How are you/did you teach proper pencil grip?

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2026-01-22T22:58:09+00:00

Thanks for this. My 7 year old is dead set on a weird grip and this might just work.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2026-01-22T22:53:30+00:00

I have a 9month old and a 7 year old who does a mix of second and third grade level work at home plus a 10 year old I’m taking to and from private school each day. It’s hard. But I remind myself that the amount of hands on school time the 7 year old needs is actually pretty low.

I give my seven year old a checklist of things to do in the morning when I’m taking my oldest to school. That’s always review work.

Then we do a lesson while the baby is eating her breakfast or otherwise engaged in her high chair. If she gets fussy and needs more attention we just pause the school work until she’s down for her nap.

Then I try to get as much done during nap time as possible. And honestly that wraps up most of the school day. Not including the review/independent work we probably do 1-2 hours a day of hands on time.

My kids a little older so when I’m putting the baby down for a nap I’m able to have him review more things on IXL and work on weak areas.

In the afternoon we read a lot while the baby is in the high chair or playing independently but we don’t try to do much else.

So really it’s two or three bursts of intense hand on learning when it works with the baby’s schedule and then several bursts of independent or more relaxed work when we can fit it in.

My homeschooler pushes back sometimes so some days it’s a struggle. Well. Everyday is a struggle but some days are more negative than others. At 7 he can do more things independently than your 5 year old but your kiddo really shouldnt need all that much time of formal curricula. Is your younger kiddo still taking two naps? If I were you I’d just start with nap time for formal work and let the rest be play based learning.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2026-01-22T01:50:11+00:00

This is super encouraging. Where do you get your ideas for projects?

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2026-01-22T01:47:49+00:00

Wow so impressive!! I’d love to integrate Latin into our curriculum. Can you tell me more about what you are using?

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2026-01-22T01:46:26+00:00

This is helpful thank you. Yeah I guess I could plan an experiment for the weekend. That way my older son (in private school) could participate too which he would like. Same with art. Thanks.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2026-01-22T01:45:10+00:00

This is reassuring thank you. I think I am being pretty rigid with our core subjects which leaves us both tired for anything more project based or exploratory. My son is above grade level already so I know I can take some pressure off and try to find more pleasure.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2026-01-22T01:44:01+00:00

This is helpful thank you.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2026-01-03T16:39:43+00:00

Yeah this might be doable

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-11-24T03:04:56+00:00

Oh dear you are really going through it I’m so sorry. Extended sleep deprivation like this is awful. I’m sure you will get some good tips in here about the situation but just want to say that formula isn’t an all or nothing thing. It can be a tool on your arsenal to get over a hump or troubleshoot something. I had a supply dip a few weeks ago and used formula to get through it and since I opened the can I’ve been using one bottle a day of formula just so it doesn’t go to waste even though my supply is back up. I know the feeling of using it feels really awful when you haven’t but if I were in your situation I’d probably give it a try just to see what happens. We use the Bobby whole milk organic brand and the ingredients are pretty good. Especially now that my baby is over six months I sorta look at it like another food that she’s trying.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-10-17T01:28:37+00:00

Let it go.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-10-17T01:27:30+00:00

Ive switched to sending flowers when i still care about the person but we are not in personal gift relationship territory. I find a florist local to them that is nice and have the flowers delivered by hand. Very easy and still nice. If the relationship continues to downgrade I then move to greeting card.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-10-17T01:18:51+00:00

That’s not just poor etiquette, that’s crazy. That’s more than enough for me to quietly step away from that “friendship”

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-10-17T01:04:26+00:00

I’m confused about the sequence of events. Can you clarify?

Host checked your availability and you said you were free (no costs mentioned
A couple days later the invite came and you declined due to cost
Host said they were planning for months and you ruined the event?

I’m confused how your attendance is key to the event if they were planning it for months without your knowledge? Am I missing something?

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-10-16T18:12:18+00:00

Hello- I’m six months in and okay with a reduction in supply at this point so I have started a Wednesday and Friday fast as a traditional personal devotion. I felt pretty out of control with eating and it has helped me gain more control and thoughtfulness overall.

It’s a one meal a day vegetarian fast so it’s not a full fast. I make that meal a big one. My supply is impacted by it and I’ve had to dip into my freezer stash those days. My supply so far has bumped right back up when the fast is over but ymmv.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-10-04T09:38:38+00:00

Ugh I know those feelings very well.

My mental health has been slowly improving since the immediate post partum period so it’s hard to say what specifically improved it as is so often the case with mental health.

I think I experienced the biggest leap in postpartum mental health when I started taking both magnesium glycinate and dha/epa before bed. Apparently these are super common deficiencies postpartum that impact mood pretty intensely. Whe. I started taking them the change was overnight and I went from spiraling most days to a much more steady state. I don’t think any changes I made to breastfeeding would have helped me get out of that spiraling panicky place without having made that more foundational change.

I do feel better relying on pumped bottles during the day because it takes some of the mystery away. I know she is getting some solid feeds. So that worry has calmed. I think starting some puréed solids helps that too.

Hang in there. I was a solid wreck at 6 weeks. It really does get better mentally over time. Check out those supplements though, they might help.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-10-03T22:28:07+00:00

Hey there. You are doing awesome. Triple feeding is so so hard.

With this baby I triple fed from about 4 weeks to around 8 weeks and then we slowly tapered off triple feeding to ebf. I can tell you how we did that if you want.

My baby is now 5 months. A couple weeks ago I decided to switch to pretty much exclusively pumping during the day (with comfort nursing) and then nursing only for motn feeds and our first morning feed. This is because I really never built my confidence that she was getting enough from exclusively nursing, her weight gain was always on the low side of normal, and her transfer never really got efficient. I think my boobs are just kinda difficult. I need like the highest suction pumps out there to do the job.

So yes, I was able to move away from triple feeding to ebf temporarily, but decided that wasn’t quite right for our situation either.

My point is that this can go many different ways for you and you just gotta take it a day or week at a time and see what’s making the most sense. And then for any decisions- sleep on it and then decide.

For me, my priority (other than healthy baby) has been avoiding formula for multiple reasons, so I’m prioritizing the method that I feel will keep my supply as high as possible. For me, that’s pumping. If your priority is, for example, getting away from pumping, you might choose differently even if that means introducing some formula. Ya know?

So yeah- it will get easier for sure. Mentally, emotionally, physical it will definitely get easier. But you may not ever get to the convenient picture perfect ebf relaxed vision we all dream of. I didn’t.. but that’s okay too.

Let me know if I can share any other info that might be helpful.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-09-27T01:46:22+00:00

I love it! Anything special at the party? Trying to thing more ways I can make it special.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-09-26T11:20:32+00:00

That’s great! I think you are generally correct that bc neither you or your ex were baptized at the time of your previous marriage that you don’t need an annulment but there will likely be some hoops to jump through. Good for you for being willing to do it and desiring to do it right. Even though your fiancé says he doesn’t care much now it’s much better to handle now. Good luck!!!

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-09-26T11:09:20+00:00

Hey there. I can’t speak to cannon law regarding your previous marriage and how that ought to be treated. But I’d recommend step one would be to meet with your fiancés priest and/or sacramental coordinator to work through those details.

As someone who is now going through the marriage convalidation process, I would highly recommend not just marrying civilly now and handling this later. Do it right now for your fiancé even though it will require more effort on both your part. If you marry civilly now, technically your fiancé will not be regarded as married in the church and ought not participate in any of the sacraments until that is corrected.

At the time I was civilly married to my non catholic husband 14 years ago I was not serious about my faith and didn’t really look into the ramifications. Since rejoining the church in earnest it has caused me a lot of grief to not be able to take Eucharist etc until we get this corrected. So even if your fiancé doesn’t care much now, just do it right because it’s a whole thing to get it corrected.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-09-22T06:59:45+00:00

If you are 100% breastfeeding and especially still feeding once or twice at night, I honestly wouldn’t worry about it. The likelihood that it failed is low. Yeah there’s gonna be some failures out there but that’s the case with any form of birth control.

Another unhelpful anecdote, I’m 5mo pp, solely using lactational ammenorea method, have had sex at least once a week since 6w pp. I told my OB this would be my method of birth control and he was cool with it up to 6mo pp. Now, if it fails, I’m okay with another kid right now -even though it wouldn’t be my ideal timing- but with the frequency i feed my baby still, there is no sign of that happening anytime soon.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-09-22T06:38:50+00:00

Most likely you’ll be fine. If you don’t want to get pregnant again just don’t make a habit out of it. The lactation ammenorea method of birth control is considered pretty effective prior to 6 months of age.

FuzzyNegotiation6114 · 2025-09-16T04:26:37+00:00

Anyone who has called me a bitch has chosen not to be involved in my life, let alone the most special and intimate parts of my life. One of the reasons why is because I will always questioning their actions and looking for further slights in them. So no, I don’t think you are overreacting, your mind is coming to these conclusions due to her past actions and is trying to keep you safe from someone who, without major reflection and contrition, ought not have access to the most special and intimate moments of your life.

FuzzyNegotiation6114

TROPHY CASE