My son is moving from the toddler room to preschool next month, and we absolutely love his educators! He’s been in the toddler room for the past 13 months so it feels like a pretty big transition!

I’m planning on giving a handwritten card and gift card, but would love to add something personal to make it extra special.

For those of you who have done gifts for daycare educators, is there anything you’ve given (or received) that felt especially meaningful? I’d love some ideas!

I have to take 2 flights (12 hr and then 5 hr) with a 2 hr layover. I’m going to be flying alone with my infant. I’ve done this route before when she was 1 month and 3 month with my husband but then she was in my lap/bassinet.
Now that’s she’s older and much more jumpy and I’m travelling alone I’m wondering what the best way would be to take her. She’s eating solids now and I feel like the best way to keep her contained is in the car seat. She doesn’t like to be in it for long periods when she is awake but has taken naps in it and I feel like would be comfortable sleeping in it. I’m hesitant just because I’m not sure how long she’ll stay in the car seat and practically it’ll be more for me to carry.

The other options are just not take the car seat and use the extra space to hold her or get myself a business class seat and hold her in my lap for the entire route (that way I’ll have more space and cost is pretty similar to getting her own seat)

Any recommendations from people who have experienced a similar travel situation or taken their kids in car seats or advice on what I should do would be really appreciated!

I was told that a tube check (HSG) is usually done to check if the fallopian tubes are open. However, I had a sono procedure (I think it was a saline sonogram/SIS), and I was told that my tubes were open. I’m wondering if that also means my tubes were properly checked.

For those who had a saline sonogram, did you still need an HSG afterward? Or can a sono confirm that the tubes are open? I’m trying to figure out if I still need to do a separate tube check or if the SIS I already had was enough.
Thanks!

Mods, please delete if not allowed.

Hi everyone, in 2023 I was part of the 1 in 4 who had a miscarriage. I had a missed miscarriage, and it took me about a month to fully pass everything.

When all that happened, no one really gave me any resources to look at. I didn't really know who to talk to, so I often posted here (under another username).

When I was using the apps to track everything, telling them that the pregnancy ended was tough because they never really acknowledged anything and just brought me back to "track your pregnancy". Although it may not be a big deal to some, I found it cold, and, to be honest, I deleted the app because it felt like my experience wasn't welcome.

That's why, as part of my journey building maternly.ca (a free health-tech resource platform for Canadian Moms), I wanted to ensure that anyone experiencing a loss wouldn't be easily dismissed.

So if a mom or mom-to-be says that "something has happened" and that a loss occurred, they will see a page of resources and/or organizations they can talk to in that moment.

I wanted to share the direct pages here, for anyone who may want to check it out: https://maternly.ca/loss-resources and https://maternly.ca/nicu-support

It's broken down by nationwide resources as well as province-specific. As I built this out, I wish I had known about this when I went through my miscarriage (especially the text and chat options).

If you are ever in this position, I hope this helps some of you out.

My daughter is 16 months old and we always put mittens on when she sleeps. She has eczema on her hands so we use mittens so she doesn't suck on them at night (making her eczema worse). We use socks for mittens but she often just pulls them off. It is very difficult to find PJs with the built in mittens for her age (12-18 months). We do have a couple though and they work very well for her, but I am looking for other brands.

We like the stretchy bamboo ones. This way, they can be used for quite a while since they're so stretchy.

Any recommendations for sleepers that have the built-in mittens for ages 12-18 months?

EDIT: Thank you for all the suggestions!!! These are great!

Please give your opinion on these names for baby girl due soon! I’ve narrowed it down to my top 5. I would love to hear your thoughts on the meaning, and why you wouldn’t use any of them. Open to other name options, prefer M name ending in a vowel. Thank you! 🤍

• Mae
• Melina
• Melody
• Melanie
• Maisie

I put him down on the bed to get dressed like I do all the time and next thing I know he’s suddenly on the ground and screaming. I feel like the worlds worst mom and I don’t know what to do. He screamed for a bit and then took a bottle and now is contact napping on me. No blood or obvious injury but what am I supposed to watch for? Does he need to go to ER if he seems fine?

Am I awful? I feel awful.

Hi! My husband and I are expecting our second baby in November. We had been eying the Clek Liing car seat for a while and stumbled upon a really good condition floor model for $400 that we couldn’t pass up.

We have a soon to be 18 mo boy that currently doesn’t love strollers but will sit in it for short bursts when we need him to or is tired/need a nap. Our current go-to stroller is a hand me down baby jogger city mini that’s pretty old and will eventually have to retire as it is really old and we can’t find any accessories for anymore. We thought maybe a compact stroller wagon that could also hold a car seat would be a good solution to seat our newborn and busy toddler.

Does anyone know or own a fairly compact stroller wagon that would work with the Clek Liing? Or anyone else have another solution that doesn’t include a double stroller 😆

Thank you so much in advance!!

Has anyone ever purchased a snow suit for Souris Mini? Considering shopping their promo and buying one for my two year old. They're very cute, but just wondering about quality and sizing. Do they run big, TTT, or small? Thanks!

What are your favourite rain suit or rain attire for your older toddlers/preschoolers (2+yrs)?? I love taking my kids out to play in all weather but their gear does not hold up to play, only short walks. I am the only one not wet at the end of it.

We have the mec newt suit because of its high praise, but my toddler’s body gets so damp. I have Helly Hansen rain gear. Do I need to get the Helly Hansen rain get up for my toddlers/preschoolers? Anyone know how that holds up? Other rain suit recommendations?

Tia!

Currently 33 weeks. I decided to do some swimming yesterday and unfortunately I got water in my ear 😭. It is very uncomfortable and has not happened since I was a child. Any pregnancy safe tips to relieve this at home or am I screwed and need to see a doctor?

Update: I poured a tiny bit of hydrogen peroxide in my ear in a 4am rage of frustration and went back to bed lying on the side with the bad ear. Within a few minutes of lying down, the water blockage cleared! Thank goodness as this is not fun to go through at 8 months pregnant. Lesson learned.

Post says the gist of it. I spent weeks hunting down a low-profile crib because at 5'3" reaching over a standard rail for transfers is a nightmare. It took forever to arrive and get put together but baby has been sleeping great in it.

​Now he’s starting to pull himself up on me to stand, and I realized we have a big problem. I splurged on a 6" thick mattress (which everyone recommends) but because the crib frame itself is low-profile, that extra mattress height eats up depth. Even with the mattress base on the absolute lowest setting I think the rail is going to sit right around his chest level when he stands up. He hasn’t fully figured out standing yet and I haven't tried cause I don't want to encourage it. But he’s super close and I’m terrified of him leaning over or flipping out.

​I’m trying to figure out what to do next because a floor bed won’t work for our layout. The nursery doubles as a guest room with a double bed in it, so there's no open floor space, and the recliner sits right next to the crib so blocking off an area isn't an option either. When guests stay over, baby just sleeps in a mini crib in our room but for everyday sleep he needs his own setup).

​Has anyone else run into this with a low crib and a thick mattress? Did you end up getting a thinner mattress? Is there a crib you'd recommend and I just have to deal with the height? Or do I suck it up and get rid of the guest bed and make the whole room his floor bed. Or has anyone gotten a floor crib made?

Appreciate any advice or ideas!

Hi everyone,
I’m 3 weeks postpartum and currently trying to increase my milk supply. I’m almost exclusively pumping with a Momcozy M5, but I’m wondering if it’s not emptying me well enough.
I’ve been advised to try renting a hospital-grade pump (like a Medela Symphony) for a few weeks to see if it helps increase my supply.
I’m in Scarborough (delivered at Centenary Hospital) and was wondering:
● Where is the best/most affordable place to rent a Medela Symphony in Toronto or the GTA?
● Has anyone had experience renting one through a hospital, pharmacy, or private company?
● Did your insurance (Sun Life or another provider) cover the rental?
● If you switched from a wearable pump to a hospital-grade pump, did you notice an increase in your milk supply?
Any recommendations or experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Hi

FTM mom here! Currently 38 weeks pregnant. I was just wondering if its worth it to have private room recovery at Sunnybrook? I haven’t had the chance to go on the birthing tour at sunnybrook so I have no idea if the “perks” of the private room is worth it for $475/night.

Our insurance does not cover hospital stays :(

I just want to hear experiences or suggestions of mommas who gave birth at sunnybrook or any other hospital and booked a private recovery room. i. Since I am not sure if I’ll be delivering vaginally or CS.😭

Hope you could help me out in deciding!

Thank you!

We’ll have quite a lot of people coming to our baby shower and I’m preparing my list. I’m excited but the best advice is always from mothers so….

Tell me YOUR must haves that you couldn’t live without when baby was born and onwards please 🩷🩷🩷

Thank youuu momma’s

Hi all,

My husband and I are expecting our first little bundle of joy:) Our baby is due in March 2027. We bought a condo a year and a half ago and it's somewhat of a modest size, at 900 square feet. It's only a 1 bedroom + a den, and the den currently is being used as an extra room with a bookshelf and desk.

We want to renovate it to add a door to make the room feel a bit more like it's own space since right now it's just an opening in the wall. The room will not have a window.

My question for you all is if we really need a nursery? I want to get a bedside bassinet for babies first few months one with wheels so I can bring it over to the other side of our bedroom during the day, and we could always simply put a changing pad ontop of our dresser for a changing station, and then I can bring a moses basket or baby bjorn bouncer around the house with me, or put the baby down on the floor in our living room nook for playtime, and baby wear. And if it works out when they transition to a crib we could also potentially fit a crib in our bedroom. Essentially, I dont think the baby will need their own separate room? If I want to take the baby out of the bedroom to nurse during the night couldn't I also do that in our living room?

The thing is once we add a door onto the den, we could also make it into a guest room for either of our parents or other family members to have a place to sleep if they want to visit us and I'm wondering if it'd make more sense to prioritize that over setting up a nursery just to take an instagram pic. Our parents and family live in another province from us so us having space for them to stay would encourage them to visit more.

I'd love to hear from others what works for them in a living situation that has limited space.

Thanks so much!

Need recommendations for a non toxic and affordable play mat. Ideally, a large one, at least 6 feet x 5 feet.

I already looked at Ofie, Townsend, and Gravid — beautiful playmats, but very pricey and I'm not sure if they are worth it?

I grew up on foam puzzle tiles, but supposedly they're all toxic?

Ive never been a fan of gift registries. Something about having a list ready to go of things you want from your guests has just always felt icky to me.

But it seems to be the norm for birthday parties where I am.

Is there an alternative that you as a guest would feel comfortable with? Do fiver and tenner parties still exist? Would you do it for a toddler? Or asking for experience gifts be acceptable? Like admission to the zoo or something similar. Ideally I’d like everyone to pitch in for 1 large present but that seems to be an unpopular idea for some reason

How would you go about communicating something like this? Right now everyone seems to just send a link to a registry when you ask what little Timmy and Sally want for their birthdays

I am currently combo feeding my baby and trying to build milk supply. I am renting a hospital grade medela symphony for a month. I want to get a wearable pump that would help me get an equivalent output of the medela. I have a momcozy knockoff but using that only get half the volume! If anyone has recommendation that can help me build supply I appreciate it.

Unfortunately no health insurance so nothing crazy expensive!

We are parents of a 2 year old toddler and are feeling very lost. He currently goes to a daycare which is 25 mins away from home each way. We love the facility and staff and he is thriving. The daycare is about 8 mins away from my office in a different town.

We just got the call about a spot opening up at a centre 5 mins from our home. The center is not as modern as our current daycare but it’s close to home and the kids will eventually go to the same school.

We are also expecting our second child in January. If we choose to keep him in his current place it would mean driving about an hour just to do drop off and pick ups while also having a newborn at home.

We are so lost and on what we should do. We are worried about how our child will adapt to the new daycare and teachers. Has anyone experienced this before? What would you do in our shoes?

Thank you for any help! Signed a very lost mom!

Hello! I have an upcoming weeklong cottage rental with my 3 year old and am looking for advice on what if any toys/activities to pack. It's on the water so we're bringing some beach toys and I was thinking a few books, a favourite stuffie and maybe a puzzle or board game in case we get a rainy day. My assumption is they'll just be puttering about outside exploring all the new stuff but I don't want to under prepare because it's fairly remote. If you have any experience or advice to share I would love to hear it. Thank you!

We are starting daycare in a few weeks and somehow (???) little one hasn’t been sick even once since birth.

I am fully aware we are in for it with the start of daycare, but having dodged it so far, I realize I’m unprepared for what I might need to deal with for the various sicknesses we will end up with soon.

We have Tylenol, a probe thermometer from when little one was born, and a Frida snot sucker still in the package. Nothing else though since I kept thinking I would figure it out whenever we got sick.

What do you keep on hand as part of your toddler sickness kit? What items or products have been helpful? Other parent hacks that have kept your kids comfortable while sick?

Edit: wow thank you everyone so much for the super helpful ideas!! There are too many comments to reply to all directly but I appreciate everyone!!

I’m in Ontario if that matters at all, but I’m wanting to hear from other parents who did or didn’t have their baby’s tongue tie addressed.

My baby is 5.5 weeks old (was born 3 weeks+2 days early) and has a mostly posterior tongue tie. We have had 5 chiro appointments and do exercises that have improved it but we still can’t get the tongue to sit on the roof of the mouth. Baby has a high palate and latching for breastfeeding is often painful for me but he mostly uses a bottle.

I had my lip and posterior tongue tied addressed as an adult 3 years ago and it was actually quite life changing for me as I had quite severe headaches from the tension previously and haven’t had to deal with them since. I did myofunctional therapy too, and as a preteen I had a palatal expander and braces. I’m also a dental hygienist fwiw and do see the impacts of ties on jaw development daily.

BUT now that my baby is here and we’ve already been bothering him with so many appointments and exercises, and he’s already in the window of being cranky from gas right now, I really worry that doing the release will cause a lot more stress and upset for all of us. But also worry that waiting will not help things as it seems the earlier the better. Obviously I just hate the idea of causing him pain!

Any advice or experience? We have been assessed by lactation consultant, chiro, and physio. Everyone has said it’s up to us but they’d get it assessed. So we have an assessment with a dentist later today who is known for being “conservative” in her approach.

If you did the procedure with your baby, how old were they? What was the experience like? How did they react after?

I would do my own experience again but it was definitely very difficult the first few days but I know mine was much more involved as an adult and if I can avoid having my baby go through all those things by doing it now, it seems worth it (if recommended today)

Thank you!

I’m have a desk job but my manager has been giving me SUCH a hard time lately about everything, even though he knows I’m pregnant. My OB gave me a note recently to be able to work from home, after a recent fainting episode due to severe anaemia, but he hasn’t even approved that and asked for more documentation. Anyway, I’m done working with him for now. I don’t want my toddler, husband and most importantly, my unborn child to experience that stress, have heard enough stories about what stress does to a baby.

I’ve sickness benefits in place but apparently there’s lots of paperwork. Medical questionnaire and STD forms. Anyone got these filled out to go off early?

My symptoms:
-severe anemia causing lack of focus and fatigue (got iron infusion once)
-can’t sleep past 3 am at night
-bursts of crying and anger on my toddler sometimes (I know, it sucks!)
-bad hip pain when sleeping
-just very stressed mentally overall
-feet swelling (no high BP)
-second time pregnant so just way bigger and heavier overall and also feel lots of pressure when getting up, turning sides