Parent Thread

Dandai_sl said:

We followed the rule of waiting to try to give him solid food until he had a pincher grasp. I follow the theory that food for infants isn't for sustenance so much as learning how to eat and not choke.

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This is exactly true. Multiple nurses in the hospital while we were there for 2 months, as well as multiple doctors & pediatricians all told us that rice cereal offers no benefit over breast milk/formula as far as calories or making the child more full to sleep longer. There's no truth to the old wives tale that solid food keeps a baby more full than liquid. It's just purely about the calories and nutrients involved, not whether it's a solid or liquid.

The only real benefit is that rice cereal is generally much cheaper than formula once they get to the point they can eat solids. We aren't doing any solids yet because our kid is still on breast milk, which costs us nothing.

Is it the soccer mom equivalent of saying I'm so glad I have a BMW?

Sigh.
My son's school has a behaviour chart - it's a pretty good system, I think. Everyone starts the day on green, if they misbehave, they move down, but if they make good decisions they can move up again. He hasn't remained on green or higher for more than a week. He's not being a bad boy, but he just can't control himself. Fooling around with people next to him, not listening to instructions, and the like. The teacher said that part of the problem is that he's bored, as he seems to be mastering the lessons overly quickly. His teacher also has a zero tolerance policy, so he's by no means the only child with whom this is happening.

The issue for me is simply that he's not listening to his teacher. And so when he comes home, I'm just not doing a good job of being a parent. The first words out of his mouth are that he didn't end the day on green, and he's upset because he thinks I am disappointed in him. I need to do a better job of that. But how do I help him focus himself enough to be obedient and respectful to his teacher?

Can someone please write an instruction manual for children that will fix every issue? Please?

Is he perhaps in need of skipping a grade? I had a lot of behavior issues when I was very young - same stuff really, bored, not paying attention or staying focused, etc. So my parents fought to bump me a grade and the issues largely disappeared.

My son isn't that old yet, so I've no advice or experience from which to draw, but I'd keep this in the back of your mind.

Izo_sl said:

Is it the soccer mom equivalent of saying I'm so glad I have a BMW?

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it clips to your kids diaper and notifies you if they baby stops breathing essentially... like one of them vibrates if it doesn't feel movement for 15 seconds and then sounds an alarm if that doesn't work.

OneofOne_sl said:

Is he perhaps in need of skipping a grade? I had a lot of behavior issues when I was very young - same stuff really, bored, not paying attention or staying focused, etc. So my parents fought to bump me a grade and the issues largely disappeared.

My son isn't that old yet, so I've no advice or experience from which to draw, but I'd keep this in the back of your mind.

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Something we've certainly thought about, but the issue is that he's so small. He's the smallest in his class by a lot. Putting him ahead a year would make him the smallest by a stinking pantload. That's certainly not the end of the world, but I think we're going to see how things go through this semester at least. He's getting a lot of mental stimulation outside of school with various lessons and such.

I guess we'll have to figure it out as we go. Stinkin' kids and their need to be nurtured and all that...

Eyashusa_sl said:

it clips to your kids diaper and notifies you if they baby stops breathing essentially... like one of them vibrates if it doesn't feel movement for 15 seconds and then sounds an alarm if that doesn't work.

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Yep.

So...Saturday kid's fever goes up to 102. Tylenol is doing nothing. Now I know that you don't start worrying until you get to 104 but I had more concerns about the fact that if it did get up to 104 I had nothing to counter it since the Tylenol was basically worthless. So we put in a call to the pediatrician around 5pm (best 10 bucks we ever spent) - no one had ever told us about infant Motrin. Granted, a lot of doctors like to wait til 6 months I guess to introduce ibuprofen but yeah we had no clue this was even an option. So in combination with me and the kid sitting in a lukewarm bath for 20 mins we got it down to 99. It stayed around 99.5 all sunday and yesterday morning then went down to 98.9 .....just in time for the rash to start. Again, no one told us that this is actually a good thing/sign of the kid's body winning.

So we went back to the pediatrician last night. No concerns in re the rash - but now we've also developed an ear infection (which wasn't there on the 18th when we went last time).

Kid sounds awful. SO congested - basically he has to be aspirated (? right word?) with the bulb in order to eat. Sunday he was so congested he made a noise in his crib while I was rinsing something out in the bathroom - noise sounded...I don't even know how to describe it - ran in there and he couldn't breathe/was thrashing around.

But all of that isn't the worst part. He's got a sore throat (we know this because both my husband and I have this now too) and when he coughs his little face just melts into the most heartbreaking expression and he just does a long, low painful cry. That face makes you want to punch something .

Sigh. So now we're on the vitamin D drops and probiotic drops same as always but in addition to that: Tylenol, amoxicillin, and some agave nectar based baby cough syrup by Zarbees that I saw in target that the pediatrician ok'd because its basically sugar water.

I know this is normal but I just want the kid to not be sick anymore. This is the third virus in about 5 weeks. His system better be like Ft. Knox by the time flu season rolls around.

holy crap, has your kid really been sick for like 2-3 straight weeks now? I think it was a couple weeks ago when you posted that your kid had been sick for a week already. That can't be good

joeboo_sl said:

holy crap, has your kid really been sick for like 2-3 straight weeks now? I think it was a couple weeks ago when you posted that your kid had been sick for a week already. That can't be good

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at at this point over a month with 3 different viruses and now an ear infection. Symptoms have all been distinct.

Etoille_sl said:

But all of that isn't the worst part. He's got a sore throat (we know this because both my husband and I have this now too) and when he coughs his little face just melts into the most heartbreaking expression and he just does a long, low painful cry. That face makes you want to punch something

.

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Worst feeling in the world. Knowing your kid is in pain and upset and all you can do to help him/her is to hold him/her and cuddle.

What Tarrant said.

Etoille_sl said:

at at this point over a month with 3 different viruses and now an ear infection. Symptoms have all been distinct.

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If the ear infection keeps re-occuring (believe or not the virus' could be related), they may suggest tubes.

Tarrant_sl said:

Did't I say after week 1 1/2 that you should take him back in and if they did nothing to get a second opinion and instead you just called instead?

Not saying/asking that to be a dick, I'm just trying to remember correctly without going back on my phone to look for it. After that long of being sick the immune system can be compromised and a doctor can pick up other symptoms that may be unrelated that they can see may lead to other things and work on preventative measures. After a week of being sick always take them in, don't listen to a nurse tell you "you shouldn't waste the time, we'll just tell you to keep doing what you're doing." Bullshit, how do they know if there isn't something to pick up on that you may be missing? It's like they have got so desensitized to overbearing parents that they don't realize something bad can actually be going on.

Anyway, I hope the kiddo feels better. Nothing worse then your kids being in pain and there being nothing you can do to help them feel better.

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What part of he was there on the 18th did you miss? "It wasn't there 10 days ago.". I took him in the Friday after I called. That's how I know it wasn't there 10 days ago. and they confirmed it was a second infection after/while he was still recovering from the first. Kid didn't have a temp til last Thurs which was low grade. You keep saying go in every time for everything - to what end? If all the docs (he has seen 3 at this point) keep saying that my gut instincts are correct do I just keep arguing with them? Also "not trying to be a dick" is "I'm sorry but's" retarded cousin. I could say a similar thing to you in re your custody issues.

Its three separate viruses the month he started daycare in the fall. it sucks ass and I am ready to be over it but for real this is to be expected in large part.

Ps - pick a position please. I was overreacting on vaccine related moodiness/colic but now I am underreacting on being sick? "everyone has a reaction to shots, nbd....omg kids never get continuously sick I told you to take him every week." Its annoying. And annoying that you think you're being clever in being passive aggressive about it. Fuck it I am just not responding to you anymore. I never planned on taking parenting advice from you in the first place but I am just sick of your bullshit in general not only as it relates to me but in how you talk to people.

Vandyn_sl said:

If the ear infection keeps re-occuring (believe or not the virus' could be related), they may suggest tubes.

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yeah this is his first but if it does reoccur I will definitely explore that. We have him.sleeping on a slight incline both at home and at daycare to try and avoid it but you never know. The pediatrician asked if my husband or I have a history of ear infection (I do) so I know they're also thinking proactively.

The one upside of all this seems to be that for whatever reason now that I am sick my milk production is through the roof. I just pumped almost 9 ounces on my first pump of the work day - its typically closer to 6.5.

If its a virus or x amount of them, why do you give him antibiotics (amoxicillin)? They do nothing against a virus, yet help to spread resistant stems.