Ms A

my 13 month old daughter is on the small size (17 lbs) and the sippy cups are heavier and hold more liquid than she needs.

can anyone recommend a 2 oz sippy cup? or any reasonable alternatives?

i dont see why theyre all so ginormous in the first place when baby hands and tummies are so small. if i were to fill them up it'd take two days for her to finish.

My daughter is now 12 months, 1 week and 1 day old and I think she is addicted to breastmilk. I've been trying to wean her for about a month with little to no success. I stopped pumping about 4 months ago so she drinks formula/water/juice and eats solid food at the babysitter from 8am to 6pm during the work week but when I pick her up the first thing she does is lunge for my chest. I DONT WANT TO BREASTFEED ANYMORE!! my breasts are lopsided and she's super clingy and a lot of times i feel so drained that i might pass out. i feel like i started something that now im unable to finish. she has violent outbursts when i try to give her a bottle instead of breast and refuses to even taste whats in the bottle/sippy cup to see if she likes it. she scratches my face, pulls my hair, scratches her face and pulls her hair and tugs at my breast. after a few minutes of this i give in because i feel like i am traumatizing her but im resentful the whole time.

please help. i feel like running away from home so i dont have to nurse anymore (not really but i am desperate).

she has 8 teeth and bites me often. my chest looks like a kitten clawed me. i want this to be over. ive created a monster. :-(

please dont attack me or call me selfish because im only here looking for genuine advice and i have been faithful to nursing her for a whole year. breastfeeding is making me resent my baby and i need help with this.

my boss' dad died on sunday. the funeral is today (wednesday). yesterday my office mgr informed me that everyone in the office would be attending. i had no idea that there was a moral obligation to do so. i dont think he would attend the funeral if my dad passed away but am i being disrespectful my not attending the funeral for his father?

everyone is leaving in a little while to go and i'll be the only one left behind. my boss WILL notice and so will everyone else. to me it makes sense for me to stay in the office because i am the secretary but i feel very guilty.

how do i handle this situation? what is appropriate? i was going to send a fruit basket to his home but going to a funeral seems way too personal to me. i'm completely uncomfortable with this. help!

ive also never been to a jewish funeral and have no idea on what the proper protocol is with this.

am i being selfish?

my daughter is almost 5 months old and i know that she is teething. i also know she's going through a growth spurt but i dont know which cries are which. for the past week she has been really cranky and not wanting me to put her down. when i pick her up she gnaws on my shoulder, arm or anything else she can get. she's not even sleeping at night--so of course, neither am i. is she really hungry ALL NIGHT or do her gums itch /hurt?

how do i know which times are her hungry times and which are her teething times?

i spend all day at work worrying because i just want her to feel better. i sent her to the babysitter with teething tablets because i know she has been crying all day and the sitter wont hold/rock/comfort her as often as i do.

i dont know if its time to give her cereal, is my milk not enough, is she spoiled (she doesnt seem to care for other people). i dont know what to do. please help.

2 bedroom apartment (one adult, one kid, one newborn)

one bathroom, kitchen stuff and NO living room furniture (didnt live there long enough to get it set up).

its going to be a local move from one part of manhattan (harlem) to another part of manhattan (inwood (by dyckman/cloisters).

about how much should i expect to pay? i seriously do not want to pack and carry anything myself. like i said, i have a newborn and a small child and im single. im also terrified of driving in the city so even if i rented a uhaul i wouldnt want to drive it.

im just about to give up on pumping but before i do can you give me some tips on how to make it work? i ws sitting in an empty office at work for AN HOUR and all i got was one little ounce. what am i doing wrong? when my daughter breastfeeds she is fine but i have no luck with the pump. is it me or is it the pump and how can i tell?

i have the medela swing. i tried calling their hotline but after being on hold for so long i just gave up.

any suggestions are welcome. im gonna go make a cup of raspberry tea, wait an hour and try again. im trying so hard not to have the babysitter resort to formula (she absolutely HATES it!) but this pumping is not working for me.

when my son was born i stayed home from work until he was one so i dont have any experience with needing to pump a certain amount for the day.

please help me, i feel defeated. :-(

what was the name of that postpartum belly band featured on her show? i see a picture of the creator of the product and someone wearing it on her website but not the name of it.

my son had it as a baby and still has it at 7 years old. it looks like my daughter might be developing it too. i'd like to nip it in the bud before it gets any worse.

i have never had excema but my mother has it.

what could that possibly mean?

background info: my landlord lives in the basement under my apt.

in the dream i walked into our backyard and noticed a bear destroying what i think was a shed. a few seconds later she came back there with a pole or something to attack the bear. i ran in the direction toward the street and open space. she ran in the direction where there were more houses & trees and less space. once i got a safe distance away i looked back & the bear was attacking her. i woke up wondering why she wasnt smart about it. its a bear! you cant take on a bear with a pole! why didnt she run in the safer direction?

does this mean i wish her harm? we dont always get along because she is needy, ridiculously dramatic and an overall emotional wreck so i usually avoid her but i dont want her to be attacked by a bear or anything else.

do you think the bear was me? or do you think it means i dont see her as a person with common sense?

ive been feeling guilty about this dream for two days now.

was it for a limited time only? i cant seem to find it anywhere except for overstock.com and theirs is refurbished.

i really want that vacuum and i REALLY want it in pink.

im due on the 4th of july but id like to take my maternity leave starting on june 1st. for financial reasons i MIGHT go as long as june 15th but in all honesty i think the 1st would be best. im exhausted and working at half capacity. there are days when i think i might even get fired for being so late, leaving for Dr. appointments, being absent minded and moving so slowly. at the same time i feel guilty for leaving with that many weeks left until my due date.

did anyone else experience the same? a woman in another dept worked up until the day before delivery. i wanted to do the same but i dont think its possible.

how early is too early to take maternity leave?

everyday the office bathroom seems to be getting further and further from my desk. i want to go home to eat and sleep and nest!

is it something you can see or feel clearly?

im 33 weeks and i think i dropped but it could just be wishful thinking.

all utilities are included in my rent one of which is for cable.

when Directv came to install a new sattelite they damaged my landlord's roof door. she doesnt want to order any new boxes or services from them until that issue is resolved. in the meantime i got cable thru another provider in one bedroom but theres still another bedroom and the living room with tvs that wont work without being attached to cable.

its been five months now and i still dont have cable because of her going back and forth with Directv. is it fair for me to ask for a deduction in rent or how should i handle this situation?

yes, i can get cable on my own but then id be paying for it twice---once via my rent and again to another cable company--which i am already doing in one room.

i do understand her issue but what is fair in the meantime?

yes, my lease does specify that cable service is to be provided but it doesnt itemize how much of the rent is allocated toward which utility (heat, water, gas, electricity, cable, alarm system).

also, the alarm service is included in my lease but she never provided me with the passcode so we dont use it. its an extremely safe neighborhood but still.

what do you think is fair?

i am a leo and as a leo i know that i can be pretty "rough" (for lack of a better word). my due date is on the 4th of july and im nervous to have a cancer for fear that i would hurt her without realizing it.

for non related reasons my doctor says i may be having the baby as early as june 13th (gemini) so chances of her being born earlier than my due date are pretty high. of course i will love and cherish her either way.

im just wondering which sign a leo mother would be best matched with. i have not had good experiences with any cancer that ive ever met. they are too soft for me---but none of them have been my daughter.

i was thinking maybe she'd be a good influence that would soften me as the years progress but i dont know. cancers usually steer clear of me.

this is only a small concern but im still curious.

im 32 weeks and im having a contraction. not contractionS but one long contraction thats lasted for about a half hour now. i feel it in my back and all the way around to the front of my stomach.

i have a really high threshold for pain and even when i was in labor with my son i didnt know it until the nurse showed me on the monitor. i had already been in labor for hours without knowing.

me: so nurse when are you going to induce me? when is it going to start?

nurse: honey you started contractions hours ago! dont you see those spikes on the screen? those are the contractions! thats what the IV is for.

me: oh those? ive been having those pains for days. i thought contractions would be more shocking. those dont even hurt.

doctor comes in: you go down as the cutest person in labor ive ever seen

to me it just feels like one long cramp and it makes me sleepy.

how am i supposed to time this and what do i tell my doctor when she asks about frequency?

im going to just drink more water and wait it out because i dont think this is the real thing but how will i know without a doubt?

i have an appt already scheduled for friday.

btw--im at my job but the hospital is only a few blocks away

the reason i ask is because while pregnant with my son i craved and ate mass amounts of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. he now has a severe peanut allergy.

with this pregnancy i am craving edamame and bubble tea all of the time and i wonder if its going to cause a gluten allergy in my daughter (maybe not the edamame so much but the tapioca pearls in the bubble tea).

my baby shower is this summer. i may never have a wedding so im doing it big. there will be tents in the park, lots of people, lots of pictures,men, women and children, lots of gifts, lots of food and lots of fun. im throwing it for myself so im basically doing whatever pleases me in terms of celebrating.

my only problem is what to wear. im not the wrap shirt or dress type of person. i like really vivrant and flirty colors and clothes.

everything ive seen is either way too ugly or way too big. so far ive only gained 10 lbs and i want to show my legs (maybe a little shoulder action too).

my baby's due on the 4th of july. the shower will be in mid-june and outdoors at one of new york city's parks and more along the lines of a party than a fuddy duddy baby shower.

im thinking of something with a bold print. maybe a bubble dress or a mini dress. i want to be as cute as the decor!

btw---im having a girl and money is no object. if its cheap and cute i'll get it. if its expensive yet cute i'll get it. i just need to know where to find it.

please keep in mind that new york city summers are hot and humid and i dont want to look like some school marm sitting in the corner all self conscious.

i asked the court to serve papers to my ex for our child support case but im not sure he still lives at the same address and his work site changes frequently (although its for the same place--new york city housing authority).

the court date isnt for 4 more months, do i need to make an amendment or how do i know for sure he was served? should i pay a process server to make sure it gets done correctly since the court and postal office both have a tendency to let things fall through the cracks?