mommy of 2 girls

I posted this in TTC but only recieved one response...I know this board is much more active:)

My husband and I have been married for 3 years and we have a 2 year old daughter. She was quite a suprise and he wasn't happy about it. He was scared and my pregnancy brought a few twists and turns but she is healthy. Anyway, I also have an (almost) 9 year old from a previous relationship. I would like our 3rd (and probably last) to be closer in age than the first two are. I've never had a problem getting pregnant before so I think the first month or two we try, it would probably happen. The problem is that he wants to wait until he has his career with good benefits, salary and retirement. He also wants us to buy a house first. I am obviously on board with all of these things however none of them are happening in the near future. If I follow his timeline, it will be at least 2 or 3 years before we start trying and then another year before the baby is here which puts a total of at least 5 years between our baby and the new baby. I guess I'm more of a dreamer and just know that everything will work itself out. We aren't in the best financial situations but I feel like going from 2 kids to 3 kids won't make much of a difference. We have my MIL to watch the 2 year old now and she would def be willing to watch a new baby also so daycare isn't an issue. Right now we rent a small 2 bedroom apt. and we want to move to a bigger place anyway but if we had 3 it would be imperitive. I feel like he is stalling because he's scared which I understand but I also thought that after he fell in love with his first daughter he would be more willing to go for another but that's not the case. He loves her to pieces, she is his pride and joy (and also that of his family). I think another baby would add to our lives and ease the household dynamic by giving the younger one a playmate. I don't mean to ramble but I don't know what I can say to him to get my point across. Whenever I bring it up he gets really upset and thinks that I'm crazy for even toying with the idea of another child in our financial situation. I think he is crazy for worrying and planning so much. What do I do? Anyone else go through this? What did you end up doing?

My husband and I have been married for 3 years and we have a 2 year old daughter. She was quite a suprise and he wasn't happy about it. He was scared and my pregnancy brought a few twists and turns but she is healthy. Anyway, I also have an (almost) 9 year old from a previous relationship. I would like our 3rd (and probably last) to be closer in age than the first two are. I've never had a problem getting pregnant before so I think the first month or two we try, it would probably happen. The problem is that he wants to wait until he has his career with good benefits, salary and retirement. He also wants us to buy a house first. I am obviously on board with all of these things however none of them are happening in the near future. If I follow his timeline, it will be at least 2 or 3 years before we start trying and then another year before the baby is here which puts a total of at least 5 years between our baby and the new baby. I guess I'm more of a dreamer and just know that everything will work itself out. We aren't in the best financial situations but I feel like going from 2 kids to 3 kids won't make much of a difference. We have my MIL to watch the 2 year old now and she would def be willing to watch a new baby also so daycare isn't an issue. Right now we rent a small 2 bedroom apt. and we want to move to a bigger place anyway but if we had 3 it would be imperitive. I feel like he is stalling because he's scared which I understand but I also thought that after he fell in love with his first daughter he would be more willing to go for another but that's not the case. He loves her to pieces, she is his pride and joy (and also that of his family). I think another baby would add to our lives and ease the household dynamic by giving the younger one a playmate. I don't mean to ramble but I don't know what I can say to him to get my point across. Whenever I bring it up he gets really upset and thinks that I'm crazy for even toying with the idea of another child in our financial situation. I think he is crazy for worrying and planning so much. What do I do? Anyone else go through this? What did you end up doing?

When my husband and I were just dating, my best friend (we've known eachother since we were 2 years old) came to visit. She lives out of state so we don't see eachother often but I was excited and she came out to the bar with my husband (boyfriend at the time), me and a bunch of our friends. A few weeks later after she was home, she called me to tell me that my boyfriend had made a move on her and continued to try and get with her every time I walked away. I confronted him and he denied it saying actually the opposite happened and she kept prompting him to come and visit her online. He actually has a witness (his cousin who is obviously not impartial) to these online conversations. He said he didnt want to tell me because she is my best friend and since she didn't live close by anyway, he didn't think it was worth it. Now, it's 5 years later and I miss my friend. I never returned her phone call that day but we have chatted online, never speaking of this incident. She knows we are married and was insulted that she wasn't invited. We have since had a baby and I don't know what to do. I told my husband that the truth would not split us up we could work through anything especially since we were only just beginning to date but he wont budge. I know if I have the same conversation with my friend she might change her story but only to keep the peace. I love both of them and just want to forget about the whole thing and move on. Is that even an option? Do I look like an *** if I continue with both relationships or do I have to choose (my husband obviously). I know you might think "why would she make this up" but she is kind of crazy and has had many obstacles in relationships and she is a single mom of 2 young kids. I guess maybe she missed having me single and just wanted me back. What do you think? Should I even discuss it with her? Should I just forgive and forget knowing that I will never know the "real" story?

I was just diagnosed yesterday through a 3 hour glucose test. I am relieved to find that there is an actual medical cause of my symptoms (headache, chronic fatigue, bad memory and inability to lose weight) however I am very confused about the diet. I'm a big "google" fan so I decided to do more research since the doc only had 15 minutes for me. He said to cut out white carbs and replace them with whole wheat or those made from brown rice. Most of the diets are pretty consistent with this however when I look up actual meal plans, they all seem pretty high carb and include foods like crackers, jelly, milk, pasta, etc. I know I can just replace these white carbs with whole wheat ones but it seems like more carbs than I was eating before. Does anyone know a good website where I can find a specific diet plan including a week or two worth of meals and recipes? Thanks :)

Until about a month ago, she would sleep from 830 pm until 830 am and nap from 1030-1230 and again from 330-5 or 530 for a total of 16 hours of sleep a day. She gave up her evening nap about a month ago and then about a week ago started waking up around 430 am. Now she is only sleeping about 10 hours total. The DR said 10 hours is fine and maybe I should try and move her bedtime to later so she will sleep later. I'm just thinking that if I put her to bed at 10 pm and then she sleeps 8 hours she will still wake up at 6 am! Has anyone else gone through this? I have tried to go in, lay her back down and let her cry for a while but it drives my husband crazy because he cant sleep and she also shares a room with her 8 year old sister who has school in the AM. We have been bringing her into our room but she doesn't go back to sleep. She plays, talks and tosses things around the room. Should I try and force her to go back to sleep (and how many days do you think it would take) or just suck it up and start my day at (ACKKKK!!!) 430 AM?

When she is throwing a temper tantrum she will often grab the nearest object and bite it. Her head will even shake while she's doing it. Since she's not biting people, I usually just ignore it (and try not to laugh). Do you think this is the right thing to do?

I lost the charger for my Coby portable cd player. I need a new one by Friday afternoon which doesnt give me time to order one online. Can I just buy one from Radio Shak or are some of them product specific? Thanks!

I have Enfamil Lipil (yellow label) Enfamil Lipil Gentlease (purple label) Enfamil Next Step (yellow label for babies 9-24 months) and Similac Sensitive (orange label). If anyone is local, they can pick up (I live in West Babylon, NY) or I will mail it to you as long as you cover the shipping costs. They are full sized containers, sealed and unopened. I got them as samples and would hate to see them go to waste. Thanks!

She is almost 9 months old. Our old routine was that she would eat dinner around 730, have her bath around 8, play for a little while and then at 9, I would lay in my bed with her and give her a bottle. She would fall asleep with the bottle and I would move her to her crib an hour or so later. Now, she doesnt fall asleep when that bottle is finished. She rolls around, sits up, plays, pulls my hair. So I put her in her crib awake and she will roll over right away and close her eyes. Without fail, 5 minutes later, she is screaming. If I stand next to her crib, she will look at me and roll around. If I leave, she screams. I really dont believe in CIO but what else is there? I know she is exhausted but she just wont go to sleep!

This might seem kind of silly but is formula and baby food regulated like it is here in the US? Do they have most of the same brands? What about diapers? I use major brands like Similac and Huggies. Should I just pack enough to last for the week or buy it when I get there?

This might seem kind of silly but is formula and baby food regulated like it is here in the US? Do they have most of the same brands? What about diapers? I use major brands like Similac and Huggies. Should I just pack enough to last for the week or buy it when I get there?

After my 8 month old declared breadsticks (with seeds) as her new favorite snack...I began to wonder if I may as well have given her peanut butter! She is fine and has had no reaction, does that mean that she doesnt have a nut allergy?

She is 7 1/2 months old and like to sit on the floor and play. When she topples over and rolls onto her stomach, she cries. She is doing push ups lol and also getting on her hands and knees. She even pushed forward a few times. The thing is, she can roll back over if she wants but doesnt, she just does the pushups and rocking while screaming. Should I let her cry for a little while? How long?

So we were out to eat for fathers day yesterday and my 7 month old dropped her pacifier on the floor. My MIL decided to "rinse" it in her diet coke. I looked at her and told her not to give it back and she said "why she will be fine" I know she will be FINE however I dont want her having soda! Then, when dessert came, my hubby was holding her at the other end of the table and my FIL tried to give her ice cream with caramel (it had nuts but he wasnt giving her those but they had touched it)! WHY WHY WHY? I had to say from across the table not to give it to her and again, everyone looks at me like I'm nuts. My husband knows better but wouldnt tell his parents what to do since they successfully raised 3 children. Its not just them though, my mother has asked if she could give her a "taste" of this or that but at least she asks first! She is only 7 months old and is on jarred baby food and limited table food like fresh fruits and yesterday I let her suck on the crust of bread. I'm not a food nazi or health nut my any means but I really think she is just too young to be trying out those types of foods, especially soda! Am I ridiculous or are they? Thanks!

I want to find out what websites have been visited recently on my computer however the history has been deleted. Is there a way to restore it without purchasing a program? Thanks!

I see so much drama on here about it and I'm not too sure what its all about. Is the only concern autism? Are there other reasons aside from religious? What ,benefits does the delayed schedule have? Thanks!

Just wondering if most people do it or not!

I have been giving my 7 month old rice cereal for about 2 months. Two weeks in, I started with fruits and veggies About one month ago, I started giving her 2 meals per day. Now, her dr reccomended adding a third meal to her diet which I started yesterday. When she was on 2 meals, I was mixing the cereal (rice and oatmeal) with formula and adding the fruit or veggie. Now that I am adding the third, I dont think I should feed her cereal 3 x per day but the jarred food is so runny. She also didnt poop yesterday and had a hard poop this morning. Is that because I give her too much cereal? How often should I feed her the cereal and at what meal(s)? What should her 3 meals consist of? I sometimes give her fruit and cereal in the morning or yogurt. In the evening, its usually cereal and a veg. She is not on any meats yet but what age do I introduce them? Is it 8 months? Thanks!

Wrong section I know but I didnt want to post it elsewhere and have 14 year olds answering my question :)

So, I met my best friend when we were 2 years old. She lived upstairs from my mom and I. They were both single moms and we all clicked. Through the years, both families endured extreme struggles with drug addiction (my sisters and I were in a foster home) her mother had 3 children with 3 fathers before finally marrying and having 3 more....lets just say my friend and I both had tough childhoods. Even though I moved out of state, we always stayed in touch. I even lived with her family for a year and considered her my best friend always. Now that we are adults, she is my polar opposite. She "confessed" to me a story of how my boyfriend (now husband) hit on her and pressured her to sleep with him but she pushed him away. After discussing it with him, he told me he didnt want to bring it up since we were best friends but SHE was the one trying to get with him and he turned her down. She even continued IMing him asking him to come visit her out of state. I dont know the real truth so I just decided to forgive both. Now, I told my mom the story and she said "like mother like daughter" and proceeded to tell me that my friends mom (her best friend) slept with my sisters father when they were younger. This girl has a bad rep with guys, always cheats on her boyfriends and posts slutty pics on myspace and facebook. Now, her family is moving back to where I live and want me to come over for 4th of July. I did choose to forgive the stories about her and my bf but what about now that I know of what her mother did? It all seems so weird bc she was like a second mom to me and now I think so low of her. Should I write her and her family out of my life for good? (this is what my hubby wants) Or just continue on and keep my guards up? Am I being naive and foolish?

I dont know what got me thinking about this....maybe it was while I was standing next to my daughters crib, winding the mobile for the 4th time and rubbing her belly, hoping she would fall asleep in her crib :)

Anyway, I was thinking about when humans first came about, how when they had babies things like not breastfeeding and not cosleeping werent even options. We always carried our babies 24/7. No one took parenting classes but they did have to worry about things like "what if it gets too cold" or "what if a bear comes around while we sleep" but things were just so simple and nothing a mother did was questioned. It stayed that way for hundreds of years.

Then, when my grandmother first became a mother, breastfeeding all of a sudden became somewhat taboo as did cosleeping and attatchment parenting (I'm assuming it went along with the womens rights movement). But it was still somewhat simple. You got in trouble, you were spanked...or in my grandparents home, got a shoe thrown at you lol. Babies slept on their bellies after being put to bed with a bottle in their mouth. Which, by the way, they probably sucked on until they were well over a year old (the horror! lol).

Now, we have so many options as parents. Some dads stay home while mommy's work or sometimes both parents work. You can have your baby sleep in your bed, in a cosleeper or in their own crib. You can breastfeed, pump, bottlefeed (after you try all 109 types on the market) or start straigh away with a cup. You can carry your baby in an expensive carrier, a sling, in a stroller or just on your hip. You can circumsize or not. Use jarred babyfood or homemade.

Sometimes I wish it was more simple. More basic. Not so many options. Some moms are easygoing and respect others choices but most of us judge if someone doesnt parent exactly as they do. But then again, the infant mortality rate has dropped dramatically so I guess we should all be considered *blessed* Does anyone else wish it was just a little simpler?