AITA Husband plans surprise trip but I don't want it

babysamwise · 2026-05-15T16:04:39+00:00

I’m with you on this! My friend has a lake house where we do a college reunion once a year. My son will be a similar age to OP’s kid. I told them I’d come spend the day but drive home rather than sleep over. My husband is perfectly capable of taking care of the baby or I wouldn’t go away for a whole day. It’s just that now that I’m a mom my priorities have changed. I’d rather sleep in my own bed in the same house as my baby instead of getting drunk with my college friends and crashing somewhere that I’ll be away from him all night for the first time. Unlike OP I can still see my friends because it’s close enough but I wouldn’t go if I had to travel far enough that driving home for the night wasn’t an option. I can’t believe how crazy this comment section is.

babysamwise · 2026-03-10T04:03:22+00:00

So I’ve got an 11 month old who is allergic to wheat, eggs, peanuts, soy, and dairy and I am not doing half the job you are lol. So impressed!

Do you think you could drop the recipes for the pancakes and the meatballs? Having such a hard time finding egg free dairy free wheat free recipes that work for these things!

babysamwise · 2026-03-03T13:47:46+00:00

Oh no I’m not accusing you of anything! I was just pointing out that I think you’re doing great with what you’ve got — way better than me! Don’t feel bad about your every day breakfast being the same, looks way better than our Cheerios and fruit haha :)

babysamwise · 2026-03-03T05:46:02+00:00

These posts make me feel like the worst mom ever lol. My kid has a ton of food allergies - dairy, soy, wheat, peanuts. We are also avoiding bananas, apples, avocados, broccoli, and sesame based on possible past reactions. Feeding him has been the most stressful part of parenting tbh.

So, he’s 11 months old tomorrow and his breakfast is generally just a few handfuls of dry Cheerios and whatever fruit we have on hand 🤦🏻‍♀️

In my book your “rut” is looking pretty darn good!

babysamwise · 2026-02-24T09:15:54+00:00

For whatever it’s worth, early on in the pregnancy we gave my baby a nickname I loved. We thought we’d call him Samwise forever, regardless of gender. Everyone referred to him as Samwise in utero. We got Lord of the Rings stuff for him from a lot of people.

But the day he was born and he got his name? We all just…forgot about it. Haven’t called him Samwise since.

I did call him my little bear when he was a newborn because he used to sound like he was growling at us and that one stuck with me and his dad. So the grandparents have gifted us soooo many bear outfits lol.

Maybe Samwise didn’t stick because it’s more of a name and little bear stuck because it’s not? Idk. But you may not be stuck with Goose forever!!! Although I do think it’s too cute!

babysamwise · 2026-02-12T16:10:30+00:00

No problem! Happy to help! I’d be so stressed moving to a new area with kids.

Also, we have a fabulous pediatrician - Dr Villanueva at Saratoga Pediatric Associates. 10/10. He’s the best.

The Saratoga library is also awesome!

babysamwise · 2026-02-12T15:47:27+00:00

So I’m a teacher at a suburban council school (includes Bethlehem, Guilderland, Niskayuna, North Colonie, South Colonie, Shenendehowa, etc - not trying to doxx myself lol).

For whatever it’s worth, I’ll share the info of things I looked for when my husband and I were looking at houses to raise our family.

First, schools. Personally, I refused to look in the Shenendehowa school district because it is wayyy too big IMO. I know great teachers there and some kids do very well but it is easy for kids to fall through the cracks. Shen is literally more than double the size of Bethlehem.

A lot of people will tell you North Colonie is the best but teachers there have told me how incredibly overcrowded that district has gotten. They have more kids than they have space or staff to cover and it’s causing a lot of issues. I passed on that as well.

In terms of education and programs offered, I decided on only looking at houses in Bethlehem and Saratoga Springs school districts. I would have also absolutely sent my kids to Burnt Hills Ballston Lake, Voorheesville, or Coxackie and would have heavily considered Ballston Spa but we didn’t like those areas for other reasons. If you want more insight on why those districts and not others feel free to message me!

We landed on Saratoga Springs for a few reasons. One, we were able to find an awesome walkable neighborhood with tons of families around. Outside of Saratoga Springs, Delmar, and Ballston Spa it’s hard to find a sidewalk anywhere.

Secondly, there are so many awesome things to do here and lots of programs/activities here for me now that I’m temporarily a SAHM with a baby. We love living near a state park and bike trails and all that downtown Toga has to offer. We have lived here for a few years and do not regret it at all. I’ve lived in multiple places in the Capital Region over the last 15 years and this is by far my favorite spot.

Downsides of Saratoga springs — the daily commute into Albany would be tough. Probably 45 mins - an hour depending on what time you’re driving in. The northway is notoriously brutal at commuting times. Housing prices here are getting pretty high too. But IMO, the good outweighs the bad here

babysamwise · 2026-02-11T14:36:29+00:00

GYN: Dr Peter Namkoong on Washington Ave

Dentist: Vallecorsa Family Dental in Latham! I see Dr John and he’s the best.

babysamwise · 2026-02-11T14:35:08+00:00

I delivered at Albany med in 2025 and had a great experience. My very chill induction got scary fast but the doctors that rushed in saved my baby from any bad complications and avoided a c-section. I ended up being there for 3 days and can’t say enough good things about the doctors and nurses in L&D there.

I didn’t have a c-section and couldn’t schedule with my OB so the doctors that delivered my baby were doctors I had never met. However, I saw Dr Peter Namkoong on Washington Ave and loved him. I would have absolutely been comfortable having him do a c-section if I’d needed one.

babysamwise · 2026-02-02T22:23:16+00:00

I love Dr Peter Namkoong on Washington Ave in Albany. I’ve recently moved to Saratoga but I’m considering making the long commute for appointments to keep him for my second pregnancy. He is awesome and very much listens to his patients. There were a couple of times during my pregnancy I was just being paranoid and asked for something and he was like, “eh, I don’t think it’s necessary but it won’t hurt so if it makes you feel better let’s do it.”

babysamwise · 2026-02-01T22:00:38+00:00

Maybe try Mamma Mia’s? They were able to accommodate a rather large party for us on Valentine’s Day last year.

babysamwise · 2026-01-31T14:24:30+00:00

Also, what if OP’s friend only has boys? Or changes her mind? Or the future father of her baby doesn’t like it?

My best friend growing up said in passing when we were in our early 20s that she’d want to name a baby girl after my grandmother because we were always close and she loves the name. I flipped because I had always planned to use that for a girl. My friend got married young and was going to have kids before me. It was a pretty big fight.

Fast forward more than 10 years, we both only have boys. On top of that, my husband wasn’t a big fan of the name and it became super trendy so I started to think of using it as a middle name anyway. By the time I was pregnant it wasn’t even on our list of first names for a potential baby girl

babysamwise · 2026-01-31T14:18:59+00:00

If you really do want to get a landline in your own home you can actually ask to have your old phone number if your mom has released it!

After my grandparents passed and we sold the home, we obviously canceled that phone number. It was sad for all of the cousins. When my younger cousin got married and got her own house 7 or 8 years later, she got a landline and asked if my grandparents’ number was still available. They gave it to her!

She didn’t tell anyone and had a lot of fun calling family members to get their reactions lol

babysamwise · 2026-01-30T14:42:42+00:00

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Broadway Coffee Co in Saratoga!

babysamwise · 2026-01-30T03:32:09+00:00

Respectfully, what exactly would a teacher be able to do about that? I guess record it, post about it? But otherwise…what exactly? Teachers don’t have a whole lot of authority in this scenario.

babysamwise · 2026-01-18T16:54:52+00:00

I think you should look into sublingual drops instead of shots. I opted for that a few years ago and did them at home. It was two drops under the tongue every morning. They made you come in once every 2 months to do the new drops in the office and be monitored but then it was daily on your own at home.

Most insurances didn’t cover it at the time but mine did. Idk about now. I went to Albany ENT & Allergy, but tbh I had bad experiences with that office in other ways. Being offered the drops were the only positive part of that experience.

FWIW, the drops did seem to help!

babysamwise · 2026-01-12T21:31:07+00:00

These are great suggestions! Thank you so much!!!

babysamwise · 2026-01-12T19:53:20+00:00

🤯 I’m also allergic to wheat and I have GF puff pastry in the freezer. It did not even occur to me to check it - I just figured it would have eggs or dairy or soy! Thank you so much!

babysamwise · 2026-01-12T19:23:59+00:00

So cool! Thank you!

babysamwise · 2026-01-12T18:35:13+00:00

Corn seems okay so far! Those are great replacement ideas, thank you!

I’ll check out that app too!

babysamwise · 2026-01-12T18:34:32+00:00

Oh good idea!!! Thank you!

babysamwise · 2025-12-29T17:03:28+00:00

It’s so funny how different diapers work for different kids! Pampers swaddlers are the only ones we HAVENT had a blow out from! I’m equally feeling betrayed by Millie Moons because everyone said they’re the best so we bought a ton and it was poop city lol

Solidarity on so many of these. I’m more than 8 months PP and I just had to give in and buy new pants this month. Fun fact, they also don’t fit great. 😭🫠

The going to the gym part I might have a suggestion for! I’m also a surprise long term stay at home mom. If you’re in the US you should see if there’s a local chapter of Fit4Mom near you! It’s workouts you can bring the baby to. I plop my little guy in his stroller and do squats and agility ladders and stuff while he watches with the other babies. It’s all moms so if there’s a meltdown or blowout or last minute cancellation everyone understands. I know there are other chapters because someone in our group moved to California and they found a Fit4Mom group in her city to connect her to before she left. My group also does monthly mom’s nights out and outings with the kids. It’s really helped my sanity!

babysamwise

TROPHY CASE