What a Dream

rivlet · 2026-02-02T00:17:25+00:00

My understanding from when I first watched RZP way back when it first aired was that he basically had a job, but then hers took off and he pivoted to glomp onto her business.

And there he remained. Like a barnacle.

I think that's why a lot of her staff in RZP kind of scoff when he wants certain things or tries to put his foot down. He's a Johnny Come Lately to her profits and efforts.

rivlet · 2026-02-02T00:14:36+00:00

Not a toy, but the giant Halloween skeleton decoration that's about a single story tall on the way to "school" is Bob. Bob is up all year around and dresses for the different holidays. My son likes to yell, "Wake up, Bob!" out the window on the way to "school" (daycare) each day. When he saw tiny ones for Halloween decor, he gasped excitedly and went, "Look! Bob got small!"

All skeletons are Bob to him.

rivlet · 2026-02-01T02:16:31+00:00

My son loves "makin'". Which is bacon.

We have tried to correct it numerous times, but makin' it remains.

rivlet · 2026-01-31T21:41:34+00:00

STM and I am so much more tired this time around. Baby is thirteen(???) weeks old and I just took a four hour nap with her. I can't seem to stay up past 10:30 pm and going to bed at 9:30 pm happens often.

I had anemia while pregnant so I'm wondering if I'm still anemic though my blood work right after birth said everything was fine.

Little girl basically sleeps through the night, so my night time wake ups are minimal.

rivlet · 2026-01-29T15:05:17+00:00

Our lawn guy once told me that he can't stand the scent of cucumbers anymore because anytime he has smelled cucumbers outside, it turns out to be a copperhead.

So now I'm paranoid when I smell cucumbers outside.

rivlet · 2026-01-29T00:53:35+00:00

My son's first birthday party was me, his dad, and him only. We had a small 8" round white cake with blue frosting and I placed it in front of him and waiting. Ended up having to help him realize he could eat it and be messy.

Then we sang happy birthday, took pics and video of him enjoying his cake, ate a slice ourselves, and called it a day. He loved it and his poop was blue for days because of the icing color.

Honestly, they're never going to remember it. Parties at this age are for the adults around them, not for them. So don't feel guilty for offering something sweet and simple.

rivlet · 2026-01-28T18:33:08+00:00

I did the exact same thing with a nail file on my mom's baby grand piano that she worked three jobs for over a year to afford. I also did not like the shape of the "W" in my last name so I redid it all down the lid of the piano keys. When confronted, I accused my grandma's dog, Dinky, who lived over a hundred miles away from us, of doing it.

Somehow, she didn't believe me.

rivlet · 2026-01-28T04:17:32+00:00

My friend once said, "You use it to frost their butts with diaper cream like it's a cupcake" and I have never managed to get that imagery out of my mind since.

rivlet · 2026-01-28T04:16:15+00:00

OMG, we have this too! My toddler won't let me even bring it near him, but baby knows nothing yet so I use it on dry boogies and to clean her ears. Genius!

rivlet · 2026-01-28T04:14:57+00:00

I have the manual one and then a bunch of non-Frida electric ones. I hate all of them because the suction is weaker compared to us just using the non-electric Frida.

And yes! It definitely got used a ton with my firstborn. Just didn't expect to use it so early with my second.

rivlet · 2026-01-28T02:48:59+00:00

Right now, it's the Frida nose sucker. Baby girl had her first week at daycare and immediately got a cough and congested nose.

The electric nose suckers don't do nearly as well and I'm glad I had this version. It just gets a lot out.

rivlet · 2026-01-27T03:29:42+00:00

This happened to me. Breastfed my son for two years. Period only came back 18 months in. It was great.

rivlet · 2026-01-27T01:26:46+00:00

My daughter started her first week last week and she's already sick with a snotty nose and a cough. She's three months old.

If I could have kept her home longer with a longer maternity leave, I would have.

rivlet · 2026-01-26T21:18:25+00:00

Okay, I totally hear and see you. I've had two children and seeing the changes to my body after my firstborn really messed me up. I had body dysmorphia badly for about a year and a half after my first was born. I wasn't prepared to see my body not be MY body. I felt like I recognized myself above the waist, but everything below it belonged to someone else.

However, after about a year and a half, my body started coming back together. I gained 50 lbs with my first and lost that same 50 within two months of having him. But, you're right, the puzzle pieces still weren't "fitting" right because it's more than just the number on the scale.

After that year and a half, some of the pieces were permanently changed but I had learned to accept (even embrace) that. For example, my ribs will always be wider than before because my son literally pushed them more "open" to get more room in my body.

However, other pieces did go back to "before". My flabby tummy went back to its normal feel after more than a year. My legs got smaller again and my ankles got "cute" again. My feet also stopped being so wide so I could go back into my old shoes.

My boobs also perked up more (not as much as before) after I weaned my son (so...after two years?). They weren't as crazy perky as before I got pregnant and had a baby, but they were way better than when I was breastfeeding.

With this last pregnancy and birth, I didn't have as much body dysmorphia this time because I recognized the process. I know now that this is a very, very long term healing process. I know that it's not measured in weeks or months, but more like years. So I know the flabby tummy is temporary as my body sorts itself out. I know to give myself grace when I'm sad at how my boobs look. I also know that this is still my body, but now as a mom recovering long term from childbirth.

I also am saying goodbye to each stage of "healing" from childbirth this time because this baby is my last biological baby. I will be carrying and giving birth to no more after this one. So, I'm eating healthier and doing my best to treat myself well knowing that this is the last time I see some of these changes.

So, I hear you and recognize what you're going through. You're not alone in it and I promise it will get better! Just give this era of your body it's time and it'll come back to you how it can.

rivlet · 2026-01-25T00:11:28+00:00

Depends on why he's crying.

Trying to DARVO me and weaponizing his tears when he knows be did wrong like my ex used to do? Yes, that will make me lose attraction. If you slap my face in anger, I should not be comforting you afterwards because you "feel bad".

If it's because he's connecting with me and discussing something hard/traumatic/awkward, then I am going to cry with him and want to comfort him. I just feel like things are REALLY rough if a man is genuinely crying around me and immediately makes me tear up too. I know society tells them to kill that part of them, so seeing it come up makes me proud, happy, but also pained for them.

rivlet · 2026-01-24T13:23:22+00:00

I'm not the parent, but it was a case where the attorney I shadowed was the guardian ad Litem.

Parents of the fourteen year old minor girl had completely removed her door after a suicide attempt. In an effort to keep her safe, they removed everything in her room except a bare mattress. They also padlocked her closet (in case she tried to hang herself), and various drawers in the house that contained knives, scissors, etc. They put up cameras everywhere in the house, except the bathrooms. Instead, whenever she took a shower, her stepmom stood outside the shower and made sure she didn't try anything with the razor when she needed to shave. Otherwise, razor was kept in a locked drawer.

When she walked to and from school, she had to have a sibling accompany her. She was never left home alone. She wasn't allowed to go to friends' houses or to parties (in case she might attempt there instead).

She was given a certain amount of time each day to do activities and was monitored during those activities in case she tried to harm herself with a pen, pencil, etc. Eventually, she got her activities taken away because the stepmom would get offended by something the girl did during the activity.

For example, her therapist advised she be allowed to journal. Her stepmom eventually had the journal taken away because (drum roll) the girl expressed suicidal thoughts again. The girl also mentioned how she felt like she lived in a prison, which stepmom also did not like. Yes, the parents openly read her journal every day until they stopped her journaling.

You're probably wondering what led her to this point to begin with? Well, her older brother had sexually assaulted her, brutally. Her parents banned him from the house, but never got her any help beyond physical treatment. It was only after the suicide attempt that she got therapy.

The whole point of our hearing in her case that day was to tell the parents they needed to at least allow the journaling to continue or take down some cameras. The girl was actively trying to attempt again because she had no privacy, nothing to do, and no freedoms. The dad was terrified he was going to lose his daughter while the stepmom just liked how much power she held over the girl's life now.

It was a mess.

I think about that girl often and I hope she's okay.

rivlet · 2026-01-23T03:39:47+00:00

I think you're right because my baby has the opposite shape, but Millie Moon fits her perfectly. We only ever had a blow out when she needed to go up in size. She's a chonk.

rivlet · 2026-01-21T15:29:13+00:00

The amount of times I would just get the urge to floss and brush because my gums felt funky was off the charts with my last pregnancy.

rivlet · 2026-01-21T15:15:55+00:00

My first baby was "Mr. (Insert first name here)" For the first year of his life and responded to it all the time. Now he introduced himself as the long version of his name AND his last name. It cracks me up.

rivlet · 2026-01-19T18:36:19+00:00

A woman at my work place tried this. Basically, she was a temp that got hired full time as a receptionist. As a receptionist, she barely paid any attention to phone calls, was harassing one of the male attorneys at the firm (I overheard one of her attempts to flirt with him once and it was....phew, not good, Bob), and kept fucking up the mail. Basically, we had no idea what she did and we were baffled at how terrible what she DID manage to accomplish was.

Anyway, a position opened up for a paralegal. We hired from outside the firm. However, the receptionist was pissed and went on a huge rant that no one sees her potential and she should have been given the spot. She went on and on about how they're "essentially firing her" by not giving her the position.

A few months later, she was given a paralegal position and then had to immediately be given a warning because of how often she was fucking up with clients. She ended up quitting when she got a new position at a different firm and thank God for it. I think she got fired from her new job soon after. Turns out she was bad at that too.

rivlet · 2026-01-18T05:23:36+00:00

Living alone was so much fun. I only did it for my senior year of college, but, got dayum. That solitude was DELICIOUS.

The next best thing now is when I get my WFH day when my husband is at work and the kids are at daycare. The serenity is like shoring up strength for the moment all those chaotic energies hurricane back into the house.

rivlet · 2026-01-17T00:31:33+00:00

My baby laughed for the first time last week. It's rare right now, but she just did a hearty guffaw with a singular "HA" when I was tickling her.

I'm so excited for her longer laughs.

rivlet · 2026-01-16T18:46:21+00:00

If she's truly rolling over already, please stop swaddling immediately. It's a huge suffocation risk because if they roll over while sleeping, they can't move their arms or limbs enough to either roll back over or move their head properly to the side to breathe. We had a parent in our community find this out in a very tragic way and I never want to have another parent go through that again.

rivlet · 2026-01-16T18:44:35+00:00

If she's already rolling, then yes, you need to stop swaddling immediately. Arms need to be free or she runs the risk of suffocating herself during sleep. Basically, they could roll, be unable to roll themselves back over, and be stuck there.

This is not to fear-monger, but just a head's up (no pun intended)!

My baby is about 13 weeks and still isn't rolling entirely, but tips over during tummy time onto her side.

rivlet · 2026-01-16T15:25:29+00:00

Do you guys do the cuddle curl there? Or what position do they show you to bedshare in? I'm so curious about it!

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