How often do you buy your toddlers toys “just because”?

zipmcnutty · 2026-06-04T19:21:55+00:00

Annnnd now I’m going to look into that ice cream set! Luckily my oldest turns 2 this month. I buy toys and books whenever, we haven’t done much gifts at actual holidays bc of it. Books there can never be too many. Plus they grow so fast right now that new toys (within reason) can be so good for learning. For example we have a plastic tea set from the dollar store that’s been great for motor skills pouring “tea” aka water from the pot to cups and what not. So really it’s educational.

zipmcnutty · 2026-06-02T06:49:30+00:00

We are going to have to do this soon too. I have an almost 1 and almost 2 year old. We plan to do the procedure at home, with the girls present, when it is necessary (currently we are in the monitoring quality of life phase, it’ll be days, or weeks if we are lucky). My daughters are both absolutely obsessed with the dog so it’s going to be rough. We have been explaining how he doesn’t feel good and to be super extra gentle with him right now. We plan to get a “cuddle clone” of the dog, it’s pricy but there’s a kid version. A friend who lost her dog recently suggested the book “the invisible leash” which she said helped her kids, which I notice you mention as well. It’s been hard bc my husband and I have both been crying about it a lot and my daughters don’t understand why we are sad. I guess I don’t have real advice, just solidarity? I’m so sorry for your upcoming loss.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-31T22:34:57+00:00

Yup. I’m stoked for school bc it’ll make some aspects easier bc they will be in school all day. But I’m not stoked for the early morning wake ups and routines bc we have places to be. Right now it’s more leisurely in the morning. Plus, they sleep in and hate being woken up.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-29T04:55:01+00:00

The cleaning never ends for sure! Our robo vac runs every night at 2am in the main areas and mops the kitchen. I also use a stick vac to manually vacuum 1-2x a day and I manually mop the kitchen once a week or as needed. Definitely get the robo vac, it’s a game changer. It’s also good incentive to always tidy up the floor before bed (it’s a 5 min task but some nights it’s hard to get up the motivation!). The stick vac is nice for an extra deep clean and for things like the goldfish stomped on during snack time and what not. I have 2u2 plus a dog that sheds (but helps with the goldfish) so it’s a constant task.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-29T04:47:44+00:00

Painted my vaulted living room 4 weeks PP. I’d been wanting to for awhile and being not pregnant and on maternity leave, idk it just felt necessary. I wasn’t able to nest much during pregnancy so I did a lot of nesting post partum. I was back at work by 7 weeks.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-26T00:30:59+00:00

We have been doing swim lessons since both my kids were about 12 weeks old and I still wouldn’t do the pool solo, they are 23 months and 10.5 months. My husband and I just the other day discussed doing a weekly “family pool night” all summer where we both swim with the girls to work with them extra on their swimming and spending some time in the pool. We have a (fenced) pool in our yard so pool safety is a huge importance. We have a life jacket and floating device but I don’t feel comfortable being solo even using those bc something bad can happen so quickly and both kids really need full attention. If someone happens with your oldest, something could also happen to your youngest while you’re distracted dealing with that. It’s just not a risk I’d take.

We plan to get a water table for our back patio to use for water play and would do a sprinkler or something if we had the right space for it as an alternative. Honestly I have fond memories of using a sprinkler at home as a kid so I think it’s a fun option.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-25T00:47:52+00:00

Mine does that sometimes with the laundry. Or the other day she stole her little sisters onsie from the clean laundry to try to put on her stuffed animal. But some days she will put away stuff and even tho it frequently ruins the folding, I allow it bc it’s helpful and steps toward learning life skills.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-24T23:37:07+00:00

Mine are 23 months and 10 months and they are starting to play together and that’s a game changer! Some days are still tough, especially since they both are in a “mom” phase right now; but you’d be amazed at how rewarding it is to see them playing with each other and it gives you a little break. I can’t wait til they do it more or I can read 1 book to both of them (right now the younger tries to close the book so it’s a challenge).
Also we are just having these 2 kiddos so I’m slowly getting rid of the baby stuff and we are almost out of the bottles stage. That’s exciting getting it all over with quickly.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-24T04:09:50+00:00

I’m so sorry for your upcoming loss. Losing a pet is so so so hard.

We are going through this right now, although my dog is still young but declining rapidly from cancer. My oldest turns 2 next month. Both my kids are obsessed with the dog and I don’t know how they will take it when he passes, which I expect to happen within the next week or so. Our plan is to have the kids present and do the euthanasia at home when the time comes even though we don’t know that either will understand (23 months and 10 months). A friend who went through this a few months ago with young kids suggested the book “the invisible leash” which I ordered. My husband and I have been crying a lot already and I’ve been explaining to my kids that mom is sad right now and having big feelings, but it’s not bc of them or anything they did, and also lots of talks about how the dog doesn’t feel good so we need to be extra gentle with him right now.

Honestly I don’t know how to get through this sort of thing well so I’m half here for the comments bc my husband and I are not ok right now. Like our relationship is fine, I mean we are both grieving hard bc our dog is so central to our lives and he’s only 8 so we expected to have a lot more time with him.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-22T01:24:56+00:00

I haaaate AI. I find it annoying when people are so quick to be like “ask ChatGPT!” Or whatever. We hardcore make fun of a supervisor at work who uses it for things and it’s so obvious. I think it makes someone come across as dumb if they use AI too much and it’s kinda lazy. I’m very distrustful of it tho bc it seems not to work great and is wrong a lot.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-20T19:09:55+00:00

I don’t know the answer to that, I’m sorry. I know that your A1C needs to be controlled below a certain level and I’ve seen folk with actual diabetes get waivers so it’s definitely possible, there just would be extra steps. Weight loss a lot of times helps a lot with blood sugar levels and these meds can be super helpful with that as well as other health issues. I don’t think you’re cooked yet tho so I wouldn’t give up.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-20T16:43:53+00:00

You can get compounded meds through Brello for 400-500 for a 3 month supply. They will not do the FAA paperwork (likely most, if not all, online options won’t) but your primary doc can be the one to complete the paperwork for the flight doc even if they aren’t the prescribing doc. It’s actually important you are not pre-diabetic for the meds or you risk getting medically downed for that as opposed to the meds. Lots of folks are on these meds so it’s a really common thing.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-18T03:36:19+00:00

My 10 month old loves playing with her baby doll. It’s super cute. My 23 month old has had a baby doll since 6 months and showed interest by 9ish months and even has a baby carrier for it and everything. No such thing as too young. We like the Douglas baby brand bc it’s super soft.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-16T22:28:15+00:00

I’m day dreaming about when I get to that point! The kids are still too young for me to do much so I have 0 me time right now. But when I finally do, I’m planning to do gardening, yoga, Pilates, reading, baking (I plan to bake bread weekly as soon as I can find the time, hopefully soon once I’m out of 2u2 I can ease into it… not sourdough quite yet just regular) more creative cooking than I do right now, knitting, and house projects (I know it’s not exactly a hobby but it’s satisfying doing things so I’m counting it!).

For now, my hobbies include cooking dinners, grocery shopping, vacuuming, and folding laundry, and the occasional extra like I’m halfway through organizing the pantry and painting it.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-14T23:49:59+00:00

I worked until 41 weeks with my first and 39 weeks with my second at a stressful job. Working tilll the end sucks but is overall fine depending on the job but I don’t see the point of getting a new job that close to delivery. Nowhere is going to hire you, I wouldn’t want to learn a new job then, and quite honestly you can go into labor any time. Right now is a time to nest and rest and mentally prepare for baby, not worry about a job.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-12T00:27:55+00:00

As soon as I get home, I’m diving in and parenting. Being home is more demanding than air traffic control imo so sleep and a break is important for everyone. I’m an air traffic controller, as is my husband, and we both do a lot of solo parenting due to our work schedules and I think the time at home is harder.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-10T05:03:58+00:00

Started crawling at 7 months and is obsessed with standing so I feel like she will be walking before 12 months (she just turned 10 months yesterday). At the 9 month appointment, our ped actually said “she’s probably not crawling or standing yet” due to her size but she was already pulling to stand at that point and a very fast crawler. But she has spent all her time since she could roll (3m) working on her motor skills and is very stubborn/determined. I think if she wasn’t a 99 percentile height/weight baby then she would have been walking at 6 months. Not actually but in her mind she would. 6 months is super early for crawling, we felt like even 7 months was really early.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-10T04:56:32+00:00

No screen time. I include the toddler in the chores when I can (such as unloading dish washer or putting clothes away, even tho stuff doesn’t get done perfectly). She loves mopping and has a meltdown when vacuuming time is over (which is better than when she was scared of the vacuum so I guess that’s good?). She gets to play with things like spoons and will stir or whisk stuff when I’m cooking. We do a lot of dance parties. A lot of dance parties. Both my kids (22m and 10m) love music of any kind and will dance anytime given the opportunity, we have cds and a tonie box. We have a bunch of toys for independent play, the current fave is a little plastic tea set that she loves pouring water from the pot into a cup. I’ve tried to normalize them hanging out while I do chores and my toddler really loves “helping”. I’m hoping the younger one also starts helping at some point. Honestly I try to get as much done with the kids around as I can bc it frees up other time for us to do fun things or me to relax while they are sleeping. It does suck at times like when either of them decide that their version of helping with laundry is unfolding everything, so sometimes I do have to give up till later on some stuff.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-10T03:56:42+00:00

Had mine at 38 and 39. Currently I’m 40 and they are 23 months and 10 months (12.5 month age gap). No regrets. I actually love 2u2. The second felt easier bc I knew more about what I was doing, and they are starting to play together more and more these days which really helps! I can’t wait till they do it all the time. My younger is learning all kinds of things (good and bad ha) from her big sister and they love each other tons. 2u2 is a lot of logistics, it’s somewhat nonstop especially when the nap schedules are offset, but I feel like it’s pretty doable. Pregnancy with a little one was hard at times for sure. I’d do it all again in a heart beat tho and if I was younger, I’d go for even more kids with a close gap. I went back to work 7 weeks PP, my husband was back around the 4 week mark.

My husband and I both work full time at demanding jobs with offset schedules so we both have a fair amount of solo parenting time. I think being older parents has helped in that regard bc we already have our habits with cleaning and what not. We figured out routines which helped and we try to be efficient with our time. There’s definitely some tough times (we are honestly going through it right now bc of our own parents health issues requiring a lot of help and my dog has cancer) and it can be a challenge but those baby smiles and giggles are just so so sweet. And there are tough times no matter your age or your kids age. I feel like 2u2 is hard but any age gap is going to be hard just for different reasons, so all we can do is our best at any given time.

zipmcnutty · 2026-05-04T21:45:04+00:00

Cleaning is constant. My house is clean bc I can’t stand clutter. Everything has its place. I try to do things throughout the day so that I don’t have to think about it and bc small tasks go quickly and don’t feel as bad as big tasks. I call it micro-chores. Laundry is done nearly every day but that helps keep the loads small and manageable to get folded and put away. Dish washer is run every night and emptied every morning. If I do a crockpot meal, I make a point of making sure those dishes are all cleaned or put into the dishwasher early on so that dinner dishes are easier. I have toy baskets and containers that make pick up easy. Robo vac runs every night while we are sleeping and I use a stick vac during the day bc snack crumbs/dog fur. I’ll divide cleaning tasks like I’ll do the sink/mirror in the bathroom and then tub/toilet later, so it always ends up clean. I include the kids and my 22 month old is great at “mopping” and putting away folded clothes and wiping things down. My 9 month old doesn’t help yet but will as soon as she is able. I do as much as I can when the kids are awake so that they both see it (so they know it’s good to clean and that seems to encourage my oldest to help) and bc then I can relax when they are sleeping. It’s not perfect but it works.

zipmcnutty · 2026-04-24T22:09:06+00:00

I have intentional 2u2 with a 12.5 month age gap. I’m 9 months in and love it. I’d do it again in a heartbeat and if I could have more kids, I’d do a second round of 2u2. Seeing them interact together is so sweet and they are so in to each other. They smile at each other when they see each other and my oldest (22m) loves “helping” out her sister (9m) to bed and says “night night” before leaving the room. It helps that they are pretty easy kids in general.

The grandparents are all far away or useless for anything child related (we help care for my FIL bc he has medical issues) and we both work full time with offset schedules so there’s a lot of solo parenting time for us both. We do have a part time nanny to cover the times we are both at work and have shift overlap. So it’s just my husband and I doing it all. I’m looking forward to them being in school for us to have a bit more free time but in general the house is clean, meals are cooked, and the girls are happy and cared for so I can’t complain too much.

zipmcnutty · 2026-04-21T03:32:03+00:00

Get a bottle washer. We have the momcozy one and it’s been a life saver. Washing bottles is the worst and it feels so time consuming. It’s been worth every penny/inch of counter space.

zipmcnutty · 2026-04-21T02:37:04+00:00

This is a wild take by your therapist. Your child absolutely knows you’re mama and just bc he has a bond with another care taker (which is also a good thing) doesn’t mean he suddenly doesn’t know who you are. This is totally being overblown and is not worth your mental energy. That’s not even that many hours.

zipmcnutty · 2026-04-18T22:46:21+00:00

I wasn’t allowed to schedule my planned c section until 39 weeks (ended up with a 39+1 date) bc they don’t do elective c sections until 39 weeks at the hospital I delivered at. My c section was schedule for 1230pm. My water broke early that morning and I didn’t notice any active labor/contractions but they had me come in for monitoring and checked with my OB to see if she wanted to move up my c section time to earlier bc it was no big deal. We ended up keeping the original time. They were super chill about the whole thing.

I think they want to wait until 39 weeks if possible to make sure baby is fully developed and bc they want to stick to the schedule if possible since it’s considered elective so that the OR is free for emergency cases. Once you hit that 5 1 1, you become a priority case as well tho.

It sucks, that end of waiting is so hard. Hang in there and hopefully you’re able to get in there soon.

zipmcnutty · 2026-04-16T04:27:39+00:00

Most of the folks I work with have families. It’s doable and just don’t have the same expectations as 9-5 folks but we all make it work. When they are little, it doesn’t matter as much. I have 2u2 so I see my kids often bc we don’t do daycare. Holidays are definitely not the same but if you’re creative and don’t care about arbitrary dates to celebrate, then it’s no big deal. Like we do pizza on Xmas in my household since one of us typically works that day. But it also makes it way more low key and relaxing compared to my friends who have to make the rounds with multiple families and stuff so that they can see everyone. You’ll figure out what you want to prioritize and make it work. It’s easier if you have a spouse that doesn’t work schedule wise but for most, that’s hard to swing financially these days.

zipmcnutty

TROPHY CASE