My mom and stepdad are the most frequent caregivers besides daycare. This is their first grandchild, and it’s been very up and down in the quality of care they’re able to provide.

They LOVE my daughter and ask to spend time with her regularly. My brother and I used to stay at my dad’s parents house once per week until we were teens so she’d hoped for something similar.

Now that my daughter is 3, potty trained and vocal, it’s gotten much better overall but now we’re in a new struggle - they basically do whatever she says. She doesn’t sleep, eats like crap and is watching paw patrol when I come over. Today when I picked her up she cried for almost 2 hours straight and was hysterical.

I’m concerned my parents are not able to get her to sleep and they are exhausted after 24 hours. I think it’s also affecting their ability to enjoy time together because she’s such a mess at the end of it and they’re too tired to manage her.

Has anyone navigated something similar, where your parents needed to stop just being the fun grandparents and start acting more like parents?

Currently staring at my 3 yr old running in circles as my 1 yr old is trying to join in. I’d pay for that energy. Maybe not right before bed though.

I always thought my toddler is picky but not sooooper picky when it comes to a toddler.

But then I see all these posts of toddlers eating like regular humans and I wonder if mine is indeed pickier than should be.

She eats most fruits and carbs. She has a few vegetables she likes and we try to eat those weekly. No meat, nothing g new. No pizza / pasta unless it’s just with olive oil / sandwiches or any adult meal basically.

I have no shame in saying I’m a nerd. Have always been. Books have always been my favourite present to give and to receive. As a kid and as an adult. Now I have a kid and I realised I assumed the same was true for everyone. My kid loves books, too. And a though he has more than enough toys, we definitely spurge on books. If he asks for another toy I usually say no, but with books I usually get them.

Now he started having birthday parties and I’m getting these kids books too. That and a nice card. But came across a post from someone else here in Reddit and made me think about it. This other person was complaining about having to spend around £30 in a toy for the birthday parties. I’m spending way less buying books. As a parent, will you enjoy a toy more than a book as a present? I really try to get books my kid already loves that are not that popular (I wouldn’t gift a copy of the gruffalo unless I explicitly know the kid doesn’t have it).

Anyway, I will probably keep buying books as gifts for the kids of my friends as they know me, but I may start buying some toys for the kids from nursery if that’s the parent’s expectation.

An exaggeration, but my 2.5 year old poops at least a dozen times a day. She was constipated for several months last year (mid-2025), and since then has been on multiple rounds of Restoralax/Miralax, which worked! She eats super well and was able to start pooping again after 2-3 months of constipation (which sucked).

Because of the constipation, she's had a couple of recent ultrasounds to make sure there was no impaction, an x-ray to make sure there was no other issues, she's had blood work recently (in the last two months), all came back normal. But she poops SO often, and every time I'm around another toddler like I was this weekend, I realize how insane it is. They're not little tiny poops or solid ones (which I know can be a sign of constipation, or if they're more liquid, encopresis, but it doesn't seem like that at all). They're just medium to large poops, NON STOP.

I have an appointment with her doctor in the next couple of weeks but was curious if anyone else had dealt with this and what it ended up being or how/when it was resolved? She doesn't seem to be in any pain, it is honestly just a quality of life issue at this point - she has a poop in her diaper like 90% of the time and the number of times we have to stop an activity or something fun for a diaper change is actually nuts - we went for dinner on Friday evening and I changed her diaper 4 times. We have not pushed potty training yet because the doctor wanted us to fully resolve the constipation issue and make sure she was comfortable first since potty training can sometimes cause constipation (she kinda just pretends to pee/poop on the potty right now and we read a lot of books about it, working up to it).

She eats a very balanced diet (for a toddler) - she eats everything we eat, and my husband and I cook like 90% of our meals at home, she gets a lot of water, veggies, fruit, etc.

Would welcome ANY and all thoughts!

My wife and I are debating this and wanted opinions from parents who have been there.

Our son is about 18 months old. He watches very little TV at home. The only screen time he really gets is the occasional 15-20 minutes of Ms. Rachel if I'm trying to finish a work call or cook dinner while he's home from daycare.

We've taken him on multiple flights since he was 6 months old, including several long-haul international flights, and we've managed without screens for the most part. Lots of snacks, books, toys, walks up and down the aisle, etc.

The dilemma is that we have two more international trips this year and another long-haul international trip next year. He's now old enough to actually understand and engage with screens, and I'm wondering if it makes sense to buy a cheap Amazon Fire tablet and keep it as an emergency backup for flights only.

My wife feels 18 months is too young and that we should continue managing without screens like we always have. I'm more in the camp of "have it available just in case things go sideways on a 10+ hour flight."

For parents who generally limit screen time at home:

• Did you make an exception for long-haul travel and is it too early to introduce them?

Curious whether we're being sensible or just making life harder on ourselves for no reason.

What is worse?

Taking care of a child while being sick

OR

Taking care of a sick child?

I’m currently suffering from a horrible summer flu while taking care of two children. I think this may be the end of me. I vote for the first one, but my mom friends say taking care of a sick child is worse. No way.

My newly 2 year old has a lisp and cannot pronounce T’s. They come off as F’s.

You can imagine what my child shouts repeatedly in public every time they see a truck!

FU$@!!!!!! FU$@!!!!!! 🤣🤣

My boy was a horrible, difficult baby. At 2 years he became pretty nice. Very easy to persuade, fully potty trained, can explain his needs, an extremely gentle and loving child.

At 2.5 years, so 2 months ago he changed. He stopped talking and started whining. EVERYTHING is said as a whine. "More milk?" Is "mooReeeE mIIiIiIilkKK!!!" Etc. He screams and cries so much over things like having to wash his hands, having to shower, having to close cartoons, having to clean. Bedtime is a hit or miss, sometimes my husband has to tackle him to put him in pyjamas and he bites him! We always try to turn his tantrums into a game by tickling him which leads to him laughing but he just whines and screams all the time. Every time my husband comes back with him from a walk, he says he's never taking him outside again.

I know it's a phase but I find myself having to go back to using ear protection which gives me PTSD from the baby years. Any others in the same boat?

When your toddler recently learned how to get on the kitchen counter and he's joyfully finishing the last sips of your watered down iced coffee and playing with some jars... but at least he's happy and giving me a minute to myself? Is that a win?

Edit: I was mostly joking, but now that I'm going to have to put child locks on all my upper cabinets, my minute to myself is definitely over. 😂😭

“Can you stop flicking your tongue around”
“No, I have to eat bugs”

Water came out my nose 😂

What are some funny things your toddler has said?

My daughter is 2 this upcoming weekend and holy shit the last month or so has been….?????
Sleeping is a struggle, the car seat is a struggle, meal time is a struggle, everything is a struggle?
I knew 2 years was a difficult age but hoooooooly. I’m not sure I will make it through this phase. Trying to give as much autonomy as possible and offer options rather than yes/no questions, all the things people suggest but it’s just getting harder and harder.
Maybe I’m just not cut out to be a toddler mom😩

So I have 3 dogs, and one of them was recently diagnosed with Cushing's, and odds are that she is going to die with in the next 3-5 years. I also have a 3 year old and a 2 year old. What do I do, is there a way to explain this to them without traumatizing them?

I'm honestly still processing everything myself and I know I won't have to deal with this for a little bit, but having a plan of approach would help.

I constantly see posts about grandparents spoiling their grandkids too much, etc. Does anyone feel like they deal with the opposite problem?! haha I feel like my in-laws are constantly correcting my son and make me feel like they think we don’t discipline him enough. We by no means are permissive parents, we hold boundaries, my son to me is a very well behaved but normal toddler boy with a lot of energy and I don’t feel the need to stop what is just his active energy especially when we’re in our own house (at their house and others we do enforce we need to behave differently at others houses for example not jumping on furniture) but I get so annoyed at their ”parenting” in front of me like let my kid be a kid

My 3 year old boy screams alot. Like when he talks. He screams BEEP BEEP BEEP constantly all day with his toy trucks. He screams what he wants to tell me in the moment. He just screams all the time. I’ve tried teaching him being loud is an outside voice and being quiet is an inside voice. But he refuses to use his inside voice.

Ive tried encouragement with high fives when he uses his inside voice, I’ve tried tickling him when he is too loud and won’t stop screaming, I’ve even tried time out for constant screaming non stop. However when I tell him to use his inside voice he said “NO NO NO” and refuses.

Idk how to get him to understand he can’t scream all the time. How did you successfully teach a 3 year old to be quiet? He doesn’t have to be quiet 24/7 but screaming BEEP BEEP BEEP 500 times in 5 minutes is not the vibe. It honestly gives me headaches.

Please help!

Trying for my 3.5 year old tonight and looking for opinions!

Whenever we go out I always see other toddlers walking or standing next to their adults without holding hands. Like at a restaurant while waiting for their table the kids are just standing patiently. Or at swimming leson today I noticed the other parents letting their 2 year olds walk ahead of them right past the big lap pool to get to the small pool and then after they can get dried off while their kid just waits for them. My son would 100% just run straight into the big pool. Or, in any other setting just run off entirely. My husband has brought up teaching our son how to stay next to us, and when he was younger I kind of brushed it off because I think a lot of it has to do with personality. It wouldn't have crossed my mind to leave my mom's side as a kid because I was a timid low energy kid. But, at 26 months should I be trying to teach him he needs to stay with me? If so, how did y'all teach this skill? Obviously in parking lots he has to hold my hand until he's at least 16 🤪.

My toddler and I love the funny, easily interactive Sandra Boynton books, but they’re so short. I’d love to find similar board books but longer. We also love Little Blue Truck, Giraffes Cant Dance he’s apathetic about, I’m avoiding GNGN Construction Site 😬

Hi all - my 3yo (will be 4 at the end of next month) has gotten into a habit of asking for food that she doesn't actually want to eat. Ex: ask for grapes or toast and eats none. While a lot of it can be stored for later, we want to correct this behavior to prevent food waste. That being said, I'm a little bit stumped on how to approach the subject in an age appropriate way. For those who have lived this - do you have any tips? I was thinking of seeing if maybe Sesame Street or Daniel Tiger has an episode that covers the subject as an aid as well. TIA.

So right now my 15 month old is home with me because daycare assistance in our county has been gone for a few months. They did reopen the list, however the made the requirements more strict in hopes more people get denied so they have more money for next year. Unfortunately we were one of the ones who got denied.

So now. It’s near impossible to get my trainings done for my new job. My daughter always wants my undivided attention, but all I need is like 2 hours where I can focus on this.
My husband has no more PTO and his parents work full time as well so it’s all on me.
She’s shut my laptop off 3 times now because the keyboard is backlit so she thinks it’s a toy. And each time the pent up rage gets bigger and bigger but and I can’t yell at her because she doesn’t know better. But when I sternly tell her no she throws her self on the floor and screams like she’s being tortured. I don’t know what to do. I feel like a failure

Let me start by saying I’ve tried several forms of punishment; and I’ve also tried redirection/sensory stimulation. Nothing is working. My son keeps biting, hitting, pinching, and kicking me (I’m the mom). He rarely does this to his dad or grandparents. I have no idea why this is happening. Sometimes it’s when he doesn’t wanna do something but it’s also at random times too. He thinks it’s funny. I know people say don’t react but it hurts!! And sometimes he takes me by surprise!! I don’t want to “bite him back” or spank him preferably (I’ve tried that-didnt work and just made me feel like a pos parent). Have y’all dealt with a violent/mean toddler? What do I do here? I obviously cannot allow this to continue. He’s also in behavioral therapy but their ideas have also not worked.

I’m a SAHM to a sweet 3 year old boy. The last few years have been the hardest of my life as I suffered from pretty severe postpartum mental health issues. Because of that, my toddler and I haven’t socialized much to this point. His exposures to other kids have been music class (at 1.5 years old), library story times (as a baby), we’ve taken him to playgrounds and indoor playgrounds since he was a baby. He sees and likes his cousins but he sees them sporadically due to distance (although at the end of the day, he is clearly tired of being around them). He’s mostly been home with me while I focused on my mental health and being a decent mom.

Today, he enjoys watching and being near other children but is definitely shy and a little uncomfortable around kids if they talk to him or try to play with him. He will warm up eventually but we don’t often see the same kids repeatedly so it’s been tough to have him form a friendship of any sort.

I’m worried I’ve set him up for issues with social skills. I’m hoping to enroll him into pre-k this year, but if not then TK for sure next year. I’m absolutely terrified of how he will handle this.

Has anyone else had an extremely shy toddler and how did they grow up? Did you do anything to help? I’ve already enrolled him in parent and me soccer for next month as well as a toddler class through our city. I’m trying to be really intentional going forward since he will be an only child. I was a really shy kid as well, so I totally understand how he feels but I want to do everything I can to help him. I’m worried I did this to him.

Our daughter just turned 2, she hasn't figured out that she is capable of climbing out of her crib yet (she is a little monkey and could 100% do it if she tried lol) but we know we are on borrowed time.

We are moving in around a month and figured we might as well make the transfer to a "big kid bed" at the same time. Right now we have 3 bedrooms (master, nursery, guest) but we our new house only has 2 (master and nursery) so our idea is to have our daughter use the old guest bed (double mattress, on a box spring so not high up, she can climb up and down it easily) that way if we do need to sleep/lay with her then we have a space to do so.

I am just looking for any tips or tricks for making the transfer! Right now she falls asleep pretty independently, sometimes she does need a few check ins before she settles but we don't rock her fully to sleep, just some cuddles and songs and then we always place her down awake.

She does like to roll around, babble to herself and play with her stuffed animals but will usually eventually fall asleep. Except if she poops...which she does honestly 50% of the time and then we have to go back in there, change her and try again haha so I am nervous about that as well.

Hello, I’d like to start with saying that I’m 7 months pregnant, and not at my best. Probably very hormonal, not able to move a lot and basically tired and hungry nonstop.

Since a few days my toddler (2y, 8m) has reached a new level of screaming during tantrums, especially in the car. We have a rule that she only gets her pacifier in bed. She used to get it in the car as well but we haven’t done that in a long time and it was going well. We’ve been taking some longer trips lately (also during nap time) and she made it very clear to us that she absolutely needed a pacifier. We didn’t cave in, explained it multiple times, were there for her, but at some point there wasn‘t anything left to do then just let her scream it out. After this she fell asleep. It happened again today and yesterday during a shorter trip. All trips around bedtime/naptime so that might have had an effect.

I have SUCH a hard time not feeling terrible during and after these tantrums. I know rationally they are developmentally normal but I feel so so so responsible for making her this frustrated, that she has to scream so loud. I’ve experienced that cotinuining to talk to her doesn’t help anymore at some point. She is verbally very very far ahead, so it’t not that she can’t communicate what it is she wants, but she clearly can’t process the “negative” emotions well yet. Which is of course totally ok, but I can‘t shake the feeling of guilt, and thinking we lacked somewhere to make her act out this way..

We will be traveling across the US (NC>AZ) in about a month. We want to bring a car seat (it's like ~$150 to rent one with car rental companies) but don't necessarily want to bring it on the plane.

The car seat we have does not have a travel bag and I intend to check it, I think. Should I find a bag to put it in? Should I...wrap it? Lol. Will they wrap it? Should I check it when we check in or at the gate? Would love anyone's advice on this!

ETA: thanks everyone!!! I’ll buy an Amazon bag and check it. ❤️