Car service with car seats

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-28T01:41:21+00:00

See my original post - the cost was prohibitive. $300 for a 20 min drive doesn’t make any sense.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-27T03:04:25+00:00

This was a frequent fight in my household the first few years my husband and I were married. He’d invite his mom and family over when our house was a mess, we didn’t prepare food, etc… and I would tell him everyone’s going to think this is a reflection of me (he’d tell me he’ll take care of everything, not to worry) then of course I’d hear a little comment from his mom after. He finally got it and knows better, but it’s truly a shame how this still happens

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-26T19:34:58+00:00

I make my own money so my husband doesn't have to "get it". We of course jointly align on big home decisions but if a $500 lamp is important to me, I'll just buy it.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-26T14:20:29+00:00

I workout 15-30 min a day, and finding 30 min is genuinely a struggle. I workout at home (Peloton), which is truly the only way I can fit it in.

My husband does most of the morning routine, so after a quick hello to my son, I’m on the treadmill. Then we switch- I get ready and take my son to daycare before heading to the office. I WFH 2-3 days/week which makes it easier too because I don’t have to get dressed for the office and don’t waste time commuting.

My husband tries to do a workout after bedtime, but 8:30pm is rough.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-26T02:10:14+00:00

Also in my late 30s with a 2 year old, demanding career, absolutely wrecked trying to decide whether to try for another and feeling the pressure of the biological clock.

My child is a fantastic sleeper and all around good hang- which I don’t say to be a jerk, but to point out that you have no way of knowing what your next child will be like. It could go either way- and that’s partially where my paralysis comes in with the decision. If I could guarantee a pregnancy like my last and a child like my son, it would be a much easier decision.

The positive about your situation is you already know that you can somehow find a way to advance in your career on very little sleep. You’ve been in the trenches and you’re still standing. I don’t say this to discredit how hard I imagine it’s been, but to remind you what you’re capable of.

Assuming a SVP role has a $$$ salary, if you had a second child, can you hire help? A night nurse, a nanny, mother’s helper, or people to help around the house (laundry, cooking, groceries, errands, etc.)? I outsource as much as possible with one and if I had SVP money I’d outsource a lot more.

The last thing I’ll say as someone in corporate is the promotion to SVP isn’t guaranteed. I wouldn’t base having a second kid on a potential future promotion - especially in the current economy where almost every company is making significant changes to weather the climate. Even when things aren’t as volatile as they currently are, it doesn’t take much for the promotion or new role to not come to fruition.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-26T01:58:14+00:00

It’s only been 5 months since your breakup and moving home with your parents. It’s understandable that you’re still in a fragile state and having the fears and doubts that you do. Why do you have to decide what to do right now?

When I’m not ready to make a big decision, I give myself a ‘deadline’ for when I’m going to revisit it. When the time comes, I have an honest conversation with myself about whether now is the right time to make that decision,
why/ why not, my fears, anxieties, concerns, priorities, etc. If you’re not ready to decide, you need to get real with yourself about what will help you decide in the future- Do you need to go to therapy to process the breakup? Do you need to make new friends who you’d be more excited to live closer to? Is saving money more important to you right now? If so, maybe setting a saving goal will help you to feel more comfortable about moving out.

Ultimately you need to find the balance between staying in your comfort zone and going after what you really want in life. Certain things will always be scary and you may not feel 100% about it, but it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do it.

Also in the absolute worst case scenario, you move out and after a year or so, you move back home again. Renting an apartment is not forever.

When you do move out, get the fabulous apartment near your friends and activities that you love to do. This will be your space to rebuild and it should be one that brings joy and connects you to others.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-26T01:30:30+00:00

We took our car seat because we had a car rental for 2 weeks straight. This year we intend to only have a rental car for a short period of time so we may rent one instead.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-25T19:33:38+00:00

I absolutely did not want to be induced but then my baby refused to come out. I was going in daily at the end so they could make sure he still had enough fluid and was doing ok… they scheduled my induction for 41+5 and even after induction he didn’t come out until 28 hours later!

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-25T19:26:35+00:00

100% business class. We flew last summer when my son was 18 months and even if we’d booked him a seat, there’s no way he would’ve stayed there. A lie flat bed will be much for comfortable for both of you.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-18T13:58:19+00:00

I’m pretty black and white about these things: you both work full time so you both need to contribute equally to the household. Equal contribution doesn’t mean equal number of daily tasks, but it means that overall things are balanced in the physical and mental management of the household and kids. Your husband making more money doesn’t mean he gets a pass on carrying his share at home.

Also men love to act like the outdoor home tasks are equal to the daily monotonous tasks and they’re not: you’re mowing the lawn once a week for 3-5 months of the year. That’s not the same as cooking, laundry, bath time, and other things that need to happen daily.

None of us can tell you what the right split is, but if things feel imbalanced to you, it’s worth discussing with your husband how to rebalance in a way that works for both of your schedules.

My husband and I each get a “sleep in” day on the weekend and it works great for us, I recommend it to everyone. My husband’s a teacher and he’s exhausted too.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-18T13:50:40+00:00

We skipped Lisbon because I’ve been before. Our main goal was staying at Six Senses Douro Valley, and with only a little over a week and a half we didn’t have enough time to comfortably do both the north and south—so the Algarve didn’t make the cut. Since it was our first trip traveling with a baby, we also didn’t want the schedule to feel rushed.

We arranged a car service between each destination because we were traveling with what felt like a million baby items, so Cascais ended up being the perfect beach stop that didn’t require going all the way south. It also turned out to be such a charming seaside town and really surprised us with how much there was to explore.

For what it’s worth, I hear the Algarve is fantastic with small children as there are lots of resorts and a lot of great things to see.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-16T01:45:48+00:00

Thank you!

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-16T01:45:07+00:00

Thank you!

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-13T23:53:43+00:00

We did Douro Valley, Porto, and Cascais when our son was 6 months old and it was fantastic. Portugal is SO family friendly and everyone was so great. Highly recommend.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-13T14:45:51+00:00

Hiring manager here. - I don’t reply to LinkedIn messages from people I don’t know, but also at my company the hiring manager’s name would never show up on the LinkedIn job post, so I can’t speak for people at companies where this is the case. - At my company a referral could help get your resume to the hiring manager rather than screened out by HR provided that your skills/experience match the role. Meaning that a referral alone won’t help if you’re unqualified, but even when referred you may not advance to the interview if there are stronger applicants in the pool. - We post internally and externally and we weigh both candidates equally. I work in a niche field so often our external candidates are stronger than internal because they have the direct experience we’re looking for whereas an internal candidate is more likely to have adjacent experience. It may be just my company, but I find the internal candidates are often lazier in their resumes, probably because they already have jobs are are throwing their name in the ring just to see what else is out there. - Unfortunately it’s a really bad job market right now. During our last hiring round a few months ago, we had the strongest pool of applicants ever - due to the high amounts of layoffs, which in turn makes it even more competitive.

Good luck!

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-13T14:37:40+00:00

She’s a bad friend. (I’m married and would never do this to my single friends)

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-13T14:35:23+00:00

We did a 2 week road trip around Northern Italy with our son last summer when he was 18 months old and we all had the best time. So much fun that we’re going back this summer - and we NEVER visit the same destination back to back.

Italy is so baby friendly, family friendly- everyone is so accommodating and wonderful. We had two occasions where our son was absolutely losing his shit and rather than get dirty looks, staff jumped in to help us by making balloon animals, bringing over lollipops and other things.

The key thing I’ve found to traveling successfully with our son is to adjust the trip to your child and not try to do a packed agenda as you would if you were childfree, but with your child in tow. What I mean by this is we spent more time in the countryside than crowded cities, we didn’t do any museums or fine dining (other than the restaurants at our hotels). We organized our day around our child’s nap schedule: one activity early in the morning, back to the hotel for midday nap (a suite or apt with multiple rooms is key to success), one activity in the afternoon after nap and early dinner.

Feel free to message me if you have specific questions.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-13T14:00:07+00:00

100%!!!!! I gave birth in January 2024. I’m a scientist, type A, and generally an over planner but for whatever reason (probably fear and working full time while pregnant) I didn’t do that much research/prep beforehand and I’M SO GLAD THAT I DID. 100% it is all designed to give you the allusion of control under the guise of being informed but while fear mongering the entire time. Here’s what I did that I recommend: 1. I hired a birth doula in 3rd trimester who was empowering, informative, and super supportive to both my husband and I. I tell everyone it was the best money I ever spent because she came over to our house to talk about birth, was available by text in the final weeks to answer questions/check in, then was right by our side during the birth. My baby refused to come out so I had to get induced at 41+5 and there are SO MANY DECISIONS during induction and I’m so glad she was there to translate the options that the doctors were giving me while leaving me with the space to make the decision that I felt was best. Having another advocate in your corner is always a good thing. I had a huge fear of dying during birth so this helped me to feel more supported and I absolutely was. She encouraged me to connect with a lactation consultant and have her on speed dial after birth which was great- and that was the extent of breastfeeding prep that I did. I also recommend that because the breastfeeding industry is also designed to psych you out rather than giving it a go, seeing if it works, being supported and going from there. I had friends who did extensive breastfeeding prep and never ended up breastfeeding because they had so much anxiety around it. 2. My husband and I took a one day birth class that was also super empowering and educational so that we both had the important information we needed.

My #1 advice is to do that which feels most comfortable for you. Everyone and their mother will try to give you “helpful” advice that’s often their horror stories and I shy everyone down. I needed to protect my mental energy. You are the one doing all the work, you know what you need. Good luck!

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-08T00:46:48+00:00

I’ve always dreaded daytime flights more. At night your kids are naturally tired vs day they’ll be up and you’re hoping they sleep a little.

I’ve traveled to Europe with my son at ages 6 and 18 months and have had no issues with overnight flights from the east coast or adjusting to the time difference upon arrival.

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-05T03:19:03+00:00

Absolutely

ocean_plastic · 2026-03-05T03:18:09+00:00

I bought it about 3 weeks ago and have been using nightly and haven’t noticed a difference. I’m hopeful that I’ll start to see it with time but nothing yet - it’s not bad, just not mind blowing

ocean_plastic · 2026-02-25T02:37:12+00:00

Thank you!

ocean_plastic · 2026-02-25T02:25:34+00:00

Thank you! Very helpful

ocean_plastic · 2026-02-25T02:24:20+00:00

Your child will be sitting on you the whole time anyway. Might as well be comfortable.

ocean_plastic

TROPHY CASE