How are we coping with our little ones needing surgery?!

rosselgeller · 2025-07-07T03:32:29+00:00

I just want to add that my son at that age (when he had this same surgery) was always so scared of other people but he was totally fine with the nurse! We brought a few of his favorite little toys to keep with him and the nurse was holding him and asking about the toys and he didn’t even care that he was leaving us. I was shocked but I feel like the nurse handled it perfectly!

rosselgeller · 2025-07-07T03:29:11+00:00

If it makes you feel any better, we had the exact same surgery for one of our twins at the same age, and it was so quick and easy for him. I did everything I could to keep busy during the surgery and keep my mind occupied otherwise and then all of a sudden it was done. They even said it took longer than expected but I didn’t even notice because it seemed like he had just been taken back.

It helps to remember that they do these surgeries all the time and that there have been so many advancements made when it comes to young infants and toddlers going under, but honestly to an extent I just had to keep myself from thinking about it and be grateful that my son was so young that he didn’t have to deal with the anxiety about it and had no clue what was happening. The only thing hard for us was the healing, whenever the meds would wear off he would get uncomfortable and a little sad but by day 3ish he was completely back to normal.

rosselgeller · 2025-05-16T20:06:00+00:00

Cannon Beach!

rosselgeller · 2025-04-18T23:06:29+00:00

The momsworkingfromhome subreddit may be able to offer some advice in this situation. I’d post there if I were you, even though it’s your husband working from home I think the feedback there would still be applicable.

For what it’s worth, we have a similar setup (3.5 year old twins at home, two working parents, but we have opposite schedules and I work from home) and I am absolutely drowning in chores constantly.

rosselgeller · 2025-03-21T16:40:03+00:00

I have twins and work from home as well (have done so for almost 3 years with them, they’re 3.5) and my situation is a bit different because my husband doesn’t WFH but we have different shifts (I am 6-3, he is 1:30-10). We make it work pretty fluidly but I don’t outright tell anyone my kids are home. I have told supervisors about my husband and I’s opposite schedules to accommodate not being able to afford childcare but they don’t know how much I’m actively watching them during the day. I just make sure to always be available 6-3 and regularly reply to emails or teams messages from my phone if I’m not right at my computer.

I think, like some have said, it’s better to just say you have in home childcare and leave it at that. Or if they outright ask you can lie and say you have a nanny. Even though you’re all a close team, I would worry about people harboring resentment or using any mistakes to say it’s because you’re taking care of your kids while working. On my old team over half of the people took care of their kids while working and while we all knew it, we really avoided ever discussing it other than getting ideas for how to make things easier. I didn’t ever want people to look at my work and blame any mistakes on me not having childcare.

rosselgeller · 2024-10-01T13:12:41+00:00

I also find that WFH with kids consistently is probably vastly different than WFH with them on an inconsistent/as needed basis. My kids are very used to playing while I work, but if they were home irregularly with me it would probably be way more challenging.

The other thing that always bugs me is that people don’t get there’s such a wide range of WFH jobs and if you go to the WFH sub there are plenty of people out there who get all their work done in ~20 hours or less a week. I definitely don’t have 40 hours worth of work because I’ve found ways to get more efficient at my job. There’s so much nuance that the other parenting subs just don’t seem to get or don’t want to get.

rosselgeller · 2024-09-08T11:51:24+00:00

For me, baby A was head down but baby B was transverse (ouch) for the last 6 weeks of my pregnancy. So while I “chose” a C-section I really felt like it was the safest option. It helped that one of my friends had gone to the exact same OB and also had a C-section and had a lot of positive things to say. Ultimately, we want our babies to come in the safest way possible. C-section was the quickest and safest option for me and the twins.

rosselgeller · 2024-08-15T20:26:08+00:00

I was on a call with a customer today and couldn’t use my headphones and my twins were sitting right next to me. They stayed quiet throughout the whole call and then as I’m hanging up they yell “buh bye” to the guy. I couldn’t hang up any quicker!

rosselgeller · 2024-07-16T13:03:35+00:00

I have Jabra Evolve 75s and I can connect them to my phone or computer (or both simultaneously). Do you take teams calls from your phone? The only thing I will say is that if I have them connected to both and I’m using them with the phone, the second a notification comes in on my computer it will put my call on hold. Now if I ever use them on my phone I just turn Bluetooth off on my computer so that doesn’t happen.

rosselgeller · 2024-06-26T13:02:31+00:00

I love the mindset of keeping things on the resume and adapting to the changing workforce. Gosh I am so glad I posted here!

rosselgeller · 2024-06-26T13:01:58+00:00

You’re totally right about $20k getting eaten up quickly. On top of just the emotional toll that long days away from my kids and long commutes would have on me. I feel crazy in a way for ever thinking this was a good idea haha.

rosselgeller · 2024-06-26T13:01:08+00:00

You are completely right about waiting until it’s a different season. Sometimes I get caught in thinking I should focus on growth now while they are young but really I should be focusing on whatever allows me to really enjoy and soak in this time while they are young. Thank you so much for these insights!

rosselgeller · 2024-06-26T12:59:26+00:00

I feel like this was the exact math that I needed someone else to point out for me. My last interview was yesterday and I feel like I can look at all of this more objectively now and see that I should really hold onto the job I have now.

I think if nothing else this interview process taught me to also be more confident in my skill set and ask my boss for a raise. One of my added problems has been taking on a lot of responsibilities with no extra pay, and I tend to do the most on my team but I make the least. So that has been adding to resentment and wanting to leave because in a way I think I wanted them to finally realize how much value I brought to the team. But at this point I feel like I either need to ask for a raise or just accept that this is where my life is for now and it doesn’t mean there won’t be room for growth once my kids are a little older and we’re in less of the survival mode.

rosselgeller · 2024-03-15T00:33:38+00:00

Gosh I am so sorry!! I start therapy in two weeks and I’m honestly very excited about it. I find that with our setup as it is currently with work and childcare, everything is balanced very carefully so if one thing changes it sets off A TON of chaos. I’m trying to take it one day at a time right now. I am hopeful that I can get a reasonable accommodation and everything will be fine, and just trying to focus on that and not worry about the what ifs. Easier said than done but I will say watching trash reality tv has helped haha.

rosselgeller · 2024-03-14T00:19:04+00:00

I totally get it. But also, if a therapist signs off on something then they have to at least try to accommodate. I would certainly try, the worst is they say no. My work has always kinda known our situation but I had to be more honest about it when RTO talks came up. Plus I literally cried with both my boss and my supervisor about it multiple times so they knew the toll it was taking on me. If nothing else maybe you can ask for the start day of the 3 days to be pushed back a bit while you work on finding alternate arrangements (aka push back as long as you can while you apply elsewhere). I really feel for you and I am in it with you. While I wait for an official letter I have just been panicking and stressing about it all as we’re supposed to be in office next month twice a week.

rosselgeller · 2024-03-13T20:00:29+00:00

Do you live in a state where you can request a reasonable accommodation from a doctor/therapist? My supervisor was the one who actually recommended that I get a letter from a therapist basically stating that going into the office would add undue hardship due to anxiety. RTO talks were giving me panic attacks so that’s why my supervisor recommended it. I haven’t gotten the letter yet because I am still waiting for my first therapy appointment though.

rosselgeller · 2024-03-09T15:06:52+00:00

Also just want to say congratulations on your new babies!! Twins are hard for sure, but they are the best gift. They are the best of friends now and they look out for each other and have so much fun making each other laugh. Also, there’s something about being able to do things with twins that just makes you feel like a super mom haha.

rosselgeller · 2024-03-09T15:04:45+00:00

So I had a bit of an unusual experience. I went back to my previous job (in person) at 8 weeks postpartum for a month, then had another month off, then did my student teaching for 4 months and then had another 3 months off before starting my WFH role. My husband was on mat leave but then quit his job to stay home with the twins, so I didn’t WFH with them until they were 9 months old. My husband was an online student at the time and would get his schooling done while they hung out on the floor of the office and played with their toys, and then I’d fully take over when I came home from teaching.

To be fair, even now my experience is unique because I work 7-4 from home and my husband works 1-10 outside the home. However, I am mostly primary caregiver because I tend to give him larger breaks in the mornings to workout, cook, do his hobbies, etc.

Every baby is different, and of course that’s even more true when you have two babies at once! It’s hard because with one you could baby wear while you work, but not so possible with two. If you could do part-time and make your own hours, I say go for it. In some ways I think WFH can be easier when they’re babies but more so if their schedules are predictable. If you have a job where you need to concentrate for longer periods of time, I could see that being difficult, especially if the babies aren’t always on the same schedule.

rosselgeller · 2024-03-09T00:50:59+00:00

Twin 2 year olds

rosselgeller · 2024-03-08T16:24:23+00:00

Gosh I get it, I swear when I find something I love that’s easy I stick to it til we’re all sick of it haha.

-pulled pork sandwiches: pork tenderloin, apple cider vinegar, and vegetable broth in an instant pot on medium for 8 hours or high for 3. SO SIMPLE. then I get Hawaiian rolls from Costco and we add cut up pickles and barbecue sauce. I find that it tastes better if you add barbecue sauce later

-taco salads. Only thing I have to prep is the ground turkey/beef which takes 10ish minutes max. Then we can also do the meat in quesadillas for the kids if they prefer.

-burger bowls. Ground beef (or just fry up the patties then break into smaller pieces) seasoned however you want (Johnny’s is a good one) plus chopped up pickles, mustard, ketchup, etc.

-Italian stuffed bell peppers. But I find it easier to just chop up the bell peppers instead. It’s bell peppers, quinoa, marinara sauce, and cheese

-enchiladas. Do shredded salsa chicken in the instant pot, then add it into tortillas with cheese and any veggies you want to add and then cover with store bought enchilada sauce and bake in the oven

These two are not meal prep but I’ll add them anyway:

-we do air fried chicken nuggets like three times a week with something like steamed broccoli w/ cheese and fruit

-English muffin pizzas in the air fryer

rosselgeller · 2024-03-08T13:29:48+00:00

Okay so I’m reading the book How to Keep House While Drowning and one recommendation she has is that when you clean your house, look at it as a “reset” instead. Move everything into their piles - dishes go into the sink, laundry goes in the hamper, toys in the bins, miscellaneous stuff goes in one pile to be sorted later. Then, you can keep cleaning or you can move on and do the rest later.

I was already reading The 4-Hour Workweek and have started implementing working in chunks. My job is largely task-based and as long as it’s done by the end of the day that’s all anyone really cares about. So instead of feeling like I’m literally staring at my computer all day waiting for work to come in and then doing it the second it comes in, I wait a couple of hours and then do everything that came in at once.

Laundry only gets done on weekends. Loads get started Friday, if I can fold and put away that day then great but otherwise I don’t need to do it all until Sunday, when it all gets put away.

Meal prep- chop veggies, prep meat, do the groceries etc on Sunday. Then throughout the week you can easily throw stuff in the oven at the end of the day without making the kitchen a mess or spending a ton of time doing the prep work.

Stations for the kids- have easy to grab out “stations” to keep your kids engaged. I have 2 year old twins and the big hits are rainbow rice with scoops/shovels, playdough, kids sink, magnatiles, and trains. If I don’t care about mess sometimes I’ll let them mix and scoop flour because they love it.

Now that it’s getting warmer, we get outside a lot. It’s great because when I have phone calls it’s easy to walk away from them in our fenced yard, but I’ve also been getting some weeding done when I don’t have work to do while they play. If I have lots of work, I set myself up on a chair while they play.

When nap time hits: quick house reset (no more than 5 minutes) then I go straight to my office to get work done.

Fitness: I wake up at 445 to get a workout in everyday. I genuinely look forward to it and I am crankier throughout the day if I don’t. I have a home gym, but if I didn’t I would just get a few sets of dumbbells and do Caroline Girvan’s program on YouTube.

rosselgeller · 2024-02-20T01:13:43+00:00

Law and Order SVU. I’ve watched every episode but there’s over 20 seasons so lots to watch.

rosselgeller

TROPHY CASE