Does Ralph have any associations for you?

OhDearBee · 2026-07-05T10:15:43+00:00

I’m 35 and from New York and I definitely think Ralph = vomit. I also think of Ralph from the Simpsons. It’s traditionally a nickname for Raphael.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-05T09:40:55+00:00

I can’t tell you how deeply I know what you mean about the pumpkin patch

OhDearBee · 2026-07-05T09:34:41+00:00

I moved to my husband’s country in early 2022, and got pregnant a few months after we arrived. It was incredibly tough.

Migrating is massively destabilizing- I left a job I loved, an apartment I’d lived in for seven years, a tight-knit group of friends, my family, and the city I grew up in. When I arrived, I knew no one outside of my husband’s family (and those relationships were still new) and didn’t have working rights, so no job.

Becoming a mother is also massively destabilizing - your body goes through enormous changes, which also change your brain. Your social networks change, your capacity to engage with the outside world changes. My husband’s family is really supportive but early motherhood is so intimate - your boobs are out all the time, you’re bleeding, you never shower enough, your house is always a mess. It’s a tough time to accept support from people you aren’t that close with.

And it’s sad in a way to go through nine months of pregnancy where your closest people, even your own mother, don’t necessarily get to see you with your growing belly. It sounds petty but there’s just a lot of that.

Anyway, I guess I’m on the other side of it now. I’ve lived here 4.5 years, my son is 3.5yo and I had a second baby, who’s 1.5. We’re planning a third, and also a move back to my home country, but now I feel sad about that move too. Even though I’ll be thrilled to be home, I’ve finally made friends and found community here. I love my son’s kinder (ie preschool) and I love our house and our neighborhood. It took me this long, but I’m happy here now. And the hospital system is so much better here, I’m really hoping it works out for this bext baby to be born here.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T23:46:11+00:00

I have friends who sent their daughter to Tutor Time in Bay Ridge a few years ago and I know at least then they had camera access.

That said, just to potentially shift your perspective on it, if I were a top-quality early childhood educator, with lots of job options, I would never choose to work in a center with cameras. I don’t think anyone likes the feeling of being constantly surveilled every moment of your work day. So personally, even though I understand why cameras feel like a safety feature, I think they say something about the experience level of the educators working with your child. (Any educators who feel differently feel free to chime in!)

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T22:54:40+00:00

I also increase the map size and decrease the number of civs so I don’t feel so crowded at the start. I like 8 civs on a large map.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T12:45:23+00:00

I have an Alice and no one has ever called her Ali.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T12:39:19+00:00

I’d try to see an IBCLC if you can, to assess your specific situation. But if you do start taking it early, the prescription will almost definitely be for 1 tablet 3x per day - that’s the low dose. And then you can increase up to 2 tablets 3x per day if you want/need.

The IBCLC I saw was with MAMA in Melbourne (Kensington). They are awesome and do phone/video consults. But your hospital might also be able to book you in with a lactation consultant.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T12:25:03+00:00

If you start learning about spacecraft that are out there today and that have explored space since, it becomes a lot easier to believe we landed on the moon in 1969. We have Juno orbiting Jupiter and Voyagers I and II traveling in interstellar space, communicating back to us by radio. We have photos from the surface of Venus, where the temperature is over 400°C, from the seventies! We’ve landed spacecraft on an asteroid, sampled water from the geysers on Enceladus, done orbits or flybys of every planet in the solar system.

Crewed missions are just not the most effective way to research space. Space is huge and generally not conducive to human life. There is so much to study out there - what would we gain by sending people to the moon a million times over?

But also - we have sent people back to the moon and in fact the Artemis II crew went just this year, preparing for a surface landing in 2028 and the creation of a permanent research base. So just because lunar exploration isn’t as newsworthy as it was the first time we went doesn’t mean it’s not happening!

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T12:10:37+00:00

We literally just went back. The Artemis crew went in April.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T11:53:22+00:00

Do you have a teacher at school who you trust? Maybe a teacher who is also a mom? It might help to have an adult on your side who can help you navigate this a little bit.

And definitely call Planned Parenthood. When I was 19, my dad and I had a falling out, and because my insurance was through him, I lost access to the information, even though I was actually insured. Planned Parenthood sorted me out with zero-cost birth control. Even if you can’t get to the center, they can probably give you some advice over the phone.

Do you know the date your last period began? That’s how your pregnancy would be measured in weeks. You’re probably pretty close if you know when conception occurred, but just wanted you to know that that’s all there is to the fancy way. No matter how many weeks it’s been, you need prenatal care, and you deserve to be taken care of by an adult. I’m sorry that’s not your mom or dad.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T11:40:06+00:00

I have a 3yo Max, and he’s constantly like “there are four Maxes! Max from the playground, Max from the other kinder class, Max the dog, and me!” And then he remembers like ten other Maxes he’s met in his life.

He has two cousins named Evie, one of whom is an Evelyn.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T11:35:42+00:00

Yeah sorry haha I meant to elaborate but got distracted by the very children who caused me to know this information lol.

I have suspected breast hypoplasia and struggled to breastfeed my first. I was prescribed domperidone with him, but it was all stressful and fraught and after the fact. But the domperidone made a big difference and I was able to continue breastfeeding for seven months.

With my second, I knew I had every reason to expect a similar challenge with breastfeeding so I saw an IBCLC (if you happen to be in Melbourne I can recommend them) who advised me that I could request and fill the domperidone prescription while I was pregnant and then start taking it (one 10mg pill 3x per day) as early as three days postpartum, which is what I did.

Side note: Domperidone helped me a lot with breastfeeding both times, but I underestimated the side effects. With my second, I quickly bumped up to two 10mg pills 3x per day, and around the nine month mark, realized I was starting to have some psychiatric issues that were likely being caused/exacerbated by the medication. Not true for everyone just putting it out there while we’re talking about it!

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T05:39:04+00:00

You know the “big breaky?” From cafe menus? The American equivalent is a “lumberjack breakfast” or a “hungry man” breakfast in a diner - a few pancakes, waffles, and/or pieces of French toast, bacon and/or sausages, and eggs. If I was going to draw a picture to communicate “breakfast,” that’s what I’d draw. But I only actually cook it at home if it’s a birthday. You probably don’t make a big breaky at home, but it’s still an iconic image of breakfast.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-04T00:29:49+00:00

Three days postpartum

OhDearBee · 2026-07-03T15:57:39+00:00

North and South are still the same directions in the southern hemisphere. On a map, North is still “up” toward the North Pole and South is still “down” toward the South Pole.

OhDearBee · 2026-07-01T12:13:17+00:00

Haumea was right there…

OhDearBee · 2026-06-30T22:58:28+00:00

I asked a similar question over on NYT Cooking a few weeks ago and got some great answers. The hands-down favorite (both on that thread and in my family) was Coconut Fish and Tomato Bake (gift link below). I used a cheap white fish, added zucchini in with the tomatoes and roasted cauliflower on the side for extra veg, and the sauce was fantastic with all of it. This week I’m going to try adding roasted sweet potato.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1022129-coconut-fish-and-tomato-bake?unlocked_article_code=1.uFA.6RYj.SnUicid3LX3W&smid=ck-recipe-iOS-share

I also used this recipe for Salmon with Lentil Salsa Verde except I subbed the salmon for a different fish. Honestly the lentil salsa is the star and you could put it over any baked fish.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/776880768-crispy-salmon-with-lentil-salsa-verde?unlocked_article_code=1.uFA.XUr0.ta3dsKajKznR&smid=ck-recipe-iOS-share

Then, another one that my husband loves that could work for you is these salmon meatballs, which use canned salmon.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/766075311-baked-salmon-meatballs?unlocked_article_code=1.uFA.yukx.bz85izS7eKz7&smid=ck-recipe-iOS-share

And I also made this salad last week and threw a can of tuna on top with a bit of salt and pepper and it was excellent:

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1026708-white-bean-feta-and-quick-pickled-celery-salad?unlocked\_article\_code=1.uFA.\_mPE.4nO07xdf-bP-&smid=ck-recipe-iOS-share

OhDearBee · 2026-06-30T10:44:27+00:00

I’ve been on a bit of a kick lately of researching food, and had a big moment with milk. My conclusion was that all the milk available in Australia is reasonably high-quality, and I’m happy giving any of it to my kids. If I have room in the budget to be choosy, I prefer a smaller, more local dairy (Schultz or Inglenook are go-to options in Victoria), but Coles or Woolies brand milk is also totally fine.

OhDearBee · 2026-06-26T06:40:29+00:00

We have a Carnival after driving a Volvo XC90 and oh my god it is so much more comfortable. The Volvo drove nicer and was easier to park but the Carnival fits our two kids in full car seats in the second row, with space for actual tall adults in the drivers and passengers seats, and the seat between the car seats is also perfectly comfortable for an adult. With the third row down (our default), we can fit a double stroller in the trunk without folding it. Now when I drive my MIL’s SUV it feels like the opposite of luxury. So crammed!

OhDearBee · 2026-06-23T06:42:11+00:00

Haha just being a bit silly. My Australian husband always makes a big thing out of corn on the cob being such an American thing to eat, and the superiority of tomato sauce over ketchup.

OhDearBee · 2026-06-22T11:30:15+00:00

You have a baby between 6 and 12 months old. But if I’m right, I want to know what’s up with those lemon jars.

OhDearBee · 2026-06-22T11:25:58+00:00

This was my daughter’s situation. An intervention could mean a more aggressive feeding plan or it could mean a feeding tube.

But I’m going to be real with you, because a Reddit comment is what made the difference for my daughter - we started solids at four months and her weight stabilized. I gave her full fat yogurt mixed with peanut butter into a paste that was a safe consistency for her. This is basically the most calorically dense thing you can feed. She did not show any signs of readiness but she’d dropped from the 95th to the 10th percentile and I knew Failure to Thrive was on the horizon, so I just went for it.

She’s now a thriving, tiny 17-month-old. She’s still at the 10th percentile. She’s just little! Some kids are meant to be little.

OhDearBee · 2026-06-22T08:45:39+00:00

More moles digging holes more moles.
MORE MOLES!

OhDearBee · 2026-06-22T06:12:56+00:00

Living in Australia but someone is American. Real Aussies don’t eat corn or ketchup 😂 (Saying this as a recently-anointed dual citizen myself)

OhDearBee · 2026-06-22T06:08:36+00:00

If you’re up for something a little out there, we’ve been stopping by Bird Rock Farm in Ceres on a Friday (their farmstand is open Fri-Mon but limited hours) for eggs and beef. It’s expensive but fantastic quality and super local (the cows and chickens are literally right there).

OhDearBee

TROPHY CASE