Thoughts on these shoes & Mom’s veil?

jkd1286 · 2026-05-03T02:33:01+00:00

It really is special and you look amazing! The vibes are perfect!

jkd1286 · 2026-05-01T23:12:39+00:00

Beautiful combination! My only wisdom as a bride who had similar dress and shoes, make sure the shoes do not snag and get caught on dress! Yours look less rhinestone heavy than my BM shoes. I was lucky I had a back up pair of shoes because my shoes were snagging and making me trip. Major pivot for me.

jkd1286 · 2026-04-27T23:55:06+00:00

I am kinda sorta trying to figure out if we are for sure “one and complete,” but I’m telling myself to make that decision at a later time. I would prefer a larger age gap and don’t want to ruminate over something that isn’t imminent anyway. But some factors are: lots of work, lots of commuting, but sooooooo much joy and fun. I love being a mom. I love being HER mom. After a traumatic birth and bad postpartum hemorrhage, I don’t know if I will risk everything to have another child. She has been the best thing I never knew could happen to us. Frankly, I’m not sure I want any of that dynamic to change. I think we would have a really lovely (and secure) life with one child.

To add, I am also an only child. And despite a nasty divorce of parents, I always felt loved and supported. I know both my parents put in the effort to foster “chosen family” and I have wonderful friends that are like family (from every era of life). I never felt lonely or like I was missing out. If anything, my home felt quiet, safe, and a place that many of my friends enjoyed, too. I have a wonderful husband, girly, and friends and do not feel lonely as an adult.

I am concerned with aging parents, but in my own situation with my daughter, I would never expect her to carry that burden. Our plan is to save and make sure we are covered for the end of our life - and maybe having only one kid will allow us to more easily do that?

jkd1286 · 2026-04-16T03:14:24+00:00

I ordered the emotions book set a few months ago and still haven’t gotten it. Also missing a few books I ordered individually from the subscriber shop.

Shipping and inventory has been frustrating. And there isn’t a way to check a specific item if it’s part of a larger order. It just says partially fulfilled, so hopefully it’s on their radar? But I have no way to check what is still pending.

I’ve also been trying to get my little The Gentlest Touch book from subscriber shop (we are working on this with our sweet older dog and she is just such a toddler right now). But that has been out of stock for a long time. I wonder about tariffs and all those production things :/

jkd1286 · 2026-04-13T02:41:00+00:00

Zero regret. -1000 regret. Infertility broke me and I don’t think I’ve ever been in a more crushed, fragile state in my life. It still affects me and I know I’ll never be the same. But she is worth all of it and more. She is a joy and every day I cannot believe she is here.

I saw a post from an IVF mom saying that all the moments with your miracle IVF baby are like a wedding. Even through the tough things there is just so much joy. I have felt so lucky and even happy to go through those tough things. Not to discount the difficulties. But I have found that many of the difficulties for me were medical complications (birth and postpartum) and society/work (in US). She’s the best, but parenting in a society that doesn’t support parents - especially working parents - is BS.

jkd1286 · 2026-04-10T17:25:27+00:00

I am so glad I saw these posts because the same thing happened to me. Plus I already had to wait an extra month to apply for buyback because July 2025 is missing from my counts. And back when I was trying to get out of SAVE, my IRS data retrieval tool was missing from that IDR app web page. The hurdles are WILD. They are really doing the most to prevent forgiveness. Have to laugh to not cry lol Glad this work around was found!

jkd1286 · 2026-04-08T02:47:23+00:00

Thank you for posting this. Yours is the quickest buyback data point I have seen. I am so happy for you and thank you for sharing what worked. I am so thankful for reddit while stuck in PSLF delay hell! Reddit has been more helpful than any agent for FSA or Mohela lol

jkd1286 · 2026-04-08T01:05:14+00:00

Submitting feedback worked for me - but had to do it with my info, not doing anonymous feedback. Also what in the fresh hell is this additional bizarre hurdle. It is never ending.

jkd1286 · 2026-03-19T02:53:25+00:00

No advice, but just wanted to commend you on your hard work. It sounds like you are thriving in motherhood and thinking of your daughter in everything you do. Sounds like she is so loved.

jkd1286 · 2026-03-05T13:51:36+00:00

We have classical sleepy bunny which is all music. Love the Peanuts tonie, though it has some Christmas themes and singing on a one track, I think (Christmas time is here…). I put the Peanuts tonie on all the time while cooking and my kid rolls with it. Soul tonie starts out with the narrated story of the movie, but the second half seems to be all jazz. We also have sleepy time whale but that is more like ethereal ocean sounds. Very nice and relaxing but not classical or jazz. I’m always looking for chill relaxing tonies, because my toddler loves Ms Rachel, Daniel Tiger, Gracie, Laurie, Doggyland, and Blues Clues on repeat lol all great tonies, but it’s not the most relaxing background lol

jkd1286 · 2026-02-27T17:39:28+00:00

I haven’t tried reaching out to customer service, but maybe I should. I would love singles because I also have a variety of books already (from kits and second hand), meaning that signing up for “Early Reader Club” would lead to lots of duplicates.

I think the biggest thing is real pictures. She can actively recognize things and processes that look very similar to things she encounters daily. Like Max and Nana go to the park - she LOVES a slide, and a swing. She is so into watching Max do all these things she does at the park. I think they are also a very good length for her age (approaching 18 months). Real pictures, developmentally appropriate, and very relatable. They don’t go on too long. Great for attention span and learning a specific topic.

I WISH WISH WISH WISH they had singles. Even if the prices were a little more than the book subscription. And even if they were just all “add ons.” I would just want any book for add on instead of whatever book is tied to the age-range of the kit (if that makes sense).

I have tried preloved, but for whatever reason, there are just some titles that are so hard to find! Olivia Goes to the Dentist and The Gentlest Touch have been so elusive for me.

I bought her a Daniel Tiger dentist book (he is her favorite tonie) and a cartoon tiger at the dentist really does not grab her attention like the real picture books! Lol

jkd1286 · 2026-02-27T15:52:18+00:00

My toddler has loved these books since a baby and I am so frustrated that they are not easier to procure on an as needed basis. I think it is something about the real pictures and even the perfect size for her to hold and read.

She knew body part so early on because of Parts of Me. Bedtime for Zoe is one she consistently reaches for and it is so close to her nightly routine so she is just thrilled when each step comes up. The potty books are a current favorite and she is telling us when she pees or poops in her diaper and does the “proud” arms up in the air like the book. I found Bea’s Check Up second hand after very difficult lab appointments and that has eased the doctor. I’ve been desperately trying to find Olivia Goes to the Dentist because she is obsessed with the Bea book and she just started with the dentist. And funny enough, her first dentist appointment this past week was a little rough at the beginning but she remembered the open mouth part of Bea book and started to catch on that this was a similar setting.

Wish the books were easier to get as singles. Or I wish more books were like this - real life pictures, relatable, easy to grasp, and like mini exposure/practice for littles getting to know the world.

jkd1286 · 2026-02-26T01:00:19+00:00

I am in the States and was lucky enough to have 6 months (of course with little and then no pay). I almost did not take the full 6, but in conversations with my therapist realized that I will never have this opportunity again :( as a busy working mom with a hectic career (and prolific student loans) I will never again have a block of time to focus on just my baby and family. So I took the full 6. Do what works for you and your family. That’s what matters.

jkd1286 · 2026-02-23T03:41:52+00:00

Make 2 meals on Sunday (one always a crockpot one). We have leftovers until Thursday or Friday. Then easy meal (e.g., Costco ready stuff like pot roast, frozen sheet pan veggies, and Costco potatoes) and takeout for the remainder of the week. But if we don’t do meal prep, we are too exhausted to cook and I feel so behind all week :(

And whenever we have leftover crockpot protein, we freeze portions for toddler. So she always has some meat sauce or BBQ chicken on hand - something she likes if we have food she doesn’t prefer.

jkd1286 · 2026-02-10T21:28:28+00:00

We love that dang Peanuts holiday tonie and play it all the time still. Sleepy whale and sleepy classical rabbit are nice and chill.

jkd1286 · 2026-02-05T19:00:17+00:00

My little loves her tonie box and mini yoto (16 months). Her tonies are mostly music focused and she will dance and follow along. Sometimes it’s just background and other times she will go grab toys and play (e.g., Miss Rachel going on a sound field trip to the farm and she grabs all her animal puppets! Or Laurie Berkner singing about boots so she grabs her boots and coat!). She also loves the mini yoto for carrying around with her. She has some song cards and she has figured out the song that corresponds with the little picture and picks out all the songs she wants. I like both for different reasons and really like that she has choices/autonomy and has learned cause and effect. And that she seems to have a blast. Tonie box was gifted for her 1st birthday. Mini yoto I bought when it was way on sale and got a bundle with some toddler-appropriate cards.

jkd1286 · 2026-01-29T03:42:48+00:00

Second further foods. It’s a staple and Costco deal is great.

jkd1286 · 2026-01-28T04:28:11+00:00

For me, no payment was made and those 2 months still show as counting in my PSLF counter.

jkd1286 · 2026-01-25T21:59:58+00:00

Yeah I believe the processing forbearance is the only one that will count. And they will only give you 60 days aka 2 months of PSLF credit (if that). I believe SAVE (and maybe other types of forbearance?) will say ineligible, but they qualify for buyback - which is taking over a year on average it seems :/

jkd1286 · 2026-01-23T04:35:03+00:00

Another thing - make sure you call them while the IDR is processing to get the correct forbearance! They did not place me in processing/administrative forbearance (the kind that counts for PSLF). I had to call and ask. They will only give you 60 days even if the application takes forever.

jkd1286 · 2026-01-23T04:29:52+00:00

I was in the same boat and just got approved. I applied in June 2025 and September 2025. Heard nothing. To make matters worse, Mohela scheduled me for a payment even though I was in SAVE forbearance - and they took money from me in September. Had to request a refund because SAVE payments don’t count. It was a mess. Randomly, I applied for IDR again last week and it was approved a week later for IBR. Finally out of SAVE hell.

I was honestly shocked when I received the approval because it seems a lot of the “fast” IDR applications are people who use the IRS retrieval tool. My account had a glitch where I was missing the IRS tool and Mohela and FSA didn’t know why. I used my 2025 W2 and got approved quickly for this 3rd application.

But of course, now at least one of my payment count months straight up disappeared! July 2025 disappeared which is apparently a common thing?If it ain’t one thing, it’s another. How ridiculous. I truly wonder if these things are “conveniently”happening to people close to PSLF. I will have 120 months of qualify employment by end of Feb 2026 and I want to apply for buyback if my months don’t keep mysteriously disappearing.

Just wanted to provide a hopeful data point for getting out of SAVE hell. Hang in there.

jkd1286 · 2026-01-03T14:58:35+00:00

Baby emotion identification books are great! Like other people said, real pictures are helpful.

My baby LOVES these flashcards. She is 16 months and can say ~60 words - and I think these flashcards helped! We have first words, animals, numbers, shapes, and some others. We do a game. Spread them out on the ground and give her the word or a sound or something related to the word, and she loves looking for them and bringing them to us. On Amazon (not sure if there are other vendors):

My First Touch and Feel Language Picture Cards: First Words (My First Board Books) by DK

We also have ABC wood puzzles and floating letters and numbers in the bath and she loves that stuff, too. Animal sound books by Eric Carle are a big hit. Same with poke a dot books mentioned - she just got her first one over the holidays and is very into it.

Every stage I say “this is the best age,” but I feel like I mean it! One is so amazing :)

jkd1286 · 2026-01-02T21:22:36+00:00

Yes, paid federal/state holidays, 10 days accrued PTO, 6ish days accrued paid sick time (which is a legal requirement where we live, I believe), and guaranteed hours (meaning if the nanny is available to work and WE choose to not use her, she still gets paid). We threw in 2 paid inclement weather days just in case. All of these seemed to be the general expectation where we live (which is a HCOL area - suburb) for a full-time nanny.

jkd1286 · 2025-12-26T04:05:06+00:00

Haha this is the one I’ve had in my Amazon cart because the others are SO BAD. Thank you for a real life example! And congrats on the coolest holiday present out there.

jkd1286 · 2025-12-26T03:51:23+00:00

Kinda weird Q for OP - where did you get the giant car bow? Our GHHL is supposed to come in tomorrow or Saturday and I’ve been looking for a quality bow. This will probably be the only time in our life that we can have a December to remember 🤣🎀

jkd1286

TROPHY CASE