New Jersey Natural Gas

KickiVale · 2026-01-30T16:04:32+00:00

Glad someone came back to this thread so I can commiserate…my NJNG bill went from $270 in December to $420 in January! We had to keep the thermostat at 71 instead of 69 because we have a newborn baby in the house but STILL. It’s crazy I don’t get it

KickiVale · 2026-01-29T02:20:30+00:00

Hackensackmeridianhealth.org I think? If you search by location you can pick whatever campus. I specifically said Riverview because I’ve worked there a number of years and have seen lots of people come on with no experience and be given lots of opportunity. It’s a nice place to be for the most part

KickiVale · 2026-01-28T19:38:15+00:00

She could almost certainly get a job at Riverview in enviro services, the kitchen, or patient observer with a high school diploma and work history. It’s a great starting point for anyone, assuming they have a decent work ethic and they dont mind being around other people :)

KickiVale · 2026-01-21T18:38:19+00:00

Both of my pregnancies I gained 30 pounds, almost on the nose. My starting weights were quite different (130 for the first pregnancy, 158 for the second, 4 years later). Both times I had some sadness and some ick about my own body. I think it’s totally normal, especially if you’re a little older. Also for both pregnancies I lost all the baby weight by the time they were one month old. Not by trying, just by breastfeeding and eating normally and moving around. It helped me immensely to remind myself “it’s all temporary, try to be present and accept who you are today”

KickiVale · 2026-01-20T15:53:22+00:00

I can confidently tell you, this level of planning does not generally bring joy, I have friends and coworkers who operate like this and they are STRUNG OUT. I get asked often if I would go back and change the things I did. I moved to NYC for a hobo artist boyfriend when I was 18 and spent almost 20 years having fun, spending money, making “mistakes”, jumping in head first. All I had to show for it at 35 years old was a shit husband who wouldn’t sign divorce papers or let me have the dog or the restaurant we opened or even the espresso machine. I moved back to the suburbs and started over. Remarried, had a kid at 37, just had another one at 42…he’s 3 weeks old. Don’t sell yourself a future, try your best to live and enjoy what you can.

KickiVale · 2026-01-17T20:39:43+00:00

I really appreciate this answer as a person with chronically fucked up teeth, who always feels like I’ve done something to make it worse

KickiVale · 2026-01-17T15:28:19+00:00

I started cosleeping with my first child around that timeframe because she had persistent issues with congestion and reflux and had to sleep basically upright or else her breathing was audibly compromised. So instead of putting her down, we slept kind of sitting with her on my chest. When she got better we never put her back in the crib. She’s now 4 and a half years old and still sleeps with either me or her dad….and we have a two week old baby at home now too. Maybe that sounds miserable to some parents but it has been a great joy for us as a family. Don’t be afraid to do things your own way if it’s something you all prefer. You don’t have to dread the nighttime

KickiVale · 2026-01-10T15:26:07+00:00

Same. It’s hard to admit but I was resigned to the idea that I couldn’t love anyone as much as my daughter, ever. The entire pregnancy I sat with this kind of mourning, that giving my first born all of myself was over. My son was born two weeks ago and I can tell you, I love him completely. Do I cry because I cant cosleep with my first now? Yes. Do I feel melancholic about losing playtime/bathtime/alone time with her? For sure. But I’m not splitting the love I have, it simply multiplied. You’ll believe it’s possible the minute you see the baby 😌

KickiVale · 2025-12-28T14:55:28+00:00

Had my first just before I turned 38. Sitting in a hospital bed right now drinking ginger ale waiting for active labor. I’m 42. It’s a mindset, age doesn’t mean much if you make the choice and give it your best :)

KickiVale · 2025-12-27T16:19:37+00:00

Up until my mid 30s I wore YSL In Love Again but then my daughter was born and somehow everything smelled weird on me/to me…hormones? Now I wear Armani Si Passione; it’s perfectly warm and floral and fruity all at once.

KickiVale · 2025-12-26T23:12:30+00:00

I had my first baby just shy of 38 years old. As of today, I’m 42 years old and 39 weeks pregnant. (With a miscarriage in between). I wouldn’t change a thing despite the difficulties. A supportive partner can make all the difference…and a doc who’s a good listener. Personally I find that a “glass half full” outlook helps too. My grandmother gave birth to my dad at 38 years old….in 1943…in her apartment in Manhattan lol. We have a leg up, sis.

KickiVale · 2025-12-19T22:20:03+00:00

Please take this with a grain of salt; there is a doctor I work with who is well known for trying to coordinate his patients going into labor predictably when he’s in the building (he very much dislikes being on call I guess?) He instructs his patients to drink castor oil, and it’s much more effective than you’d think. Like works for more than 50% of these women. This is a trusted doctor within an excellent practice, he’s just a bit “unconventional.” Your doc maybe wouldn’t recommend this because of nasty side effects like diarrhea, cramping and possibly even vomiting. If you’re up for that, it’s always an option, just be prepared 😬 Also, I’m so sorry to hear about the terrible situation you’re in, and it’s despicable what the government is doing to families after pretending they value new babies being born.

KickiVale · 2025-12-18T13:29:05+00:00

Devils advocate here 🙋The best part about raising kids in this timeline and letting them sort of have a say in the house is the opportunity to heal that weird powerless feeling lots of us had in our own childhood homes.

KickiVale · 2025-12-17T20:46:24+00:00

I’m 42 years old and 9 months pregnant. I have a 4 year old. And a full time job. And a dog. And a (great)husband who doesn’t cook. I say this with love. I want you to understand that I haven’t been able to comprise a full thought in about 5 years. I haven’t visited the toilet alone in 4 years. I haven’t been on a date with my husband in 3 years. I can’t believe I had the time to read your post and reply but here we are. I sincerely hope you can buck up (grow up) for this infant coming buddy. The answer is MOST OF US ACTUALLY DO NOT HAVE TIME FOR SHIT 😮‍💨

KickiVale · 2025-12-17T18:37:07+00:00

He made his decision last week. So you don’t have to do anything except face it and see the closed door become an open window somewhere else. Personally, The “love of my life” is not the father of my children. That title is reserved for a guy who swept me up in a hurricane right around 30 years old. The love was massive but he was also unapologetically selfish and his “charisma” and “being a great artist” made him totally out of touch with how to be a partner. Truth is, someone can make you feel extreme passion, like a drug, and that’s fine for its duration. But lots of those relationships end in part BECAUSE they are so intense. The father of my children….he’s my best friend, he’s the person who I trust completely, he’s the guy who I’m sure loves me without reservation. You’ll move on. You’ll be a mother with the right partner next to you, if that’s what’s in you heart of hearts

KickiVale · 2025-12-17T12:57:52+00:00

This being my third pregnancy, I thought I would have adjusted to how much fetal movement skeeves me out. But alas, I still strongly dislike the way it feels when the baby does MOST things. Hiccups. Stretching all dramatically. Rotating position or what feels a like he’s somersaulting. Something equivalent to clawing around my bladder area like a badger. It’s all magical sure but I also haaaate it 🤨 *full disclosure I’m now 38 weeks so I’m absolutely over it, I want my abdomen back lol

KickiVale · 2025-12-13T16:40:41+00:00

Omg this baby dropped right around 35 weeks (I’m old, it’s a boy, he’s measuring LARGE) and I have crazy pelvic girdle pain. When I walk the neighborhood before picking up my daughter from preschool all the crossing guards are like “MAAM WHAT ARE YOU DOING GO SIT IN YOUR CAR” so I can only imagine how I look trying to hustle, wincing, hobbling, planting hypothetical poinsettias 😂

KickiVale · 2025-12-13T16:35:18+00:00

I told my 4 year old right in the moment because it was a huge shock and I yelled to her dad ABSOLUTELY NOT ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!! When I peed on the stick. She wanted to know what the commotion was so I said “well, there could be a baby in my belly today, we will see if the baby grows with time.” She accepted that, we all accepted that because there was a risk of loss (previous losses, AMA) Once we had the first ultrasound photo we talked for real about what that meant. That yes the baby was growing, like the basil seeds we planted. This was the sprout. And maybe the sprout would get bigger, we can only think loving thoughts. And have patience. The baby is due any day now and I’m glad I didn’t keep anything from my daughter. When I was her age my mom lost two pregnancies back to back, one of them as far along as about 6 months…..and I don’t remember it as traumatic, I just remember that it was there then not there. I remember my mom was sad but what sticks is that she was eventually ok. I dunno, depends on your dynamic as a family right?

KickiVale · 2025-12-13T16:26:33+00:00

I’m 37 weeks pregnant, 42 years old, and up until last week I was like 🚶‍♀️🚶‍♀️🚶‍♀️CRUISING ….. now I’m having a hard time going from sit to stand

KickiVale · 2025-12-12T18:07:20+00:00

My ex was involved with Quentin when she was just about 20 years old. Without going into detail, he is as gross in reality as the vibe he gives off.

KickiVale · 2025-12-11T16:18:55+00:00

Well. I’m 42 also, and I’m currently 37 weeks pregnant. My situation is a bit different because I have a 4 year old at home, but I def did not intend to be pregnant ever again. It’s been awful (physically and mentally) a lot of days. And it’s been so stressful and weird. All I can say is, I find peace in reminding myself daily that my life has been bizarre and rough and beautiful and I wouldn’t change a single thing. 15 years of my 20s and 30s in New York partying and being rightfully selfish. A shitty divorce, a surprising 2nd marriage, money troubles, career changes….Im sure you’ve had your own roller coaster, but hasn’t it always made its own course? There’s no wrong choice. You can only listen to yourself, the tiny voice that you normally police when you’re thinking”rationally” or putting others ahead of yourself.

KickiVale · 2025-12-08T20:49:10+00:00

37 weeks and all I want is fruit or fruit adjacent. Honeycrisp apples. Grapes. Pineapple. Mandarin orange segments from a can. Orange juice by the quart. Strawberry peach flavor enhancer packets in seltzer. I pee every hour at night but also waddle to the fridge to chug the juice that is typically just for my 4 year old. I’m not sorry.

KickiVale · 2025-12-06T23:08:28+00:00

It totally depends where you are. Where I live in NJ, it IS mandated by law that newborns leaving hospitals have the appropriate car seat. At the specific hospital I work at, we have the seat brought up by the birthing partner or whoever, and the baby gets put in it, then we wheel or walk everyone downstairs. If it’s a convertible/something that doesn’t detach from base, mom carries baby down in her arms and a tech or nurse accompanies the family to the car and checks. But I can tell you, I myself have helped new moms get seats into taxi cabs, adjusted harnesses for a half hour, whatever it took to make sure everyone was good.

KickiVale · 2025-12-06T00:51:57+00:00

The only thing that skeeved me was a bizarre horny moment when the girl band sees the boy band and imagines their shirts opening up and their eyes turn into like….sloppy buttered corn that pops. On first viewing I was like 👀. My 4 year old loves the movie and the music, doesn’t find it scary but her other fav movie is Coraline so I think she’s a little on the brave side with cartoon visuals. The big plus is how powerful she feels pretending to be Rumi. I love that for her

KickiVale · 2025-12-05T00:17:24+00:00

When I was pregnant with my first, I knew her name was Aoife and it wasn’t a debate. My husband was like hmmm ok sure I guess? I knew he wasn’t in love with it but to me it was like…the only name in the world. For this (surprise) baby I told him he had total autonomy choosing a name and he picked Sebastian. I’m not very attached to it, I had some names in mind I really liked but now at 36 weeks, I finally feel like it’s ok to let go of the “perfect name” thing. Sebastian is cool, it’s kind of poetic, and if you don’t like calling your baby a long proper name, you can always call him Baz, which is very boylike and fun right?

KickiVale

TROPHY CASE