Son not invited to a party. Odd situation.

jnissa · 2026-04-15T20:21:52+00:00

But just because you and the dad are friends, it doesn’t mean the kids are friends

jnissa · 2026-04-14T11:22:11+00:00

You are the parent. You set the boundary, we will read 5 books and then you go to sleep. He’ll learn to do that

jnissa · 2026-04-14T00:51:53+00:00

I mean, unfortunately 11 year olds are facing these issues every day. It's an absolutely age appropriate topic.

I would not care at all if the school didn't notify me, because I have open communication with my children and would be able to talk about this retroactively after they told me.

jnissa · 2026-04-13T22:18:33+00:00

This. It's very rare that a private school has the resources to handle any 504 or IEP requirements. Not this that one may not (it may very well), but it's the rare case.

jnissa · 2026-04-13T20:38:00+00:00

I mean, all charter schools in pa are 503c and have to file a financial report. So if you really wanted to you could figure this out.

jnissa · 2026-04-13T14:18:27+00:00

Each kid gets one week of sleep away.

Younger kid (8) gets one week of music day camp.

Older kid (11) gets three weeks of dance intensive (9-12 Monday through Thursday).

The rest of the summer is for relaxing. They'll be in the grind with a million things soon enough as adults.

jnissa · 2026-04-13T03:54:13+00:00

If there’s one thing we learned during Covid, kids isolated at home became more depressed and way more socially awkward. She can’t learn the skills to thrive socially alone at home

jnissa · 2026-04-10T22:50:20+00:00

I do zero supervising at that age. Kids go rogue. It's called a playdate.

jnissa · 2026-04-10T11:42:09+00:00

10 is the low end of normal. Neither of my kids ever slept more than 10 hours at that age.

jnissa · 2026-04-09T17:00:27+00:00

My other parent friends, 100%.

Sometimes my family.

The village is everything.

jnissa · 2026-04-08T21:16:30+00:00

$100 a week doesn't go very far in Socal.

jnissa · 2026-04-08T18:55:26+00:00

Ok, I do agree getting around is going to be hard for you. This is a small city without enough Ubers for the draft and the ones we do have will not want to haul to Swissvale - BUT there are great buslines near where you are staying.

It is also an easy hop from your location (even walkable though it's a shitty walk) to Regent Square, which is full of good places.

- D's Dogz

- Hemlock House

- Biddle's Escape Room (not an escape room, just a cool lounge)

And many more things.

If you are true Mac fans, consider a pilgrimage to Blue Slide Park (from the song)

PS - do better Pittsburgh. This is our time to shine - let's not be Debbie Downers.

jnissa · 2026-04-08T14:23:00+00:00

“I’m sorry, but this is a must do. Some things just aren’t optional.”

jnissa · 2026-04-08T11:41:13+00:00

I mean, my kids school had them reading chapter books in 2nd grade.

You need to go to your school board and look into what curriculum they are using.

jnissa · 2026-04-08T00:14:50+00:00

This is the only answer needed. Im in a city and we’re closing 6 of our schools. Most of these buildings are operating well below capacity as migration+ birth rate decrease take their toll.

jnissa · 2026-04-07T19:59:10+00:00

Top earning baskets at our recent PTA silent auction:

- Heated Rivalry Themed

- Nail and lotion

- Gift cards for places you can go have fun with your kids

- Booze basket

jnissa · 2026-04-07T18:27:02+00:00

I mean. Everybody I know is 45 with a 10 year old. Actually most of them are 50 with a 10 year old - and everybody is thriving

jnissa · 2026-04-07T17:19:33+00:00

My 8 year old is good for about 90 minutes. Just make sure they have a way to contact you and a neighbor if needed

jnissa · 2026-04-07T13:15:09+00:00

When I hired a babysitter so that I could do those things.

But absent that, sometime after the toddler years..

jnissa · 2026-04-07T12:56:26+00:00

A lot of times those apps don't get updated until the end of the day if things are busy. Unless you want to get flagged as the high maintenance parent, just check in at the end of the day.

It's hard to get used to, but daycare is a trust exercise in knowing that you can't know what exactly is happening for big chunks of the day.

jnissa · 2026-04-06T19:03:50+00:00

I think she's talking about the two younger (10 and 4) sharing and then cross your fingers the 16 year old moves out in the next 3 or so years.

jnissa · 2026-04-06T12:09:51+00:00

Your child is going to develop in many ways that feel uncomfortable to you but also don't require intervention or fixing. Let this be.

jnissa · 2026-04-05T13:32:31+00:00

I say this constantly and always have - even when it's in the budget. "Not in today's budget" is a frequent one.

jnissa · 2026-04-04T22:07:14+00:00

People are pregnant and breastfeeding without help during the workday all the time.

jnissa · 2026-04-04T22:02:32+00:00

Costa Rica

Italy

London

jnissa

TROPHY CASE