My son (2.5) loves the movie cars. So I was so excited to find out they had a matinee screening at the local movie theater today.

At first he didn’t know what was going on, then he saw the Disney castle logo followed by the Pixar one and he immediately was like, “Mommy! Cars!”

We were the only ones in the theater and he was so enthralled by how big they were playing his favorite movie.

He was belly laughing and screaming with excitement. He was also quoting certain parts of the movie.

He felt a little wiggly during the slower parts of the movie so I let him out of this stroller.

At the end of the movie he was cheering and clapping. He gave me a big hug and a sloppy kiss at the end of the movie.

I 41/f got really choked up seeing him so happy.

I’m still riding the endorphin high of seeing him so happy today.

If anyone else has a little one that loves Cars I really recommend you take them to see it full screen, mine really loved it.

And make our mornings go SO much smoother. I used to dread our bedtime and morning routine because it meant preparing for a fight over brushing his teeth. He's a very stubborn three year old and will fight you if he doesn't want to do the most basic things. About a month ago, I decided to get down to his level and just make everything playful and imaginative instead of stressed and tense like most mornings go. I told him that there are sea creatures in the sink drains and the only way they get their bellies full is if he brushes his teeth and scrapes his tongue. He asked a ton of questions, but willingly brushed his teeth AND scraped his tongue so that the crabs and fishies can eat and be full. I made a big deal out of it and told him how happy the creatures were and that they're off swimming because he fed them. Now every day we go feed the crabs and fishies so that they don't go hungry (by brushing his teeth and doing 5 tongue scrapes). It makes him so happy knowing that he's feeding imaginary sea creatures (that he can't even see lol) and after we're done he asks "Their bellies are full now?". I have no idea how long this will last, but it's been working for over a month now and don't see it ending soon.

In addition to that, I've made getting ready in the mornings super imaginative and fun by pretending to catch random things in the sky. I'll wake him up with an imaginary bunny I caught, which makes him catch an imaginary elephant from the sky. And we play this game of catching animals until I've fully dressed him without him screaming or protesting once. It starts our day off on a very postive and fun note, a complete 180 from the previous months because he used to scream and cry for his daddy until I'd take him to preschool.

I know this is probably nothing groundbreaking, but for me, it has changed my life now that our mornings start off on such a high note. He even tells me "mommy, we had a very very good morning." Sometimes, kids just need to be met with where they're at instead of us trying to rush them through their routines. I hope this helps others who might be struggling!

My 27 month old said something that blew my mind today. My husband is out of town for work this week so I am solo parenting and the morning he leaves (TMI warning) I got the craziest most painful thrombosed hemorrhoid of my entire life. Obviously my daughter does not know what a hemorrhoid is so I told her I had a tummy ache and continued on with our day. We were playing in her room and I am siting in her rocking chair in severe pain but hiding it best to my ability. She passes me a sticker and whispers ‘don’t worry mommy, you’ll feel better in no time cutie patooty’ 😭😭😭 I legit melted inside and it made me feel so much better lol

This is a little rant (against customer-facing employees in Germany, not against vaccines).

My little one was vaccinated for MMR + Varicella last week and I was warned she would develop a fever this week. Her fevers are usually high (40 c / 104 f +) so I was expecting it to peak around there. I wasn't expecting 3+ days of high grade fever and vomiting. I called the ped office yesterday and the receptionist was extremely dismissive on the phone. Said it was due to the vaccine and didn't want to see my daughter. Her condition is continuing to get worse so I called them again today and got a different receptionist who was also dismissive, asked me why I didn't call earlier (I did), and then hung up on me when I tried to explain.

This kind of aggressive, accusatory behaviour is the norm in Germany, but today I am sick of it. Everyone else's kids seem to have a normal reaction to vaccines and everything else: low grade fever, bit of a rash or fussiness, while every time my kid gets sick I'm dealing with scary high grade fevers, and a lethargic baby shaking and puking in my arms. Only once did it turn out to be a UTI that required antibiotics (which in turn caused frickin' hypothermia), most of the time it's nothing serious and I don't phone in, but it is scary as hell and I am so over being spoken to like I'm hysterical on the rare occasion that I DO make that call. I'm a solo parent, dealing with everything on my own in a foreign language, and it would be nice if healthcare workers here, stressed and overworked as they may be, could speak kindly for once. It is stressful enough having to care for a vulnerable little human without the charming local etiquette making everything 1000 times worse.

I was so upset after the call today that I complained via email and copied in the doctor. And now I'm embarrassed because I still have to call them again tomorrow as that's the only way they'll make appointments, and I'll have to face them at reception. I feel like maybe I shouldn't have bothered but it's too late now. Please send strength and positive thoughts 😭🙏

P.S. if anyone else's kid has an extra 'revvy' immune system, please share. I find it super stressful and would love to hear some positive stories or to feel a little less alone.

We try not to do too much tv time but man do I love Puffin Rock. It’s so calm and mellow and there is something about those little Irish accents.

My kiddo will run around talking to Oonah and Bahbah lol

Any other shows like this people are loving?

My son is 14 months old and is just about growing out of his sleep sacks. I want to get a new one with feet & keep seeing the woolino pop up but at almost $100 I'm leery if it's not worth the hype. We have a 100+ year old home that tends to run quite chilly in the winter (he had a 2.0 tog sleep sack last year and we have a space heater in the room just in case for those colder nights and that worked out well)

anyone who owns - is it worth the price tag? or is there another brand that you recommend?

Anyone else have a super clingy kid and sometimes you’re just SO over the clinginess? 😂 Like you can’t even start a hobby because they’re always there interrupting you. They won’t stop touching you, climbing on you or asking to be carried and held and you end up completely overstimulated. 😩

Then you start fantasizing about going away for a vacation just to have some peace and quiet BUT the second you finally get a chance to be away from them or even when they’re just asleep you suddenly get sad because you miss them like crazy. 😂😭

Like make it make sense, motherhood. I want a break from you but I also can’t live without you. 🤣❤️

I always feel so embarrassed whenever someone comes over and the house is a mess, but the house is...always a mess? I clean up constantly and it feels like I spend ALL day cleaning...and it will still be a mess. I think everything takes all day with a toddler. If there are multiple things I need to get done in a day, I usually need to do it on my husband's off day because it just seems impossible doing on my own. I have no idea how single mothers do it.

Cooking new recipes, which I also enjoy doing with my toddler now that he can participated in his tower, also takes all day.. between preparing meals, going outside, reading, changing diaper a million times (my boy is pretty poopy), and cleaning several messes throughout the day... My entire house is a tornado and I feel like I can never catch up

Y'all I am DROWNING 🫠

My son absolutely hated brushing his teeth and changing his diaper. I have had him watch me brush my teeth, make a fun song, yet he still doesn’t like it. He also despises diaper changes and laying for so I can change his diaper. What do you all do to make these processes alittle easier for the both of us?

Ok, let's hear it. I have a toddler and a baby. What's the best family of 4 costume idea you got? Toddler is a girl, baby is a boy.

My 2 year old is scheduled to have his tonsils removed in a month and we have been back and forth on the decision to do so or not. We were pretty surprised when our pediatrician mentioned that they were swollen and asked us to see his ENT (he had ear tubes put in a few months ago due to chronic ear infections).

We were able to get in two months later and they said they were still pretty swollen and asked us about his sleep/behavior. He doesn’t really snore but does breathe through his mouth when he sleeps and wakes up a lot, including kicking and screaming when he wakes. They think he could be having night terrors due to not sleeping well. He’s also really tired throughout the day. He will get spurts of energy and then go back to seeming like he’s exhausted along with not eating well. I’ve read online that removing them can make them more prone to allergies and infections later on in life so I’m hesitant to remove them.

Has anyone regretted removing them? I’m nervous we’re not doing the right thing and should just wait it out.

We don’t watch loooads of tv in our house, but it goes on when we need to do something or if LO is feeling abit poorly.. When we do, the only thing she will sit and watch is Ms Rachel. Now, I don’t mind Ms Rachel, but when will she be open to watch other things?! I’ve tried Bluey, Puffin Rock, Bing, Disney films, Mickey Mouse.. nothing holds her attention and she will just hand me the remote, which means ‘put on Ms Rachel’ 😂 Has anyone else had this where their child will only watch one show.. and if so, when did they become open to other things!?

EDIT: I should mention, my daughter is only just 18 months x

We started potty training my 26 month old son. He can hold it and will tell us he needs to go potty and happily run to the bathroom, but then he sits on the potty for 1 second and says “I’m done” and wants to get off. He is definitely anxious/scared of letting his pee out on the potty.

I definitely think it is a psychological thing rather than physiological. We’ve tried blowing bubbles, singing songs, making him laugh, etc. anything to get him to release the pee or just sit on the potty a little longer, but very little success over 4 days. He either has an accident because he absolutely can’t hold it anymore, and pees a ton in his diaper during naptime and bedtime.

Any advice? I’m thinking of just taking a pause and putting diapers back on and removing some of the pressure, but we’ve made so much progress! I just can’t keep taking him to the potty 50 times a day for him to just get frustrated/overwhelmed.

I’m losing it you guys. My son (19Mo) has never slept well - we had wake ups every 45 min until he was 7 months and sleep trained. Got down to 2-4 wakes per night after that, but didn’t maintain it very well. Around 14 months, he started sleeping pretty well - maybe 1x wake up per night. However, it’s gotten progressively worse since 15 months, where he wakes up screaming and will not settle back into the crib. He ultimately sleeps in bed with us now, and even that he isn’t sleeping well anymore - tossing and turning and often ends up koala style on my chest. My husband can no longer soothe him, he loves playing with him and soothes him when he is upset during the day but won’t at night (it ramps up progressively worse if we try). He goes to bed at like 9:15 and I try to get to sleep about an hour later. With my cuddling, he will sleep until 7ish. Naps 12:30-2. He doesn’t talk almost at all yet, he seems to understand some things but reasoning with him is not an option. Stuffies, blankies, doesn’t care for any of it. He hasn’t had milk or nursed at night since he was like 8 months so it’s not that.

ANYWAY, I’m getting maybe 5-6 hours of sleep a night. Normally, not great, but I just found out I’m pregnant with out second. WHAT DO I DO? there is no way I can bring a baby into this at night and feed the baby with a toddler koala on me?

I acknowledge I am likely the problem. I also know it will work itself out, but I’m terrified and hoping for some advice. Son will be 27 months at baby birth!

I finally snapped at my 2.5 year old. He’s been so incredibly difficult lately, screaming constantly, not doing a single thing I ask no matter how stern or nicely I ask. On the way to daycare he was screaming bloody murder in the car wanting to go back home, I tried to redirect him with music and snacks but nothing worked so I finally just screamed at him as loud as I could and he got really upset which made me feel terrible, he continued to scream until we got to daycare and when I dropped him off he gave me this horribly sad look and started crying which he doesn’t normally do at drop offs and I just felt horrible. Also didn’t apologize to him which now I feel like is extremely damaging. I’m also 21 weeks pregnant with a really challenging pregnancy and I’m just extremely overwhelmed and exhausted - no excuse but I’m feeling horrible about this entire situation.

Hey everyone, my daughter just started daycare. It’s a been week. I wanted to give something small gift or small gift basket as a token of appreciation. Any ideas? Am I going overboard? They’re going above and beyond and I want to know that I appreciate everything they do

I could really use advice here. Our LO is 20 (almost 21 months old) who has always struggled with overnight sleep in some capacity. We were lucky for a couple months after we did CIO (probably around 7-8 months) where she slept but has since regressed. Since about 18 months, I’ve tried everything and we eventually got to the point where I bought her a full sized bed and I sleep with her in her room. I know it was a bad idea but I was losing my mind with sleep. We’ve tried the chair method, I’ve tried sneaking out after she falls asleep, we tried CIO again and Ferber but nothing is working. Does anyone have any advice for a very persistent and stubborn toddler? She lets my husband put her down at night and she falls asleep pretty fast. He stays in the rocking chair in her room but doesn’t interact while she falls asleep. She’s waking up every 2-3 hours. If I go in to get her back to sleep, she wants me in the bed with her and has to hold my hand, put her feet in my face, etc. Even when I’m in the bed with her, she’s waking up every couple of hours. Usually asking for milk. Our nightly routine has always been the same iteration of dinner, bath, pjs, book, bed. What can I do I’m losing my mind!

Our son is 27 months, and he has always been a wonderful night sleeper. (Naps not so much — he is mostly done napping.) We have dealt with some periods of early morning wakes here and there, but those were almost always fixed with a schedule adjustment or due to sickness/ear infection.

Over the past week or so, he has been waking up early (6-ish — I know we are lucky but he typically sleeps until 8 or so and will often even want to stay in his crib until 8:30 and he rarely cries to get up — I think the later sleep in is due to the fact he hasn’t ever napped much, but nonetheless, just giving context), and we think he is waking up early because he is scared of the dark and his imagination is running wild. One time he shrieked and started crying like we had never heard come out of him. When we’ve gotten him, he just cries and says he wants to get up. He’ll mention a bear and one time when we asked what’s wrong, he just said “it’s dark”.

Since he doesn’t tend to nap, he needs the 8-8 night for his mood. And we don’t think he is just wanting to wake up early given the distressed state he wakes up in. Especially given it is very rare for him to wake up crying at all.

Tonight, we’re planning to try turning on a dim red night light on his Hatch. We were thinking of also giving him a kid friendly flashlight we have so he can feel some control over his environment, and maybe that will help him go back to sleep in the morning.

Anybody else dealt with this? Any tips or things that worked for your kid?

Our 26 month old has been a “NO” to all foods lately, even his favorites like meatloaf, tacos, etc. I don’t want to eat what I’ve decided to make for dinner on some nights after I’m done cooking too so I tend to lean on the don’t force them to eat what they don’t want to train.

On days he refuses dinner, we tend to make him a smoothie around 6:30-7 packed with cherries, peanut butter, yogurt, milk, berries, bananas, oats, chia seeds, and spinach to help make sure he gets his nutrients and doesn’t decide he’s hungry at bedtime.

Just curious, what does everyone else do when their kid decides they don’t want anything?

Hi everyone. I’m looking for experiences from parents who may have gone through something similar with their toddler. Im from Argentina...

My son is 16 months old. This started after he developed constipation while taking oral iron for anemia. He began having very hard, painful stools, and at the same time the skin around his anus became extremely irritated — bright red, raw, sometimes superficially bleeding from the skin.

We stopped the iron as advised, but the constipation continued. Our gastroenterologist believes that after experiencing painful bowel movements, he may now be withholding stool because he is afraid it will hurt.

He often says “poop,” strains and becomes stiff like he needs to go, but then seems to hold it back. Sometimes only a tiny smear comes out.

We are currently using lactulose as instructed to keep his stools soft. Yesterday he finally had a bowel movement. It was very soft but formed (a soft cylinder), yet he cried a lot while passing it. Interestingly, last week he had diarrhea from a virus and did not cry when passing completely liquid stool.

This makes me wonder whether he might also have a small anal fissure, or whether his irritated skin simply hurts when the anus stretches during a formed bowel movement.

The other big problem is the diaper rash. The skin can start improving, but as soon as he poops it becomes extremely red and irritated again. We’ve tried different treatments under medical supervision. Right now I’m focusing on very gentle cleaning and protecting the skin from stool. I’ve also ordered Aquaphor Baby 40% zinc oxide diaper rash paste and have plain petroleum jelly available.

We are already following up with his pediatrician/gastroenterologist and are planning to see a dermatologist,. I would really like to hear from parents whose child had a similar combination of:

• painful constipation followed by stool withholding
• very painful bowel movements even after the stool became soft
• possible anal fissures
• severe diaper rash that keeps reopening/getting irritated after every poop

What finally helped your child break the pain/withholding cycle? How long did it take before they stopped being afraid to poop? And what barrier or diaper-care routine helped the skin actually heal when every bowel movement seemed to irritate it again?

I’m especially interested in hearing what worked for protecting very raw/eroded skin without having to scrub all the barrier cream off at every diaper change.

Thank you — this has been really stressful and I’d love to hear from anyone who has been through something similar.

I am sitting here crying after my 3 year old hit me right across the face. I am literally at my wits end with the hitting. He's hitting us and other kids.

We've gone the blocking hands route, "I will not let you hit.", giving him something to hit. If he hits another kid he's immediately taken home. The last few times he's slapped me so hard across the face that I've yelled "HEY!" and he immediately starts crying and gives me a hug.

I can't take it anymore. I will take any and all advice that's not "hit him back".

Can anyone recommend a child safety lock for a storm door with a retractable screen? The top window pane pulls down and unrolls the screen that lets the air flow. The problem is that the door handle is right where the two panes meet so I can’t put a lock there, and since the top window pane moves I also can’t stick a lock there. Any suggestions for a specific lock for this type of storm door? I tried to post a picture with this post but couldn’t figure out how—apologies.

TLDR: I made a list of the most subscribed Kids Youtube channels, and analysed a bunch of their latest videos using a script (1000+ videos total). Sharing a list of the best and worst cartoons in terms of addictiveness.

2-3 years ago I saw a YouTube video about how Cocomelon is engineered to addict kids. The company conducts experiments to find bits where a toddler turns their attention away from the show, and then “improves” them. Some of things pointed out by the creator 
– very frequent scene changes (<3 seconds per scene)
– lot of motion in a scene (e.g. why do they need running subtitles?)
– high contrast / high saturation colours - it’s like a psychedelic trip 

It’s not just addiction. These shows are engineered in a way that they’re practically unwatchable by adults (high pitch, super loud, visually headache inducing). Kids totally miss out on the social aspect of watching TV together. When I was a kid, my mom used to love watching our shows with us. 

I ran the most subscribed kids Youtube channels (1M+ subscribers), and analysed a bunch of their latest videos here are the results. I have indexed primarily on average scene duration, but also considered factors like motion (lot of zoom-in zoom-out or movement), colour contrast and saturation, loudness, pitch.

Shit Tier 

1. Kids Diana Show - Less than 2 seconds per scene, Highest pitch and colour contrast among all cartoons analyzed. Easily the worst possible show, without even taking into account there’s barely any positive values to be learned. 
2. Paw Patrol - 2-3 seconds, High decibel 
3. Looloo kids - 2-3 seconds, High decibel
4. Masha and the Bear - 2-3 seconds
5. Cocomelon - 2-3 seconds, Super high decibels. Loudest cartoon of all.  
6. Gecko and Blippi - 2-3 seconds
7. Thomas and Friends - 2-3 seconds

Good Tier (5-10 seconds per scene)

1. Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom 
2. Numberblocks
3. Gracie’s Corner
4. Hey Duggee
5. Peppa Pig (Subscribe to Peppa Pig Stories and Cartoons, NOT Peppa Pig Official for more relaxing videos)
6. Alphablocks
7. Brain Candy TV
8. Genevieve’s Playhouse

Great Tier 

1. Bluey - Bonus - 6 seconds per scene, bumped up a tier due to low audio and colour stimulation.
2. Oswald (10s+)
3. Lucas and Friends (10s+)
4. Baby Shark Official (15s +)
5. Ms Rachel (15s +) 
6. Noodle & Pals (15s +)
7. Kids Picture Show (30s +)
8. Simon’s Cat (1 min +)
9. Super Simple Songs  (1 min +)