I'd rather be at the beach

Yep! We've been trying to conceive #3 for a year now. Our first baby was a surprise. Our second took 5 months. But this #3 is taking a lot longer than we thought! I just saw my midwife a few weeks ago, she's feels fairly certain that we should conceive in the next 6 months, or so, since we've had 2 other successful pregnancies. If it hasn't happened by September, we'll meet again and see if we need to look into other options. I know it sounds silly, to do all this for a third baby. But when you feel like there's another baby you need to meet, then, well, you do what you can to make that happen!

So I wanted to know what I can do to boost my chances. I'm got fairly short cycles, and that might be an issue. I started taking Evening Primrose Oil to try to help regulate that, and for CM (and I heard it helps clear up acne = bonus!). I've got an ovulation kit. What else can I be doing? What about my husband?

Thanks!!!

I'm getting ready to go grocery shopping, and then heading out on a trip in a few hours. My kids are tired of the snacks I typically buy, so I was looking for some new suggestions. What snacks, that are relatively healthy/unprocessed, do you buy for your kids (especially for a car trip) What do your kids like?

If your child didn't refuse their nap, when did you know it was time to give it up?? My daughter, who's 2 and 1/2, will sleep for a few hours (2-3) in the afternoon (12:30-3ish). But then she'll not be tired for bed until 9ish, and wake between 4:30 and 5:30 every morning. I'm pretty tired of getting up so early, and wondering if getting rid of the nap will solve that issue. Kind of a catch 22

My oldest just flat out refused them, so that was an easy que. What made you decide to give up the nap??

My 5.5 year old son, and 2.5 year old daughter are both early risers. My daughter gets up between 4:30 and 6:30, no exceptions. And my son is usually up between 6 and 6:30 - it doesn't matter what time they go to bed, how dark/warm/cool their rooms are, their bedtime routine, etc etc, they just get up early. My son is old enough to be able to learn to look at a clock. I realized that he just has no clue what time is OK to wake. When you wake before the sun, it all looks the same to you! I was thinking of something simple like the Gro Clock to help him out. But my daughter, on the other hand, might need something even simpler. She's highly verbal, catches on quickly but incredibly ornery (and a screamer...so, if I try to put her back to bed in the morning, she'll scream the house down and wake her brother). I was thinking about the OK to Wake Owl for her, but wanted to know if anyone has any experience with using this sort of thing for poor sleepers/early risers

what worked for you? what absolutely didn't work?

thanks!!!

My 2 year old was diagnosed in september - she would drink 120+ oz of water per day. Her specialist had us wean her onto gatorade, to help her kidneys learn to concentrate urine, which took about a month, and then I've been slowly working at volume reduction - getting her back to 30 oz per day. She keeps having set backs (illness and teething are the things that trigger her thirst). I feel like it's 2 steps forward and 10 steps back. She's come a long way from where she started, that's for sure! I just wondered if anyone else has dealt with this, and how long it took to get your child back to a healthy amount of fluids? Her doctor says once she's back at a normal amount, she should never have this problem again. I find that hard to believe. But have you found that to be true??

thanks!

For medical reasons, my 2 year old is to drink mixtures of water and gatorade (instead of plain water) for the next few weeks. I'm fine with it because the pros outweigh the cons, and it's for a relatively short period of time. But, I've never been a fan of juice/sugary drinks, or artificial dyes. I just wanted to know if there are better alternatives that I could ask her doctor about.

My daughter is being tested for diabetes insipidus and psychogenic polydipsia, they need to be able to see if her kidneys can concentrate her urine at all. Soo, I need to get a urine sample this morning, since it's likely to be the most concentrated. But I need to get it before she pees. Does anyone have any ideas how to do it?? She's wearing a diaper, but will go on the potty. Should I wake her up early, or wait until she wakes up? How have/would you do this?

Thanks!!

My daughter, who just turned two at the end of August, has a major drinking problem. This has only been since she was about 16 or 17 months old, and it's gradually gotten worse. She asks for drinks (a large sippy, that holds about 1 1/2 cups of water when filled to the top) at least every half hour. One "drink" is always 2 or 3 sippies. I've started filling them just halfway. And then, of course, she uses the bathroom every 15-20 minutes. And when she goes, it's a *large* amount of extremely diluted urine. She doesn't drink for comfort. She sucks her finger for that. She downs a cup, (or two, or three) really quickly and then goes on about her business. I have been potty training her since January because I just cannot keep up with diapers. I only put them on her a nap, and before bed. the rest of the time she takes herself to the potty. She will wet through a huggies overnight diaper in an hour or two. And at night, I have to sneak in her room, and quietly change her before I go to bed, or she'll wet through before morning.

her very laid back doctor was concerned enough to run blood/urine tests at her 2 year check-up, a few weeks ago. They all came back fine. But he's "astounded" at the amount she needs to drink. I'm carefully monitoring her drinks today and before naptime she was up to 1/2 gallon (2 liters) of water, and she's only 23 lbs. she's asked for drinks 12 times before 2 pm. which is totally normal for her

My question is, what could be wrong? Why is she so thirsty all the time??

My (almost) 2 year old daughter is 3rd percentile for weight, and 17th for height. She badly wants a bike of her own, but I'm having trouble finding a trike small enough to allow her to touch the peddles.

any suggestions?

I haven't generated any income, in any way, shape, or form, in almost 5 years. Money is tight, bills are plentiful, and I was just looking for some ideas :)

My husband and I have a 4.5 year old boy, and a 20 month old girl. We've always talked about having 3. But quite honestly, 2 kids have kicked our butts. It's not a behavioral issue, at all. It's just that neither are good sleepers, both are high energy...both were difficult babies, etc etc. We like a 3ish year gap between kids and are starting to debate whether we really should go for a third, or not.

My question is, in your experience, what's adding a third like? was it the major transition that the first two are, or was it a tiny bit easier (I guess it all depends on the baby and the other two children). I'm just looking for how it was for you

thanks! :)

I've been cloth diapering for over a year now. I have mother-ease one size, prefolds + thirsties covers and a 17 month old baby girl. My problem is that within the last month she's really attached herself to her sippy cup. She'll drink an entire, tall sippy in one drink. 3 full cups during a meal is typical. So now she's a very heavy wetter.

What would work to amp up my stash? Are hybrids (GroVia, Best Bottoms, Thirsties Duo, Flip, etc) decent for heavy wetters?

How long does your average toddler go, wearing cloth, between diaper changes? She's soaked through and through every hour in cloth.

Currently, I've had her in disposables and as a result, she's got a nasty rash. I'm hoping to get her back in cloth soon - any help would be appreciated!

I have a 40 lb wheaten terrier, prone to ear infections. It's 3:30 am, and he's up shaking his head with an infection. I have the antibiotic ointment on hand, and have give him some already, and I'll call the vet in the morning. In the mean time, is there anything I can do for his pain?

She just turned 1 at the end of August, and is still nursing some. The only thing she'll drink from her sippy is water. Milk gets spit out. So I try to give her yogurt and cheese (dairy that I know she'll eat). Is that enough calcium?

I bought some curtains for my daughter's room. Money is tight, and they were a good price! I just didn't realize that they aren't wide enough. The width of the window is 55 inches, and the curtains are 52 inches. Is there something I can do to fix them?

thanks!!

My daughter is 11 months old, and has slept in an amby bed up until this point. It's a cozy hammock that hangs on a spring (from a metal stand). When she moves, it moves. And she can bounce herself back to sleep in the night. Problem is, she's outgrowing the bed. She's a sensitive little soul, who doesn't sleep very well to begin with (she's a terribly light sleeper and is easily woken in the night).

My son also slept in this bed, until he was about a year old. The good thing about him was that he would nurse to sleep. So I would nurse him, ease him into his crib and when he woke I would do the same thing again (until he got used to being in the bed). My daughter doesn't nurse to sleep. It's easy to put her to bed, in the amby. I hand her her blanket, say goodnight, turn her music on and leave. done. I tried putting her in her crib for nap today, and she acted like I was trying to kill her! (I expected no less, really). We've got some time before this is completely necessary. But I would like to start to try.

I need all the suggestions and advice you can give me :)

Thanks!!

in your humble opinion, of course :)

I have active children (and a 4 year old who loves to take pictures...so a camera that won't break when dropped would be great!)

I want it to take pictures quickly, have good light, clear pictures, and a good image stabilizer

what do you think is best for me?? I can't afford what I would like, which is always a bummer - but what would be second best?

thanks everyone!!

We had a Canon Powershot, and it died about a month ago (it was only 2 years old, I think). Now we're needing a new one, and have no clue. So I thought this would be a good place to ask. We can't spend more than $300

and would like something with clear pictures, good light, fast shooting, durable (our 4 year old likes to take pictures too)

what do you have that you like??

thanks everyone!

My daughter is 10 months old, and has always had a hard time at night. She's got a lot of energy, and staying power. She's been known to stay up all night - happily. This isn't new to us, our son has boundless energy and has always had nighttime trouble too.

The most frustrating thing, I cannot figure out, is I'll do her nighttime routine, get both kids tucked into bed, and she'll be up 1/2 hour - an hour later, wide awake and ready to play. 2-3 hours later, she'll finally be ready to go back to bed (this is most frustrating when it happens in the middle of the night). She's done this, off and on, since she was about 2 months old. And I cannot figure it out! My husband doesn't usually mind. He doesn't get to see her during the day, so he thinks it's nice to have a little extra time to see her. But I stay home, and would like my day to come to an end before I'm ready for bed :)

I'm trying to figure out what I need to change, if anything, to get her back into a better rhythm.

She typically wakes, in the morning, between 7 and 8, and is ready for a nap around 9 or 10. She'll sleep for about 2 hours. An hour or two after waking up, she'll be ready for her afternoon nap (she can go longer between naps, if we're out and about). And she'll typically sleep for another hour or 2. I have her in bed between 7 and 8.

During the day, we're out and about, she's crawling all over the place, playing with her brother and dog, eating table food (3 meals + snacks). Not sure what I'm missing here...

not sure how I can get bed time to be bed time, and not an extra nap time - any ideas??

what's your schedule like for your little one?

Ever since my daughter got her days and nights straight (at around 2 months), she almost always goes to bed and wakes up thinking she's had a nice nap, after 45 minutes to an hour. She's now 10 months and STILL doing it! I have no idea what wakes her up or why, but you can almost always bet on it. She'll get up, and then play around for 2 or 3 more hours, then go to bed for real.

She takes two 2 (ish) hour naps per day and goes to bed around 7/8. I put her to bed tonight around 7. Sure enough, around 7:40 she's awake and fussing. I left her in her bed to fuss, but once she's awake and upset, she never never just goes back to sleep.

Any suggestions??