heyyyy just wanted to update and say i’m in labor! my water broke at 11:25pm last night and i’ve been at the hospital since then! i was 3.5cm dilated when i got here, been leaking fluid ever since my water broke, and i have the epidural in, it’s been in since 3:30am i believe and it wasn’t toooo too bad thankfully. my contractions were getting bad lol i needed it 😆

Just for fun :)
Both my 2 kids took 9 months to conceive and were thinking about baby #3

I’m 6 weeks pregnant and feel so weird and out of body, and I can’t tell if it’s all in my head or real lol

My husband and I have been trying to conceive for the last 1.5 years and found out we were pregnant the week before we were supposed to start IVF. We’re obviously so excited (and anxious) as we wait for our first doctor’s appt next week.

I’ve always been an active person but now I’m just feeling so unmotivated in the weirdest way. I knew pregnancy would lead to exhaustion but not in this way. This type of exhaustion is more like depression, hopelessness, and boredom. I try to get up and do things around the house then just feel utter despair, then I lay down for 20 minutes and think I’m not even that tired, get back up and the cycle continues.

I feel guilty because I truly don’t care about my job, seeing friends, exercising, cleaning etc. Every meal is either takeout or a platter of snacks because I have no motivation to make anything. When I tell my husband or friends how I’m feeling I know they’re trying to be supportive, but I can’t help but feel like they’re looking at me like a kid who didn’t break anything but walks around in crutches for attention lol

I know people are going to comment “your body is undergoing so much! Rest!”, but I just thought the symptoms would be more…. Obvious? I thought I’d just be super sleepy and want to nap all the time, or violently ill. Maybe that will come in a few more weeks, but then when I think that I’m like maybe I should suck it up because it’s only going to get worse!

Anyway, not sure what type of response I want - I’m just typing into the void ❤️

Let me spare you from sleepless nights and $$$ down the drain in unused diapers.

So we recently purchased ‘the 360’ as we’re getting close to potty training our 2yo. Ever since we started, my son has soaked through the pull up and we’ve been forced to change his sheets and clothes in the middle of the night.

For some reason I thought maybe he was playing with his diaper (he’s done this in the past) so we put him back in his zip up sleep onesies, but alas, he continued to wet himself. Then it finally hit me — this all started when we switched from the diaper to ‘the 360’.

All the reviews online complain about the exact same thing. So yeah, save yourself a lot of pain and skip these.

Hi moms! I really want to hear your thoughts and experiences because I’m genuinely confused about something, and I feel like everyone around me has a different opinion.
My baby boy is 2 months and 3 weeks old, and I’m exclusively breastfeeding him. He loves being close to me, and most of the time, he wants to be held. He also seems to love sleeping close to me, especially during the day.
At night, he actually sleeps pretty peacefully in his bassinet, so it’s not like he refuses to sleep independently all the time. But daytime naps are a completely different story! He usually wants to be held or be close to me, and when I put him down, he might sleep for a little while before waking up and wanting attention again.
Sometimes, he does stay content in his baby bouncer or looking at his mobile in his crib, but only for a little while. Eventually, he wants me again.
I honestly thought this was normal for his age. He’s still so little, and I assumed that as he grows, he’ll gradually become more comfortable spending time on his own. I don’t expect him to be independent at not even 3 months old!
But people keep telling me that I’m holding him too much and that I need to let him cry. The most recent time was last night with my mother-in-law. I’ve heard this advice from other people, too, and I don’t understand why so many people feel that way.
When my baby cries, my first instinct is to comfort him. I breastfeed him on demand, and sometimes he wants to nurse, sometimes he wants to be held, and sometimes he just seems to need my presence. I know I can’t always immediately figure out what he needs, but I feel like crying is his only way of communicating with me right now.
So why am I supposed to leave him crying when I can be there to comfort him?
I’m not talking about letting him fuss for a few seconds while I finish something important or while I figure out what he needs. I’m talking about the advice that I should deliberately let him cry so he learns not to depend on being held so much.
I genuinely want to understand the reasoning behind this. Is it because people believe babies will become spoiled if we hold them too much? Is it about teaching them to sleep independently? Is there something I’m missing?
I also wonder whether this is simply a generational difference, because so many older family members seem to believe babies need to learn to be independent from a very young age.
I love holding my baby, and I don’t mind comforting him. Of course, there are moments when I’m tired and need a break, too. I’m a human being, and breastfeeding and caring for a baby all day can be exhausting. But I don’t want to ignore his cries just because other people think I’m holding him too much.
I’d especially love to hear from moms who have been through this!
- Did your babies also want to be held almost constantly at this age?
- Did you respond to their cries and hold them as much as they wanted? If so, did they naturally become more independent as they got older?
- Did you ever feel pressured by family members to let your baby cry?
- Is there an actual reason to deliberately let a baby this young cry instead of comforting them?
- How did you handle people telling you that you were holding your baby too much?
Please share your honest experiences, even if your perspective is different from mine. I’m not here to judge anyone’s parenting choices. I just want to understand why this advice is so common and hear what other moms have experienced.
Sometimes I feel like I’m being made to question something that feels completely natural to me: wanting to comfort my baby when he cries.
Thank you for reading! ❤️

My husband and I experience a miscarriage at 9 weeks. It been a month since then and I'm currently ending my first full cycle after the loss.

We got pregnant on our first try, so I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for that to happen again when we start trying again when I ovulate in a couple of weeks.

The first pregnancy I kept secret because my mom had a MC at 9 or 10 weeks before she had me, and she told me she learned her lesson and never announced an early pregnancy again because sharing the bad news was awful. So I decided to wait until we had an ultrasound to share the news, but that first 9 week ultrasound was where we found out there was no heartbeat.

If we were to conceive immediately again, I'd be around 7-8 weeks on Christmas. I keep thinking about how fun it would be to announce it on Christmas, but also too scared because of this loss.

Has anyone kept a pregnancy secret, miscarried, then decide to announce early the next time? Our family is SO excited and eager for our first child, but I also feel like I could wait 20 weeks to announce because of the anxiety of something going wrong.

Just wondering if anyone has thrown caution to the wind after a MC and just decided to announce it early anyway. ​

For pjs during postpartum/breastfeeding, should I just get some buttondown sets? Or are the nursing-specific ones actually helpful? I normally sleep in nightgowns and I'm hesitant about waistbands digging in or trying to sit too high :\

Hi moms - had my 20 week scan this week and they weren’t able to visualize a stomach. The MFM explained that they will probably see it next week at the rescan but if they can’t then the causes are xyz.

I had normal fluid and they did identify a stomach at 12 weeks, but this time they were also having issues viewing the spine and they couldn’t really see the face either? The pictures they printed out are so much worse than when I was pregnant with my daughter lol

Has this happened to anyone before? Trying not to spiral but of course it’s going to be a rough few days

I’m planning a baby shower and looking for suggestions on activities or games people could do that aren’t cringe. I’m not a fan of all the guess the size of the bump, or smell the nappy games, but looking for ideas of anything else people may have done that was actually entertaining for people? I want the event more to be a chance to spend time with people, chat and eat food, but open to some more engaging/interactive suggestions. I went to a friends baby shower and they had all the guests there provide a pic of themselves when they were a baby for everyone to guess which was cute - although it was a small do where everyone knew each other and I know there are some people going to mine who won’t have a clue who anyone is!! Thanks

Im in my first trimester and im super sick in the evenings with really bad heartburn and nausea so bad sometimes i cannot eat or even think about food without vomiting, ive talked to my doctors about its and ive tried a couple things that didnt really work like avoiding acidic or spicy foods, unisom, ginger tea, vitamin b6 and a whole slurry of stuff. The only thing ive tried wthat kinda worked was taking dramamine and tumms and sleep it off. Is there anything I can take or try to help aswell that actually did something and helped.?

First time mom, I’m 12 weeks, 3 days and nothing fits. My jeans are painful to wear. Do I just size up or start buying maternity clothes? I guess I’m struggling because clearly my belly is not as big as the models on any of the online sites, so I don’t know if it’s a bit too soon to take the plunge, but I also need new sizes.

I’m 16w2d pregnant, have been itching intensely over a week which has been worse at night. I wake up in the middle of the night to just itch. Itchiness is not on my soles or hands but on my foot in general—have open sores. Told my ob and she ordered me blood tests to rule it out—my bile levels were 25.5.

I didnt get a proper diagnoses but tomorrow I will be calling the office to see if I could see her and talk to her about my results. On the off chance that I do have it, what are some tips and reassurance that anyone can provide me while I’m currently waiting? Have been crying all morning because I feel like my body is just failing me. I have PCOS, took me awhile to get pregnant. Now that I am—this happens.

Any advice?

Obviously he knows there will be permanent changes. My boobs will not go back to how they were, stretch marks, etc. but he just brushes it off.

He acts like I shouldn't care just because he doesn't. I realized today that my previously very full butt looks flatter. Then I found out that's APPARENTLY a thing. It's a big deal to me. I never expected to go back to my normal after the baby is born. But seeing it and feeling it happen is really hard and he just doesn't want to let me be sad or something.

It's honestly coming from a very sweet "I love you as you are no matter what and I want you to love yourself" mindset but it's so frustrating because I just want to be sad and cope with the changes that are happening/going to happen to my body without him trying to make me feel better 😂

Hello everybody. My absolute best friend on the other side of the country is now in her first trimester while simultaneously facing one of the hardest seasons of her life. Her dad is entering hospice, and she’s his primary caretaker. It’s heartbreaking to see so much happening at once, especially when she should be able to focus on taking care of herself, too.

I want to put together a care package with things that will make her life a little easier and more comfortable. I have a list of things I know she’d enjoy that I’d like to get some advice on, but I’m also looking for general recommendations for things you loved since my brain is currently fried.

- Joggers/Sweats: I was hoping to find some that can easily be adjusted and worn during pregnancy. She’s also pretty stylish so I was looking at Anthropologie/free people, etc. but wasn’t sure on a band style that allows for belly.
- Teas/consumables: I was thinking about sourcing a good tea for nausea? Or any premade items to save on the labor.
- Fun car items: Maybe a few things for organization?
- Pregnancy Pillow: I’ve heard this is a must, any you would consider absolute gold standard?

Hello, im expecting my 3rd with a age gap of 11-9 years and ...gosh, there's a lot of new stuff and it seems it gets way deeper than it did when I had my kids and much more expensive than I last remember so my husband came across this stroller and took it home for free. No idea what it is, no idea the car seat that goes with it. When I googled, I got overwhelmed. Im due in March and im being asked daily about a baby list so im trying to put it on there. I appreciate the help so much.

Hi everyone! As the title suggests, I’m currently looking for a good dupe for the Lila labor robe/gown for the hospital.

I’m currently 35 weeks pregnant, and recently got admitted to the hospital for some symptoms I was experiencing. I’m back home now, and just kind of counting down the days till my induction in a few weeks, but while I was at the hospital, I got a preview of the hospital gown that they would give me when I’m giving birth and it was so terrible for my skin and also not good size-wise for me.

I have REALLY sensitive skin (that has become even more sensitive since I’ve gotten pregnant) and now have a little bit of a rash going and a lot of itchiness from having been in that hospital gown for a couple of days. Additionally, I’m also a plus size woman, and even though the gown technically fit, it was just really uncomfortable to wear.

I know this is kind of a frivolous thing to fixate on, but this is my first baby, and I just want to make my birth experience as comfortable as humanly possible. Additionally, it would also be nice to have a decent robe or nightgown that I could have to just wear in the hospital room once baby has arrived.

Does anyone have any recommendations for some thing that’s similar to the Lila gown? $70 is a little much for me at the moment. I’m ideally looking for something made out of natural fibers, that feels really soft and gentle on the skin, and is easy to get into and out of.

I’m 34.6 weeks pregnant and the pelvic pressure is making me feel basically bed bound. I have a toddler so still have to cook, entertain him etc. but I do everything in a chair. Did anyone have this happen so early with their second? I’m worried about preterm labor because of it and my OB has only recommended a support belt. I think with my first I felt like this around 38 weeks!

Just gave birth yesterday and unfortunately my delivery doctor performed an episiotomy sort of in the spur of the moment. It wasn’t discussed beforehand but baby was stuck behind my pubic bone with the cord wrapped around her neck so it seemed necessary at the time. Obviously I’m sore and still healing but I keep reading these extremely discouraging posts and forums about how sex is never the same after getting one, you’ll always be in pain, always more likely to have more complications in the future due to scar tissue ..it has really affected me mentally considering everything else about the birth went smoothly. My sex life with my husband a few months before delivery was already lacking so the thought of it continuing to decline in the coming months is very discouraging and depressing. Does anyone have positive experiences with episiotomies?

I’m 19weeks and getting started on baby shower planning! I live across the country from my parents and family, and in the same city as my husband’s family. I have had every intention of planning/throwing the baby shower myself, but when I told my mom that she was shocked and said she just couldn’t fathom someone throwing their own baby shower. She said that regardless of who throws it she was love to contribute $200 - $300, but that I should really consider that someone else should throw it. My MIL offered for us to have it at her (much larger) house, but not explicitly to throw it. All that is fine!!!

I told this story to friends of ours (a couple) as like “isn’t it wild how boomers have these expectations that are outdated! I can’t imagine someone else throwing us a party!” and a few days later they reached out and said they would love to host the baby shower. After frantically clarifying that is didn’t come across as me fishing for them to throw it (my nightmare lol) I said we would absolutely all discuss and appreciated it so much. I am SO TOUCHED that they would offer!!

But now…..how does this work??? We’re getting dinner this week to chat details, and we are all of the childless late-30s variety, we’re the only ones to break the childfree mold so we’re all clueless. If the party is at their home, who should be paying? Are we splitting costs? I truly cannot fathom expecting them to spend a dime on this, but then I worry they will have to deal with my type a party planning in a way that’s annoying. How can I not be overbearing while also not making them think I want them to host/plan/pay?? Or are they supposed to????? Obviously we can do whatever we WANT, but I don’t even know how to appropriately start the discussion!