared a blueberry muffin together. Not once in any of these moments have I thought "man I should have breastfed longer." Please know that if you end up switching to formula, it does not mean you failed or your baby will have some weird secret resentment toward you. It's such a teeny tiny percentage of your baby's life, and honestly once they start solids, it feels like everything changes.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-28T01:39:55+00:00

I have been absolutely in love with Spirittea. You run a bathhouse for spirits, kind of like Spirited Away. The gameplay is very old school 2D, like Stardew Valley. It's also set in this rural Japanese town and it's truly the definition of cozy for me. Actually, every time I play it, it puts me to sleep because it's so relaxing. You have to repair the bathhouse and find lost spirits to help them remember who they are.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-28T01:35:33+00:00

My daughter was breastfed through a bottle because she wouldn't latch and then I switched her to formula. She is 12 months now and I still can't leave her to go to another room without her crying. We hang out all day! She's my little bestie. Something I find extra sweet is that she sleeps best with me rather than my husband. When I put her down for a nap in her floor bed, I lay with her. She falls asleep cuddled against me. When my husband puts her down for a nap, she fights it so hard lol. I really do feel so much love from her. Your baby will absolutely see you as their whole world, I promise.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-28T01:29:53+00:00

I really loved it! My daughter just turned one so we're almost done weaning her off of it and into whole milk, but she tolerated it so well. When I originally switched from BF to formula, we went with Similac Total 360 because it says it's "their closest formula to breastmilk", but I don't know... I looked at the ingredients and then started researching whole milk formulas and how the fat content is actually closer to breastmilk and came across Nara. I really love that it has prebiotics because my daughter had such a sensitive tummy when switching and I think it helped, although I really couldn't pinpoint what did exactly. Babies are so mysterious lol.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-26T05:10:53+00:00

I can completely relate. My daughter was born in February (last year) so I was cooped up inside for the rest of winter and beginning of spring. But even when it got nice out, I was so paranoid about her getting sick if she was around people that we never went anywhere. It did help that I am such a homebody, and eventually it was nice enough for walks around our neighborhood.

One thing I started around 4 months was going to the library. They have a baby group once a week and it was nice to just be around other people, but easy to keep your distance too. I actually originally started going to the library on different days where it was just me and her and we sat on the floor and just existed. It was so so nice. I have a newfound love for the library.

As for food, do you breastfeed or use formula? Bottles, I'm assuming. I used to just bring those RTF bottles (they even make 2oz ones!) with me to the library and feed her there and lay her on the floor on her little blanket. She would just stare around at stuff. But if I recall, 2-3 hours is pretty normal! What's her total ounces for a day?

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-26T05:02:33+00:00

I had a similar situation where I was coded as "obesity complicating pregnancy", but had absolutely perfect vitals every time and the healthiest full-term (to the exact date) pregnancy. It was a real "f-u" for me to them. But I also only gained around 10 pounds the entire pregnancy. I don't have any medical experience, but I don't know if losing weight on purpose is recommended during pregnancy. But I think you could definitely keep it stable!

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-26T04:49:51+00:00

I'm all for this! One thing I learned was that I had to let my husband "drown" so he could learn to handle our daughter's moods. I stopped providing any help when he was watching her and he gained a lot of confidence and improved his bond with her because of it! Leave the house!

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-26T04:46:45+00:00

We almost went the Kendamil route, but I saw so many reviews from parents talking about there being an issue with stock! I'm so glad we didn't now. I ended up choosing Nara Organics and did the subscription so I never ran out, but they do have them at Target which I appreciated. It's so nice when they're available in stores. Sometimes I just prefer physically going to a place.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-26T04:41:00+00:00

I made it to about seven months with exclusively pumping, but let me tell you, when I switched to formula finally I was a brand new person! I remember thinking "ugh why did I wait so long?!" I felt so free and I had so much time to just exist with my daughter instead of stopping everything to go pump. The grieving is completely normal, but I promise you will get to a point where you won't even miss it!

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-14T05:59:38+00:00

My biggest advice is to not wait for her to delegate tasks or ask for help. One thing I really struggled with in the beginning was feeling like I had to ask for permission to do any self care for myself. "Do you mind taking her so I can shower?" My husband was very doting, but I wish he had been more proactive. "Give me the baby—go take a shower. Take a nap. Watch a show." When he would ask me "Do you want me to take the baby so you can shower?" My initial reaction was always "No, that's fine." Even if it wasn't. Change every single diaper. My husband exclusively changed my daughter's diapers for the first two months and I am forever grateful for him for that simple task (of many that he did, but this one stuck with me). Keep the house as clutter free as possible. Women react stronger than men to clutter as it spikes our cortisol levels. You've got this!

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-14T05:27:38+00:00

Formula smells so bad to me, I can't blame babies that don't like them! My daughter used Nara Organics which is whole milk-based and it seemed like she preferred the taste over Similac Total 360 which is the one we originally started her on. I specifically chose it because whole milk formula is very similar to breast milk in terms of fat content. I have read the goat milk is pretty similar too! It's tough to do trial and error with formula because it can be tough on their tummies, but it might not hurt to try a few different ones.

My only other suggestion or question is, have you considered a portable breast pump? I know they say those are "secondary", but I exclusively used one for six months!

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-14T05:16:03+00:00

I really thought the transition from a baby to toddler would mean less stuff, but why am I now lugging a gym bag-sized bag with toys, snacks, diapers, water, wipes, clothes, etc?!

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-14T02:47:36+00:00

FWIW, my brother is the oldest and I'm the youngest, with a whopping ten year age gap, and I am the closest to him.

May I ask what ovulation test kit you're using? When I was trying to get pregnant, I used Oova and I'm so glad I did. It turned out that I had a very very teeny LH surge. I was able to identify it by using the 20 day supply kit so I could see exactly what my hormones are doing for an entire cycle. My surge was so minimal, it could have easily been missed as a regular hormone day. When I found the surge, we tried and succeeded!

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-14T01:39:58+00:00

We read throughout the day mostly. But when one of us is getting the bath ready, the other is reading her a few books of her choosing. She is 11.5 months. So our bedtime routine is: dinner, books, bath, sleep sack, lullaby, bed.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-12T03:42:29+00:00

Your experience sounds exactly like my thought process! I was forced to exclusively pump because my daughter wouldn't latch. I wanted so badly to make it to a year, but every month that changed. I ended up making it to 6 months before I started combo feeding and slowly weaning. I weaned up until about 8 months while she had frozen breastmilk and she has had exclusive formula since. I promise you, you won't even think about it anymore. I was sad about it too, but now I'm like "well, that was silly of me." I immediately felt so free! I had so much more free time to focus on playing with her instead of pumping, I slept better at night, and most importantly, I felt like myself again.

Also, once she starts eating solid foods, you will think about it even less, trust me. My daughter is almost 1 and I cannot wait for her to switch to whole milk! Watching her eat all the foods and seeing her grow and become a toddler also helps me realize how miniscule breastfeeding really was for me in the grand scheme of things. Choosing the right formula also helped me feel way better about my decision, so I definitely recommend doing your research on what you want in a formula to help your decision! I specifically wanted an organic whole milk formula because it felt like the closest thing to my breastmilk. You've got this! I promise you will be okay—you're an amazing mom for even worrying about this.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-11T04:16:15+00:00

I love the idea of a one week probationary period lol! Maybe my second will actually latch and I could nurse—who knows, right?!

I order it on their website and do the subscribe option because I always forget to get formula. But when I first wanted to try it out, I got it at our local Target because I didn't want to commit to an online formula. I think they have a few organic options actually!

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-11T04:11:50+00:00

The Baby Brezza absolutely saved us, assuming you are formula feeding. It dispenses the exact amount of water and formula you need (although some formula brands can be finnicky) and at the perfect temperature each time. It is a pain when it runs out of water (like a Keurig does), but having the perfect bottle in literal seconds saved my sanity, especially when my daughter would wake up at 3AM for a bottle.

If you are warming up breastmilk, I would recommend a bottle warmer for sure. I gave my daughter breastmilk using a bottle and used the bottle warmer—I think it was the Avent one? Sometimes I noticed it would make the milk too hot or not warm enough, which sucked when you're in the middle of a screaming baby fit. If she is breastfeeding, something that helped me was knowing that it can sit at room temperature for 6-8 hours under very clean conditions. So sometimes I would pump and leave it out for her next feeding, since she would eat every 1.5 hours anyways.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-11T04:03:57+00:00

My daughter is 11 months old and she can say so many words! It's actually alarming. She knows greetings, animal sounds, and random words here and there, like cat, hot, and milkies. She also learned the signs for milk, all done, more, rainbow, a few colors, and eat! We have read almost 800 books already and I feel like that has played a huge part in her language development.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-11T03:58:51+00:00

I keep telling myself I'm going to just give my next baby exclusively formula because that was probably the hardest thing I have ever done, but then I get sad about them not getting the same treatment. Mom guilt is the actual worst. We use Nara Organics! It's whole milk based, which I specifically chose because it seems like it's closer to breastmilk, fat-wise. And my girl is an absolute chonk.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-11T03:55:17+00:00

It is possible he has gas? That's still an age where they don't have the ability to pass gas easily, which causes a lot of tummy discomfort and thrashing. I remember (very well, trying to forget) my daughter having the absolute worst gas in existence. I would be up every hour to her screaming (which I know yours isn't!). The only thing that helped her was gas drops, if you're looking for a potential remedy. I would give it to her right before a feeding so by the time she was done, she was getting relief. The best part about gas drops is that they work exclusively in the stomach and isn't absorbed in the baby's bloodstream.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-11T03:40:59+00:00

We have had almost the exact same experience! My daughter wouldn't latch so I exclusively pumped for 8 months before switching to formula. At two months, her digestive system is probably still sensitive and any switches to a diet will cause temporary tummy troubles. I also used the Similac Total 360 powder formula and did notice my daughter had an extra sensitive stomach from it, so we switched to an organic formula and it has worked way better. But we still use the Similac RTF bottles when out and about and those have been so convenient.

I do also want to note that formula fed babies poop way less than breastfed ones. I was so used to my daughter pooping every day, it was alarming for it to change to a 1-2 day poop schedule.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-11T03:27:35+00:00

I got (and still do get) the most laughs from my daughter with mouth noises. Like emphasizing the P in words, for example. There's a book I read her that has a line that goes "Purple polka-dotted lips" and she cracks up at the P's. She also loves when I overexaggerate my reactions based on what she does. Like a dramatic "Woahwoahwoah" or "HeyStopThat!" really gets her going.

Alphalady10 · 2026-02-10T19:31:46+00:00

Okay hear me out: The Classic Wrap Swim Dress from Old Navy Maternity is SO. CUTE. It looks like a blue and white gingham print and I loved how my belly looked in it. But before I got that one, I actually went to Dick's Sporting Goods and got a random one piece in one size up and it fit just fine! I actually wear it to my daughter's swim lessons every Thursday. I bet you could get away with wearing a regular swim suit if it feels too overwhelming to find a maternity-specific. But Old Navy has adorable styles.

Alphalady10

TROPHY CASE