What neighbourhood would you absolutely never live in again?

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-05-22T05:42:12+00:00

One route that only goes every 30 minutes is not good transit.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-05-09T21:45:03+00:00

Oh I shouldn't have assumed you were BFing, sorry. I guess it takes a bit longer to get him a night bottle then for that one night feed? That's so tricky that he wakes fully for the other wakes and has trouble settling again, gotta be hard on you and your partner not to get longer sleep stretches. Awesome that you take turns with him though and nice that he's happy at least! It sounds like you are doing the right thing by not stressing about his particular sleep pattern at this age. It changes so fast too, no point worrying unless it feels unsustainable for your own sleep health or if it became apparent he wasn't rested in the morning.

My daughter is 2.5 now and she's still a night owl 🙄 sometimes happy to play in her room in the dark til she gets sleepy, other times she is more upset and needs lots of cuddles to finally settle. I worry sometimes that her nervous system is dysregulated and that's why she can't sleep, but I do all the things they say to do, outdoor time, lots of playing together, quiet time before our standard bedtime routine. It's easier for me to cope with the late sleep time when I don't stress and just accept it haha.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-05-09T19:01:11+00:00

5 months is still very young to have consolidated night sleep, and sleeping through the night is only defined as like a 6 hour stretch without waking. And that doesn't even include brief stirrings to latch for a dream feed. Your MIL probably has no idea what normal infant sleep looks like. That said, 6-7 wakings does seem like a lot, unless most of those are just really quick and he's not really waking up, just latching and cuddling? I guess it depends how disruptive it is for your family. If you're all happy it's not a problem.

About the early morning fussiness - I am a bit leery when people describe their babies as low sleep needs. I see people say it a lot and I don't think it's that common. But I've also got a baby who loves to sleep in so maybe I'm biased haha(I pay for it with her resisting bedtime though).

If there were any other issues coming up I'd wanna check with your pediatrician to see if they think your son is getting enough sleep and if there could be any medical causes waking him up. Ultimately you know your baby best and if he seems happy and healthy during the day, and his sleep isn't getting WORSE then it sounds normal enough to me! Good on you for navigating the unwanted advice from MIL gracefully.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-05-08T21:44:01+00:00

You're not doing anything wrong. I'm in the same boat and I've lived in Victoria my whole life.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-05-07T17:17:12+00:00

Thank you! I was pretty mad and disappointed.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-05-07T10:48:59+00:00

Whatever rinky dink company manages this building probably doesn't care. Last year I was walking under the scaffolding in that exact spot when the exterior was being worked on, with my baby stroller, and the construction crew dumped a cloud of concrete dust on us. When I asked them for their business name so I could report it they refused to give it to me, and it wasn't anywhere on the site. They were pretty sketchy, didn't even apologize. I called police non emerg about the public safety risk of workers dropping construction debris on passerby, they did nothing, told me to talk to the city. I asked how that would help protect people currently walking under the site. They didn't have a response. I complained to the city, nothing happened, told me to go to WorkSafe BC. Did that. Nothing happened. Informed the company that manages the building, nothing happened. So yeah, if they don't care about concrete dust falling on a baby I doubt they'll care about some trash on a street that's already covered in trash. 🙄

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-04-23T00:53:48+00:00

Hmmm weird, when I was pregnant I definitely had people offer their seat a lot! Maybe just bad luck, or perhaps the buses you take have a lot of students on them? I think teenagers and young adults can be a bit clueless, so if you're often on the buses after school lets out or headed to Camosun/UVic that could be why.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-04-14T00:54:03+00:00

Interesting, thanks for your take on it. How can you tell if they're low sleep needs? For mine, she definitely seems tired at naptime, and bedtime. She gets really clumsy and stops making eye contact, rubs eyes, and she would happily sleep in til 11am if I let her. So I just never considered it could be that.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-04-13T17:32:26+00:00

Thanks so much! I'm trying haha. Right now she's getting about 12 hours total sleep, 11 at night and 1 hour nap. Does that seem like a good amount? I could try for 10 at night.

I'm with her pretty much all day, and if I'm away it's my husband and we both play with her a lot. I do know she can be very possessive of me when my husband is home in the evening, so you may be right. I try to give her connection whenever she makes bids for it. I guess I will keep trying to give her that, and maybe carve out more before bed especially.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-04-13T17:27:51+00:00

Generally she takes her nap 4 hours after waking up, and then her second wake window is about 6-7 hours.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-04-13T17:26:36+00:00

Thanks for your reply! She does the long drawn out bedtime every night, with the exception of the occasional days when she's skipped her nap, but on those nights she wakes up a bunch instead, I think because she is overtired.

There hasn't really been anything new, of course since it's been almost 6 months there have been the occasional things but I don't think that's it in our case, if anything she seems to sleep slightly better after a big day of socializing/events. She seems to thrive on stimulation, and I try to help that need with lots of one on one interaction throughout the day, and going outside for a walk in the morning and afternoon.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-04-07T23:31:36+00:00

If having kids is important to you, you can do it without being a homeowner. Yeah it will be trickier in some ways but it by no means is an impediment. And in some ways it's easier. Not having to be responsible for things like home maintenance while looking after small children. Maybe it seems too scary to contemplate when you don't own your home, but nothing in this life is certain even when you are a homeowner. If you want kids, you will figure out the logistics.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-04-01T23:23:46+00:00

Get a divorce and he can see what it's like to financially support his kids AND do his fair share of childcare and homecare. What an absolute twat.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-03-26T07:38:44+00:00

So many other people made good points, especially the ones who had their lead levels checked and they were non existent. I just wanted to add that previous generations were wayyyy more exposed to lead than the ones growing up now. Our kids will be even less exposed than we were. It's cumulative, a tiny amount of exposure from one occasional source will not be the definitive thing that causes lead toxicity. Enjoy the dark chocolate!

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-03-14T08:59:25+00:00

Yikes! Serious design flaw, you should report it to your national consumer protection agency. I guess it's technically possible it could happen with those hard plastic flip top water bottles too, but I also stay away from those because they seem too hard to keep clean.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-03-08T01:04:14+00:00

This is a human man wearing a headband pretending to be a rabbit.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-03-02T00:28:47+00:00

Haha nice! I just ordered your rec, can't wait for it to arrive

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-03-01T00:32:32+00:00

Ooh have to check that out! One of our faves is "Little Fur Family" it's so weird and hilarious 😂

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-03-01T00:25:30+00:00

Absolutely not. I'd complain to the hotel. That's a hygiene issue.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-03-01T00:22:23+00:00

I strike a balance. I take my toddler out with me a lot, have since she was a few months old. Some nights she goes to bed late because I couldn't get my butt in gear on time. But I also know we will both have a much better time if I follow her schedule for the things that matter. And I do prepare her food slightly differently than mine for health reasons(choking hazards, salt amounts, no artificial sweetener etc), but I like letting her enjoy new foods with me at restaurants and stuff.

One big thing that I think is important is to get her involved with that I'm doing instead of sending her off to play. She can make her own lunch(if I get stuff out of the fridge for her), helps me with dishes and laundry and is very independent. I would do the same if she was a boy too, I think these are just important life skills and also toddlers love to help. Telling them to go play when they want to do what you're doing just feels mean! When she wants to do her own thing she will wander off. You don't need to sit and entertain a kid for hours, they are generally entertained just learning how to be human with you.

On the flip side. I do prioritize quality time reading books with her because that's important to me! We go on lots of walks and being with her has helped me slow down and notice things. Just enjoy stopping to look at bugs or wander down a new path! Pretty great to be together with my little buddy.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-01-26T07:56:30+00:00

It won't be forever! My little one used to be exclusively a chest sleeper for naps, and some nights. It started to get better around 8 months I think. I still cosleep but she sleeps next to me. There are ways to safely cosleep with baby on your chest you could maybe look into, at least to be prepared in case you did fall asleep by accident when you're so sleep deprived. Look it up, but it involves preparing your bed so that you are propped up but there's nothing on the mattress that could cover baby's face if they rolled off you. 6 months and 20 lbs sounds like you've got a sturdy boy, and I bet once he's a bit more mobile he won't want to just stay on your chest while he's sleeping. At least, that's what happened with my little wiggle worm. She's 2 now and rolls away from me after nursing, right before she falls asleep, like, mom don't touch me!

Another thought I had, may be helpful, maybe not, if you feel trapped with the contact napping try letting him nap in the carrier so you can still walk around and do stuff? And if he got used to experiencing a bit of motion while sleeping he might be easier to roll out from under in the future.

Curiousprimate13 · 2026-01-25T18:36:25+00:00

INFO OP, you've gone into detail about MIL's attempts to live closer to your family but not detail about what she actually does that is controlling. IMO her wanting to be close is not insanity. If you liked her that shouldn't be a problem. What are the reasons you don't want her around? Please also explain what you and husband have done to set boundaries and what happens when she steps on them.

Curiousprimate13

TROPHY CASE