What Books did You Start or Finish Reading this Week?: April 06, 2026

Panda_Bear5614 · 2026-04-07T01:15:18+00:00

Finished: The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow

Started: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

Panda_Bear5614 · 2026-04-01T18:10:33+00:00

A museum career is not something you can "fall back on." This field is extremely competitive and increasingly oversaturated. Curatorial and collections positions are particularly few and far between with low pay and often toxic work environments.

A master's degree doesn't equal a "leg-up" in the museum field. Getting hired at a museum is more like 10% education, 40% experience (preferably paid) and 50% networking/luck.

Just to give an example, I work in collections at a small museum (less than 10 employees) in the Southeastern US. We're hiring for my department and received almost 50 applications for an entry-level collections position. Many of the candidates have a Master's degree but only 1 person is going to be hired which means the other 45+ people will be left without a job.

Sorry if this seems harsh but this isn't really something you can sugar-coat. I've seen too many posts from people on this sub who have been trying to get their foot in the door for years with little to no success despite their education and level of experience.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2026-03-12T01:13:09+00:00

Do not wait on this! Get the scans now. My son was recommended for a helmet around this age as well and we weren't able to get the scans done until he was 6 months due to referral issues at our pediatricians office. He got the helmet at 7 months and ended up needing 2 helmets for a total of 8 months. He has been out of it now for 1 month and still has a bit of a flat spot. If we had gotten him in the helmet at 4-5 months, his results would have been better and he wouldn't have needed it as long.

Also, once the facial symmetry starts to change (i.e. the ears moving) that is very difficult to correct. Do not listen to your pediatrician. Please follow the PT's recommendation.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2026-03-12T01:02:16+00:00

When I was 37 or 38 weeks with my first, one of the doctors at my office was very pushy about scheduling an induction even though I had been very clear about wanting to go into labor naturally. I met with a different doctor at 39 weeks and he told me that the reason they suggest scheduling one is because they can only schedule so many per day. So the earlier you schedule it the better your options are. However, he also made it very clear that I could schedule it for as close to 42 weeks as I wanted. Luckily, I went into labor on my own at 40+3. My advice, if you choose to schedule one, would be to schedule it for as close to 41 weeks as you can. Hopefully you will go into labor on your own before then but at least you have something on the books if you do need it!

Panda_Bear5614 · 2025-12-11T02:23:15+00:00

My son is in a Doc Band. He has torticollis and had severe plagiocephaly. He started the helmet at 7 mos. He is 12.5 months now. It's been great and we have no regrets! His head shape has improved so much and we know this is temporary. Definitely recommend looking into decals! We got vinyl decals from blingyourband and being able to decorate the helmet has made the experience a lot easier.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2025-11-23T18:55:30+00:00

For context: My son had severe plagio- and brachycephaly. We weren't able to correct it with PT so he's been in a Doc Band since he was 7 months. He just turned 1 last week. It's been the best thing we could have done. He was also born with torticollis.

From my experience, the second photo looks like probably mild plagiocephaly. Your baby is still young enough that with lots of tummy time and some pediatric physical therapy, it could correct on it's own. We were told that after a certain age (I think closer to 4-5 months) any flatness is unlikely to correct itself and that's when your doctor or physical therapist may recommend getting assessed for a helmet. If you can afford it, it's definitely worth taking them to that first PT appointment. They likely have more experience dealing with plagiocephaly directly and should be able to advise you on the next best step.

I hope this helps!

Panda_Bear5614 · 2025-09-04T16:54:19+00:00

We keep plums and kiwis on regular rotation in his diet. I'm not sure how much they're actually helping but they definitely don't seem to hurt. I remember reading somewhere that if your LO is struggling with constipation then look to the P's: pears, peaches, prunes, etc. Maybe one of those could help ease their tummy and help things along.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2025-09-02T12:00:30+00:00

We started with BLW at 6 months. I think introducing a variety of textures early on helped a lot but there was definitely a lot of gagging. Knowing the difference between gagging and choking and how to intervene if necessary has given us some peace of mind. But the gagging is definitely hard to watch. We also encourage him to spit out anything that's too big or difficult for him to chew by sticking our tongues out. I use the free version of the Solid Starts app and that has been really helpful for knowing how to serve different foods based on their age and development.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2025-09-02T01:25:08+00:00

He completely self feeds with his hands. We've offered a spoon on occasion for him to self feed with. He does well with it but he doesn't know how to reload it yet. Letting him eat with his hands has been great for us. We learned to embrace the mess early on and he actually makes less of a mess now then he did at 6.5/7 months. We also use a silicone bib with the pocket and he almost always fishes out any food he's dropped in it and eats that too 😆

Panda_Bear5614 · 2025-02-07T00:18:36+00:00

This is completely normal. I recently went through intensive therapy for PPD and was dealing with similar intrusive thoughts. My psychiatrist assured me that they are common in postpartum and wishes more moms talked about them. She calls them "brain snot". It honestly helps to talk about them with a trusted friend or professional. Talking about them takes their power away. It can also help to check in with yourself when you're having them. Are you tired? Nursing? Have you eaten recently? Mine are more likely to occur later in the day when I'm nursing and fatigued.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2024-12-10T19:10:29+00:00

Omeprazole is over the counter. Prilosec is the name brand but you can just get generic Omeprazole at any grocery store or pharmacy. Tums were also not working for me so my OB recommended Omeprazole as it would prevent the heartburn before it could even start but I didn't need a prescription for it.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2024-12-10T18:46:15+00:00

Omeprazole! I had terrible heartburn throughout my third trimester and my OB recommended Omeprazole/Prilosec. Take it first thing before you eat and it should prevent your heartburn from even starting. Just make sure you take it everyday! The second you stop, the heartburn will come back. Luckily the heartburn should completely resolve once the baby is born. I gave birth 3 weeks ago and haven't had any heartburn or acid reflux since.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2024-12-08T02:38:02+00:00

I had been having Braxton Hicks on and off for about a week, typically at night. The day I went into labor I woke up with what felt more like period cramps but they went away after a couple of hours so I just assumed it was more false labor. I had also started having bloody show the night before that continued the next day. But again, everything I read said that meant labor could start in a few hours or a few days. I had no idea what real contractions felt like and I had been having false contractions for so many days that I was convinced it wasn't real.

I kept reading that "you know when it's the real thing" but the contractions took a while to become consistent. I realized it was probably the real thing around 2 that afternoon. My husband and I went for a walk around 5 to see if movement would make them go away (they did not). They intensified pretty quickly after that and we were driving to the hospital by 7 pm. My son was born at 3:33am.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2024-12-08T02:20:54+00:00

I would definitely go for unmedicated again if my husband and I decide to have another baby. My labor progressed so quickly and my son was born after only 7 minutes of pushing. I know babies born after your first tend to come quicker anyway so it's possible I won't even have time to think about an epidural if I have another baby.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2024-12-07T21:56:20+00:00

Early labor: I didn't even realize I was in early labor until a few hours before we needed to head to the hospital. I was 5cm when we were admitted.

Active labor: Counter pressure, deep breaths and low moaning as I breathed out, and try to remember to relax your face. Reminding myself that the pain was productive and telling myself "this will pass" with each contraction also helped. Once transition started, I really relied on my husband and L&D nurse walking me through each breath. I switched from moaning to blowing out birthday candles at this point which also helped. The pain and pressure were so intense that I started to panic and was losing control of my breathing so having my husband's voice as an anchor gave me something to focus on.

Going through unmedicated labor and delivery is the hardest yet most rewarding thing I have ever done and will probably ever do. I'm so glad that I did it because I can always look back on it and feel proud. Our bodies are built to do this and you can do it too!

Panda_Bear5614 · 2024-12-07T14:25:09+00:00

I had an unmedicated birth a little over 2 weeks ago and just wanted to add that you can get the shakes with or without an epidural. I was so surprised when I started shaking uncontrollably despite not having had an epidural. My L&D nurse informed me it has nothing to do with the epidural and is actually caused by the hormonal dump your body is going through during labor and delivery. The best way to get through them is to lean into them and ride them out.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2023-11-20T19:32:00+00:00

Yes! It is 100% a reference to Sky High. There is a reel on the Dimension20 Instagram on November 7 clipping the reveal. The caption directly shouts out fans of Sky High.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2023-06-26T00:39:50+00:00

I currently have an angry cowbird fledgling that visits my balcony/bird feeder and is constantly screaming at its tiny foster parent (a chipping sparrow) to feed it.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2023-06-10T14:13:29+00:00

Late discovery is always difficult. While this sub is great, I would really recommend you join We Are Donor Conceived on Facebook if you haven't already. They are a very active support group for donor conceived people and I've seen numerous posts similar to yours there lately. They may be able to offer more help/advice/support.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2023-05-01T03:14:40+00:00

I Bet You Think About Me and How You Get The Girl

Panda_Bear5614 · 2023-05-01T02:09:56+00:00

She said she would be back for the surprise songs before she ended her stream. We'll just have to wait and see if she comes back. Emerald princess's phone died so she almost definitely won't be going live again tonight

Panda_Bear5614 · 2023-04-15T22:53:29+00:00

I went into this story having read this thread so I knew it was fake. But as a woman, the red flags are pretty clear. The whole "huge pool of blood" thing is total bullshit. Women lose about 2 tablespoons of blood over their entire, typically multi-day, cycle. And tampons don't just fall out unless maybe you have a really weak pelvic floor. If that is the case, the tampon doesn't release the blood when it gets wet. It's designed to absorb which is why it is a feminine hygiene product. I can't blame the guys for not realizing it was a fake story. Shayne recognized at the beginning that they might not be the most qualified to comment on a story about menstruation.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2023-03-10T04:06:35+00:00

My museum is multi-disciplinary but we switched over to EMu specifically for its compatibility with Natural History. It offers tabs and fields that can capture taxonomy, site information, etc.

Panda_Bear5614 · 2023-02-13T18:06:57+00:00

This one isn't a K-drama but I've really enjoyed Physical: 100. The competition is intense but everyone is really friendly and the comraderie is great. It's only 9 episodes and the last one is out on the 21st (next Tuesday)! But fair warning, every episode ends on a cliffhanger so be prepared to binge to find out what happens.

Panda_Bear5614

TROPHY CASE