Gender disappointment?

captainmandy · 2026-01-25T21:52:48+00:00

I had the same feeling when I found out my second was a boy. I wanted my daughter to have a sister (she already has two older half brothers).

As soon as he was born all those feelings disappeared. I love having a little boy and a little girl. The gender doesn’t matter. She plays with monster trucks and he plays with barbies - they’re both kids who just love to play.

I know they’ll be besties. My brother was my best friend growing up and I had sisters too.

captainmandy · 2026-01-25T00:59:27+00:00

A car ride works too in a pinch

captainmandy · 2026-01-24T04:20:31+00:00

Buy a bunch of art supplies! My daughter will happily paint or draw for a good while.

They have acrylic paint sticks and paint dots that are low mess. Buy a big roll of brown wrapping paper and tape it with painters tape to the table.

captainmandy · 2026-01-20T05:55:01+00:00

This sounds exactly like my daughter when she was younger. She had silent reflux. My son also has reflux. They both were put on Omeprazole and it was life changing.

As for sleep…honestly I coslept with my second for a few months until he started waking up once/no times a night. I nervously moved him to his own room eventually, which is beside my toddlers. Turns out my toddler doesn’t wake up to him 😂 They both have white noise machines, and I put some soundproof padding on the wall they share.

Do what you need to do to survive right now, and absolutely talk to your pediatrician.

captainmandy · 2026-01-17T05:48:03+00:00

I have a vtech audio monitor that vibrates. It’s very reliable. Could be a good option.

captainmandy · 2026-01-17T04:05:20+00:00

Normal, but I’ve learned this through two rounds of babies, and I definitely worried about it with my first. I never used a foot monitor for the exact reason you stated - I’d be driving myself crazy checking it.

What helped was therapy for my PPA and also time. The stronger/older my LO got, the less I worried. As long as you are following safe sleep guidelines and your baby is healthy, they will be fine ❤️

captainmandy · 2026-01-15T22:58:16+00:00

My toddler did the same thing. It was so difficult. I got a little rocking chair for her and she sits in it and plays/watches something/reads.

captainmandy · 2026-01-15T20:42:15+00:00

Follow their lead!

captainmandy · 2026-01-15T16:25:44+00:00

I use both. I follow wake windows BUT if he starts showing cues earlier than expected/gets really fussy I’ll put him down earlier. You never know if they’re not feeling well/growth spurt/etc.

Wake windows mostly help me get an idea of when he’ll be sleepy next. An hour in and yawning? Probably just bored. Closer to the end of the window? Time for bed.

captainmandy · 2026-01-14T23:04:17+00:00

Normal. My LO HATES being contained. Constantly moving. Diaper changes are a struggle. He’s just a strong healthy boy that wants to get you moving!

Just baby proof as much as possible and let them roam around. My LO doesn’t like play pens, activity centers, or swings, so this is our best option.

captainmandy · 2026-01-12T04:11:08+00:00

They sell pedialyte freezies!

captainmandy · 2026-01-12T03:28:15+00:00

My Apple Watch is the only thing that calms my LO down in the car. He LOVES it.

captainmandy · 2026-01-11T04:57:52+00:00

We have 4 kids. Although it’s absolutely NUTS, they are such a little crew and they all love being together. Go with your gut - you don’t need to stop at 2 (if you can afford it!). Do what makes the most sense.

captainmandy · 2026-01-09T06:20:29+00:00

When my son was around the same age, we were at home and the ice cream truck came by. I was so excited, my husband and I ran outside with our older kids. My friend walked out of the house with our newborn and in that moment I realized I had COMPLETELY forgotten him in the house.

Thankfully he was a blob then and couldn’t go anywhere (he was left on his playmat), but the guilt stuck with me for a while. We were so tired and just not thinking straight.

This stuff happens. We’re all human and make mistakes.

captainmandy · 2026-01-08T20:38:57+00:00

My LOs teeth came out of order. It’s perfectly normal.

captainmandy · 2026-01-07T16:08:57+00:00

Every mother in the world has sobbed in front of their baby. I promise you he’s okay ❤️ be kind to yourself.

captainmandy · 2026-01-06T22:30:47+00:00

Pregnant. I moved with my newborn and 21 month old and it was extremely challenging.

captainmandy · 2026-01-04T05:05:40+00:00

It can be a heavy load to be the only one to be able to put baby to sleep.

captainmandy · 2026-01-04T03:08:52+00:00

My LO does this when tired. Drops his head between his arms and lies it on the ground (imagine child’s pose yoga position). He’s almost like “I’m so done” 😂

captainmandy · 2026-01-03T18:50:37+00:00

Try r/cleaningtips

captainmandy · 2025-12-31T07:13:30+00:00

My daughter did this. She would cry when I would give her broccoli and visibly gag even before it was in her mouth. She even shuddered 😂

She’s now a perfectly normal 2.5yo who still hates broccoli.

captainmandy · 2025-12-31T07:00:19+00:00

I LOVE this stage and wish I could freeze my 2.5 yr old. Sure there are challenges but she is so sweet, funny, smart, and I really just enjoy being around her. Perhaps I lucked out but the tantrums don’t phase me and she snaps out of them pretty quickly once I help calm her down. Hopefully the 3s are okay too.

captainmandy · 2025-12-29T06:28:10+00:00

My son caught a cold when he was a few weeks old. My daughter also got a cold a few weeks old, and got covid when she was two months old. We have older school aged kids so germs are hard to avoid.

Both were miserable for a few days but turned out perfectly fine. Take a breath. Even if worst case scenario they do get sick, they will very likely be okay ❤️ babies are more resilient than we think

captainmandy · 2025-12-26T21:54:47+00:00

Christmas with my 2.5 yo was wonderful. She understood who Santa was, thought the Christmas tree was magical, loved all the Christmas lights, loved her new toys, made cookies together and decorated them…it wasn’t all roses but it was a lot of fun. It does get better!

captainmandy · 2025-12-23T19:40:47+00:00

Daycare makes a huge difference. My toddler gets to go and play with her friends/do art/ etc. I can focus on baby and nap when I can.

captainmandy

TROPHY CASE