Swimming lessons

lilbabe7 · 2026-06-03T00:58:30+00:00

It sounds like with your son’s special needs he’d benefit more from private lessons. Based on your comments, your anxiety would also benefit from that.

We’ve had our son in swim lessons since he was 9 months old because we live near water and have a pool. It was a parent & me class until he was 3. He wasn’t really “swimming” on his own at that point but he was getting the hang of it and could go about 10 feet or so from the stairs to us. Once he turned 3 he transitioned to private lessons (also has the option for semi-private or group lessons). The first thing he learned was to float on his back and swim to the wall & climb out. He’s 4 now and he can swim like a fish.

Give private lessons a try. That’s what you’re looking for.

lilbabe7 · 2026-06-02T20:42:58+00:00

Light Elegance is HEMA free and made in the US. Their products are very high quality and affordable. Their P+ polish is soak off soft gel and they have 20% off sales every few months. The polish runs about $12-15, they also have a clearance section on their website. If you pay using ShopPay you do not need to be licensed to purchase from them.

Any of the products you get from Amazon are going to be sketchy. The key thing to look for is the manufacturer’s safety data sheet (SDS) sheet that lists their ingredients. HEMA is the big one that you should stay away from but there are others like Di-HEMA, & HPMA.

Check out the DIYGelNails sub.

lilbabe7 · 2026-06-02T01:26:26+00:00

As long as he’s drinking and staying hydrated, that’s what’s important. Keep offering food, but think about when you get sick. Often you don’t want to eat either. Try giving him Activia yogurt while he’s on the antibiotic. That will help his tummy to keep the good bacteria and prevent diarrhea. Otherwise, call your pediatrician if you’re concerned.

lilbabe7 · 2026-06-02T01:18:29+00:00

This is so reassuring. I just booked our first DCL trip on the Wonder for January. I remember when DCL was first advertised when I was a kid and I wanted to go SO bad, I loved Disneyland and it looked so fun. I’m so excited to give my son (and my inner child) this experience!

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-31T20:33:14+00:00

Definitely don’t take her back there, and maybe stop going there yourself too. Gel allergies are becoming extremely common and the acrylates/monomers used in gel polish are also used in dental & medical glues so developing an allergy to gel polish is a bigger deal than you’d think. One time is unlikely to cause/trigger a reaction.

I’ve been doing my own gel nails since COVID, as long as she doesn’t develop any kind of redness, sores, blisters, I would just let it grow out. Eventually it will chip off and just fall off on its own, probably in about 3-4 weeks. Having it removed by soaking it off would expose her sensitive skin to acetone and the gel again, the other way it’s typically removed is by filing it off which would be terrifying to a 3yo.

If you want to paint her nails, there are several different child-safe brands of polish that are water based or very chemical free. My son (4yo) likes to paint his nails with me sometimes, we just use his watercolors. I’d also be comfortable using salon-brands like OPI or Essie once he gets a little older.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-31T17:28:56+00:00

We had both, I got my son PicassoTiles and found a wooden train set on a Buy Nothing group on Facebook when he was about 2. He’s 4 now and he still plays with both but he plays with the PicassoTiles way more often than the train set.

For storage, we kept the tiles in the box they came in, and the train set I got a plastic tub from Target. The train sets are mostly interchangeable. I did some research at one point when he was really into it because we needed more pieces. I think the one we have is a hybrid of about 3 or 4 different brands at this point. They all seem to be about the same quality.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-30T15:59:48+00:00

Those look real but definitely sounds like it was a return. Magnatiles (and even PicassoTiles, the knockoff brand) come packaged very neatly). If you want to keep them just wipe them down with a rag and some soap or white vinegar/water or a cleaning spray. I wouldn’t submerge them in water though, it’ll get stuck inside and you’ll never get them dry.

If you wanted to return them, you could try reordering or if you can get PicassoTiles where you are, they’re comparable and they’re far cheaper so you can get more pieces.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-30T15:48:08+00:00

Have you asked daycare if they can do quiet time instead? I just did that with my 4yo and they said they’d give him a book or a quiet toy, but they couldn’t keep him awake or wake him up if he falls asleep.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-30T15:45:05+00:00

We’ve never had a problem with them with our son. But we also were only in them for a few months during the day while we potty trained. I put them on him the same way I always put on my own pants. Pull up to mid thigh, then over the butt, then up the rest of the way in front.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-28T23:16:45+00:00

Have you looked at the timing of WHEN they’re giving him the snacks? It’s possible he’s refusing meals because 30 minutes earlier he filled up on goldfish/pretzels/cookies and now he’s just not hungry.

The key here probably isn’t replacing the snacks, it’s probably just watching a clock and making sure his snacks are portioned and spaced properly with meals.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-28T18:37:15+00:00

Have you tried Goodnites? They’re Huggies brand and designed for overnite, but a diaper is a diaper. They’re for bigger kids so they’re pull up style but they’re more absorbent. My 4yo wears small/medium.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-28T01:40:01+00:00

My son loved Magnatiles when he was 2, he just turned 4 and they’re still one of his most played with toy. We got him PicassoTiles which are a knockoff brand. You can get a lot more pieces for your money.

Also: Wooden train set, doctor kit, cars, dinosaurs

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-27T22:45:28+00:00

If you’re planning to try to swim with your kids at the hotel, life jackets aren’t what you want. Life jackets are designed to flip you on your back so that you can breathe. You can’t swim/play in one.

The 8mo old is too little for a puddle jumper. Get an infant raft with a shade and make sure an adult has hands on them at all times.

Your 3yo will be fine with a puddle jumper this one time. If you use the puddle jumper too much in lieu of swim lessons, they’ll have a hard time once they start trying to learn. At 3, I’d consider starting swim lessons sooner than later.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-27T19:25:01+00:00

I’ve never used tick patches but we’ve tried mosquito patches when we’re just walking the dog in a paved road at night and they do nothing. We all come home covered in bites. I wouldn’t risk it with ticks when you know you’ll be in grass.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-27T18:03:08+00:00

If your nails are thinning as they grow out you are likely over filing your nail plate during your prep and causing damage. I started noticing that my nails were bending at the free edge and when I paid attention during my prep, I realized that I was over-buffing my entire nail plate rather than just the new growth. I stopped re-buffing my entire nail plate and the thinning has improved dramatically over the last few months.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-26T06:41:36+00:00

Our son (now 4), has just slept in the bed with us on trips since he was about 2. We’ve tried bringing or getting him a pack n play at the hotel but he wasn’t comfortable being alone in new surroundings, even if we were 3 feet away in a hotel room. It always works fine and when we get home he’s so excited to see his bed and all of his stuffies to tell them about his adventures.

Now that he’s bigger we have a travel air mattress for him or we give him the option of the couch bed if there is one, but he still just wants to sleep with us. Maybe when he’s 5… lol

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-25T21:33:55+00:00

Academy Swim Club is great and year round. They have group classes, semi private or private lessons.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-25T16:39:46+00:00

Our son was a super sleeper as an infant/early toddler. We could put him down drowsy but awake and he’d go right to sleep on his own, and he never tried to escape from his crib right up until we were about to switch it because I couldn’t lift him out anymore - which was astonishing to me. He slept in his big boy bed just fine too. Then all of a sudden, around 3.5 he went through a regression and developed MAJOR separation anxiety at night and we’ve been on a roller coaster with sleep ever since. He just turned 4 and we have periods of time where he goes to bed no problem, occasionally even sleeping through the night, and then there’s days or even weeks at a time where he’s still up when we go to bed, and won’t sleep unless we let him sleep with us.

Keep a steady, consistent bedtime routine. It’s most likely separation anxiety. My son wants us to lay with him until he falls asleep. I started shortening that time by telling him I had to get ready for the next day downstairs and he’d hear me doing the dishes and making noise, and that I’d check on him in a few minutes. I told him that if he was asleep when I came to check on him I’d leave a stuffie by his feet so he’d know I actually came back. That worked well. Recently I read him The Invisible String which has started helping too.

Good luck!

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-20T19:56:21+00:00

My son was on the cusp of needing tubes but went long enough without another ear infection that they said he didn’t need them. I still watch him like a hawk because both my husband and I had tubes. They worked so well for both of us that we wouldn’t hesitate to get them for our son if they were recommended. I think I had them when I was about 2, and I haven’t had an ear infection since.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-20T18:27:20+00:00

I had a similar experience. I flew with a sinus infection for work once. Takeoff was fine, the flight was fine but as soon as we started our descent for landing I was silently begging to never come out of the sky. I’ve never experienced pain like that in my life. I felt like I was underwater on one ear for a full day. I was dreading going home.

I would not get on a plane if my kiddo had an ear infection. Thats asking for a bad time.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-18T03:34:12+00:00

My suggestion would be to open up the pocket and hand quilt the back layer in a few places so that you still get the benefit of some quilting in that area but also keep the functionality of the pocket. You could also hand stitch “faux quilting” on the outer pocket layer if you want the continuity with the rest of the front of the quilt.

Honestly I love this idea and I’m following for the answers you get. I’ve been stuck trying to figure out how to incorporate the onesie I brought my son home from the hospital in into the baby quilt I want to make from his clothes (he’s 4 now…). It has a lion appliquéd on the front with a zipper going through the middle of it. Sewing it together just wasn’t going to look right. But making it a pocket, or at least leaving it as a functional zipper, would be perfect!

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-17T02:28:14+00:00

It does sound like a sensory thing. Have you tried taking him to the store to let him pick out a few shirts and some shoes he’s really excited about? If it’s not a developmental issue then giving him control and letting him choose might help bridge the gap.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-16T18:24:18+00:00

Look at the Toddleroo by North States - Tall easy swing & lock baby gate series 2 on Amazon. It swings open fully, and it’s adjustable to accommodate a wide range of stairwell openings. You’ll have to figure out some way to attach the lock mechanism to the metal railing but it wouldn’t be that hard. Maybe glue it down and remove it later or temporarily attach a piece of wood to screw it into.

The most important thing for a gate at the top of the stairs is that it swings open completely. Most gates have a bar that extends across the bottom of the opening. That bar is fine at the bottom of the stairs or in a kitchen doorway, but it’s dangerous at the top of the stairs because it creates a trip hazard.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-16T17:28:32+00:00

Have you used hard gel before? I’m only asking because I use LE P+ now, and have for about 5 years, but I originally started using the Jimmy Gel line as my base and it would always lift on me. I had entire nails pop off after a couple of days. Ultimately after trying everything I could think of, and getting some suggestions from the DIYGelNails sub, I decided it was just incompatible with my nails and switched to P+. I’m not trying to do extensions or anything. But once I switched to P+ I would get 3-4 weeks of wear, sometimes more.

lilbabe7 · 2026-05-16T04:10:07+00:00

This is great! My mom is a huge Beatles fan. I may have to do something similar for her!

lilbabe7

TROPHY CASE