I hate the "beach hacks" that show up on FB and Pinterest about protecting your valuables by wrapping them up in a diaper or making it look like a bag of chips or something else that is essentially garbage. I mean, maybe they won't get stolen, but I'd most likely end up throwing my own stuff away on accident.
We take our almost 3 year old off-roading in a side by side utv (Polaris RZR). She has a car seat and helmet and we don't do any trails, just drive a bit in the sand dunes with her.
Also since I live in the middle of nowhere they let you drive golf carts around town so we bought one and we will use the car seats and take the toddlers (not the baby) on rides around town this summer.
Lol @greenbean-2 it's all fun and golfcarts until you find out the nearest grocery store is almost a half hour away. But I will say having lived in two cities (Chicago and Columbus) I do love my bumpkin life
I hate using towels to clean. I'm a paper towel / sanitizing wipe one-use type of girl. I throw kitchen sponges away pretty frequently because the thought of the bacteria in them makes me insane.
I let my 3yo ride in the Kubota vehicle thing in my parents yard without a car seat. I try to get him to wear a seatbelt every time, but the other adults in the family don't always enforce that with him. They drive slow, though.
@Dcwtada That's so cool about the golf carts! DH and I went to Phoenix for a vacation a couple years ago and we went to old town Scottsdale where apparently everybody drives golf carts around and it was the first time I'd ever heard or seen that! Love it!
Apparently my UO is as unpopular as I feared! I was prepared to get flamed for it. The golfcarts around town is fun, we don't have much but we can drive to the park or just around.
@AdaByron that is so funny about the Kubota! My husband deals with Kubota and we have a small tractor and all the "swag" they send us, my favorite jacket is actually from our Kubota rep. In fact our first baby/kid free vacation will actually be through Kubota in Arizona this sept/oct (I can't remember exactly) - all I know is I am going for the spa and my DH is going for the golf lol.
I never thought I'd be that parent, but I am thinking about getting my daughter a tablet for her upcoming third birthday. I am terrified she will feel left out when I'm nursing and I am considering it partly out of guilt and partly to keep her preoccupied. I am trying to hold out as long as I can though, so we'll see just how it goes.
I never thought I'd be that parent, but I am thinking about getting my daughter a tablet for her upcoming third birthday. I am terrified she will feel left out when I'm nursing and I am considering it partly out of guilt and partly to keep her preoccupied. I am trying to hold out as long as I can though, so we'll see just how it goes.
I bought my kid a tablet before he was 2. Mother of the year over here. LOL
@clio I also got my kids a tablet before they were 3. They never really took to it though. I got them a play laptop and a vtech reader that worked better. I never even knew they had a kids version of the kindle. Is it worth it?
I have no issue with my kids using a tablet or technology, I figure it better sets them up for the reality of their future. To me technology isn't the issue, its teaching them how to use it right. That's not saying it can't be used to entertain or distract them either, I just want to make sure they are engaged and not zoned out most of the time although I do think kids need time to relax and decompress - I don't want them to have to feel stimulated/educated every minute they are awake.
Either way we will probably all mess up our kids no matter our approach
+1 on the kids tablets. My DD's got them on their third birthday and I don't regret it at all. We also have the kids version of the kindle fire which they love.
I got DD a LeapPad Ultra for her 3rd birthday. She plays more with it now bc she can understand it more, but she also has a profile on my kindle fire that she has games on. Ill get DS a LeapPad this year, he'll be 3.
DS got the leapfrog laptop for his birthday on Friday and is OBSESSED. highly recommend! I've mentioned here before that screentime triggers horrible tantrums for him and he doesn't care about the play cell phones but for some reason loves this laptop!
UO: I don't mind a reasonable level of speeding on the interstate, and I almost always drive 5-10 mph over the limit. BUT, it pisses me the fuck off when people speed on city roads. Like WTF are you gaining by driving 10 mph over the speed limit for like a half mile until you have to stop at a red light? Besides endangering yourself and everyone else on the road?
@AdaByron I so agree. We live on a tiny road that connects a medium road to a main road, and people blast through our little neighborhood. Fortunately, they installed a stop sign on the medium road right before it hits a curve and gets to us, which I think has made a big difference forcing people to slow down.
My DD has her own tablet. She's 3.5yo. She's had access to it for about a year and a half. It's my old iPad and we keep it put up when we don't want her on it. It just makes sense for us. No judgment here!
I'm super overprotective with DD and machines, but that is solely because my DH's 11yo cousin died while riding his 4 wheeler with his little brother. 4 wheelers are very common where I live, but so are accidents. When DH's cousin died on Easter Sunday, it rocked all of us to the core. I don't judge any of you at all for allowing your kids on different types of machines, but for the foreseeable future, my kids won't be on them.
@maybeitsmadeline One of my greatest pet peeves is when people leave the kitchen sponge in the sink or steeped in standing water. It is SO unsanitary.
DH's parents are the worst offenders. And they then use that same sponge to wipe down all the kitchen surfaces. I have told them so many times how unsanitary it is. but they don't listen to me.
DH's parents have been out of town for over a month and got home yesterday. I get home and what do I see when I go in the kitchen? The kitchen sponge sitting in a bowl of dirty water in the kitchen sink. We couldn't even make it 6 hours....
I guess my UO is that I'm not a fan of tablets and iPads for toddlers and babies. TV is fine, but I don't feel like a child needs their own handheld device. Plus, I can't stand it when I see kids out in public with their families not socializing or even paying attention to their surroundings because they're watching something or playing a game on their tablet. I know technology is much more a part of life now than it was when I was growing up, so I'm sure eventually we will find a good balance as our kids get older, I just don't see any merit in it now.
+1 on hating sponges/towels for cleaning. DH hates it too. We both prefer paper towels because they're more sanitary, but it drives my MIL nuts because it's "wasteful." She will try to reuse paper towels multiple times and it's just gross. What really drives me up the wall is when I can SMELL the sponges and towels. If they smell, they need to be tossed/washed.
My UO is that leftover food needs to be eaten or tossed by the third day of storage. I'm not a huge fan of eating large amounts of leftovers, but I know that's gonna change. I just can't stand when something begins to smell bad. DH's parents are sticklers about saving leftovers for WEEKS. If I try to throw away old food, his mom will fish it out of the trash can if it was left in a container. She had a fit when we threw out moldy cheese. She fished it out of the trash and yelled at us saying it was still useable, just cut off the moldy part. DH said absolutely not and took the cheese out of the container and then tossed it in the trash again. So I've learned that any food I toss away needs to be out of its container in order to stay in the trash.
Also, reheating the same food over multiple days is not healthy either. And MIL is a nurse! She knows about food borne pathogens and bacteria and whatnot. Ugh...
@cielaw89 - YES on the smell of sponges/rags. So freaking gross. I had sponges. I use them for cleaning but I don't only reuse them a few times and it's usually in the bathroom, not the kitchen. I usually try to use rags so I can wash and reuse them.
@kat0607 I was formerly team no electronic devices, but a moment recently is making me switch to the dark side. I took DD to a prenatal check up, and given that she is 2 and appointments can be long, I came prepared with stickers, a new puzzle, even her doc mcstuffins kit. All was well until the dr. decided to moniter baby's heartbeat for 20-30 minutes. I freaked out a little until I came to the glorious realization that I brought my iPad. As DD watched a show and I was congratulating myself for being mother of the year, I realized, holy cow, this is going to be my life now. There will be stretches of time when I simply won't be able to devote my attention to DD, and what then? So I am rethinking my assumptions, but I am also totally open to other ideas from experienced moms with 2+ kids- how do you do it? My hats off to you!
I'm torn. In theory, I don't want to just plop my kid in front of a tv or ipad. On the other hand, I was raised with a television as my babysitter every day after school until my parents got home from work and I turned out just fine.
+50billion. @cielaw89 about left overs. If something is lasting more than 48 hours, you really need to start cooking less. Cannot stand it. Why did you get/make so much in the first place?!!! Food should be fresher than that!!! It's food!! I have a very big problem with throwing away food too so I'd rather have little to no food one night than have too much that I feel the need to toss it out. I feel very strongly about this lol.
This is not directed at Twinkiedoll AT ALL, but she made me think of it.
The "I did X as a kid and turned out just fine" statement usually drives me nuts. 1. Everyone thinks they turned out fine. You aren't an objective opinion on that. 2. Most people aren't fine. People are freaking weirdos and don't know it. Or seriously dysfunctional, and downplay that. 3. When MILs use that line, people lose their minds. It's a common theme on here (not just this BMB - just the Bump in general). So why do we get to say it?
End rant.
UO: Wonder Woman is not a feminist movie. Woof. I get being excited for a female superhero and for a main female character with slightly more depth than normal. And yes, about half of the movie was pretty entertaining. But come ON! Sex appeal is still one of her main powers.
I tend to agree @virginiaunicorn11 but mostly when it comes to car seats. My 81 year old grandmother says "my kids just had a bar across their chest and they turned out just fine" whenever she sees me buckling DS into the car seat and yes- while you're correct, your children turned out just fine, how many didn't? How many died tragically in car accidents because all they had was a bar across their chests?! Not an acceptable statement in that sense. Screen time never hurt nobody- I'd use it more if DS could handle it.
A little off topic but there's quite a few things I can think of that I won't repeat with my children that my parents did mainly because I don't think I turned out quite as fine as I Could have. They also remind me not to do those things otherwise your just stuck in a non progressive loop! Fingers crossed
Also, the original Wonder Woman is Love. I don't think anyone can replace her.
I thought I would be team screen and be super ok with videos and tablets and TV shows but DD who isn't 2 yet becomes soooo addicted and obsessed. It is a real problem now. I can't even have my phone around her anymore. She's super demanding and screams if we say no. I had to put a strong limit on screen time and I had to keep it for must times only like airplanes, restaurants and if I'm alone and need to prepare food for her.
@virginiaunicorn11 I agree with almost everything you said except the Wonder Woman part - and just part of it. The origins of Wonder Woman are sketch depending on which way you're looking at it from, and her outfit is kind of ridiculous, but on the other hand, it's supposed to be functional for themysira where rheywouldve developed the outfits without consideration of male gaze.
and Thor is super hot with lots of sex appeal (he's not even a type I would normally be excited about!)
anyways it's still a good step forward. For good feminist movie I do think Moana is actually a good one.
Only because DD has no idea that our phones can play her favorite shows outside of the house. She's obsessed with movies and her "music videos" while on the toilet but other than that has no idea that screens exist outside of our house. I was toying with the idea of getting her a tablet and DH was like, why? She's fine when we're out? Who knows.
TTC: 1/2014
BFP: 9/24
EDD: 6/8/2015
Sorry for the poor man's siggy...ticker won't load regardless of how many tips I read.
Re: UO Thursday 6.22.17
Also since I live in the middle of nowhere they let you drive golf carts around town so we bought one and we will use the car seats and take the toddlers (not the baby) on rides around town this summer.
I also used the aerosol sunscreen spray on my toddlers @AdaByron.
Me: 26 Him: 27
Dating: 5/2011 Married: 6/2014
Mirena out/TTC: 02/2016
BFP #1: 12/01/2016
EDD: 07/24/2017
Also this
Me: 26 Him: 27
Dating: 5/2011 Married: 6/2014
Mirena out/TTC: 02/2016
BFP #1: 12/01/2016
EDD: 07/24/2017
Married 8 years - Aug 23/08
DD - 6 years old, March 17/11
#2 due July 19th! (It's a boy!)
@AdaByron that is so funny about the Kubota! My husband deals with Kubota and we have a small tractor and all the "swag" they send us, my favorite jacket is actually from our Kubota rep. In fact our first baby/kid free vacation will actually be through Kubota in Arizona this sept/oct (I can't remember exactly) - all I know is I am going for the spa and my DH is going for the golf lol.
I recommend the kids kindle fire.
I have no issue with my kids using a tablet or technology, I figure it better sets them up for the reality of their future. To me technology isn't the issue, its teaching them how to use it right. That's not saying it can't be used to entertain or distract them either, I just want to make sure they are engaged and not zoned out most of the time although I do think kids need time to relax and decompress - I don't want them to have to feel stimulated/educated every minute they are awake.
Either way we will probably all mess up our kids no matter our approach
I'm super overprotective with DD and machines, but that is solely because my DH's 11yo cousin died while riding his 4 wheeler with his little brother. 4 wheelers are very common where I live, but so are accidents. When DH's cousin died on Easter Sunday, it rocked all of us to the core. I don't judge any of you at all for allowing your kids on different types of machines, but for the foreseeable future, my kids won't be on them.
I LOVE amusement parks and have no issue going on rides that aren't getting put up and torn down every week.
Married 8 years - Aug 23/08
DD - 6 years old, March 17/11
#2 due July 19th! (It's a boy!)
DH's parents are the worst offenders. And they then use that same sponge to wipe down all the kitchen surfaces. I have told them so many times how unsanitary it is. but they don't listen to me.
DH's parents have been out of town for over a month and got home yesterday. I get home and what do I see when I go in the kitchen? The kitchen sponge sitting in a bowl of dirty water in the kitchen sink. We couldn't even make it 6 hours....
My UO is that leftover food needs to be eaten or tossed by the third day of storage. I'm not a huge fan of eating large amounts of leftovers, but I know that's gonna change. I just can't stand when something begins to smell bad. DH's parents are sticklers about saving leftovers for WEEKS. If I try to throw away old food, his mom will fish it out of the trash can if it was left in a container. She had a fit when we threw out moldy cheese. She fished it out of the trash and yelled at us saying it was still useable, just cut off the moldy part. DH said absolutely not and took the cheese out of the container and then tossed it in the trash again. So I've learned that any food I toss away needs to be out of its container in order to stay in the trash.
Also, reheating the same food over multiple days is not healthy either. And MIL is a nurse! She knows about food borne pathogens and bacteria and whatnot. Ugh...
Food should be fresher than that!!! It's food!! I have a very big problem with throwing away food too so I'd rather have little to no food one night than have too much that I feel the need to toss it out.
I feel very strongly about this lol.
The "I did X as a kid and turned out just fine" statement usually drives me nuts.
1. Everyone thinks they turned out fine. You aren't an objective opinion on that.
2. Most people aren't fine. People are freaking weirdos and don't know it. Or seriously dysfunctional, and downplay that.
3. When MILs use that line, people lose their minds. It's a common theme on here (not just this BMB - just the Bump in general). So why do we get to say it?
End rant.
UO: Wonder Woman is not a feminist movie. Woof. I get being excited for a female superhero and for a main female character with slightly more depth than normal. And yes, about half of the movie was pretty entertaining. But come ON! Sex appeal is still one of her main powers.
A little off topic but there's quite a few things I can think of that I won't repeat with my children that my parents did mainly because I don't think I turned out quite as fine as I Could have. They also remind me not to do those things otherwise your just stuck in a non progressive loop! Fingers crossed
Also, the original Wonder Woman is Love. I don't think anyone can replace her.
and Thor is super hot with lots of sex appeal (he's not even a type I would normally be excited about!)
anyways it's still a good step forward. For good feminist movie I do think Moana is actually a good one.
my husband is totally one of those people, btw.
Only because DD has no idea that our phones can play her favorite shows outside of the house. She's obsessed with movies and her "music videos" while on the toilet but other than that has no idea that screens exist outside of our house. I was toying with the idea of getting her a tablet and DH was like, why? She's fine when we're out? Who knows.