Whos looking after your LOs while in labour?

Just collecting some thoughts! I've only ever had my mum for childcare, and she's travelling when I'm due, so I'm wondering what alternatives people are using for childcare for the existing little ones when you're due your next! We'd book a babysitter but not sure if we could just call a sitter last min when the baby's decided to arrive!

Thank you :)

in our community

Leaving

I'm leaving my husband. I can't do it anymore. I've decided that I'd rather be a single mother than a married single mother. The terrible part is that due to his anger issues, I have to do it secretly. Any tips on escaping an abusive partner?

I'm already looking for a new place in a different part of the state where I have more support of extended family and friends.

I had to breakdown and tell my mom everything and she and my family feel it is best that I go to the other city because I don't have anyone here except him. He has been verbally and physically (throwing objects and shoving) abusive so I have to basically plan and escape because telling him straight up might result in a situation that would land him straight in jail. I really don't want to do that to him.

I do love him but as a mother of a little girl I have to show her better than what I'm currently experiencing.

Am I being too strict for meal time for my little one?

My little boy who is nearly 3 is going through a weird phase of not wanting to feed himself his meals anymore so relies on us to do it - when he’s in nursery he’ll feed himself but that’s it.

At his grandparents if he doesn’t eat a meal, he’ll get an alternative and it’s not always the healthiest. At home, when he doesn’t eat a meal he knows there is no alternative until snack time and we take his food away after 30 mins of he’s not ate it. Even if he asks for something healthy after not eating his meal, I don’t give in and he has to wait until snack time.

He also isn’t allowed to have any treats/dessert until a meal is finished and I get snide throw away comments from my MIL saying I’m so glad you’re not my mum and dad.

I know I’m possibly strict and as his parents it should be up to me to decide how to raise him (which I’m doing), but I’d like to know how others approach this and if it’s the best way of handling this situation?! 🙃

Posting as anon in case if my MIL somehow sees this haha

MIL

Curious how everyone would react, I notice my MIL always sends me little jabs. My husband after we had a baby started doing running from the odd 5k to recently a marathon. He loves doing park runs and I am always there to support him, we went out for dinner with his mum yesterday and within 2 minutes of sitting down his mother in a sarcastic voice said ‘ are you ever going to do any running or just living life through xyz ( her son ) ? In the moment I kind of just awkwardly laughed and put my head down and rather than standing up for myself just said oh god could barely run 200m 😂 then afterwards thought what a flipping cheek of this woman! I’ve had arguments with his family in the past so trying to just let things slide and not be confrontational but I equally think like what is even your problem! I however abit sick of the jabs? Am I going mad?

UK families - how much is your weekly shopping?

Even better if you can tell me how many people it feeds in your household.
Our food alone is about £90-£100 for a week, but then I go to cheaper shops for cleaning supplies, snacks for the kids, fruit ect and I think that’s where I keep over spending.
But then I do have two toddlers who just eat so so much fruit.

What would you do?

So my mum got a digital frame off my brother and his wife for her birthday a month ago and she put it on the TV cabinet. We visit often and she knows my audhd 4 year old touches things at his level and is still learning. He has touched stuff before that where actually toys for him but that where to have a controlled use and she has gotten cranky when he has touched them.

Anyway, he pulled it down, she yelled out for him to stop mutliple times and then screamed at him when he didn't listen.

I was busy, which is why she and my Dad had him.

I told her not to scream at him and she said she had to because he doesn't listen to being told to stop. Somethong very well known and that we are working on.

I told her no she fucking didn't.

Went and picked up my son, carried him to a different room and comforted him as he was histerical. Refused to go to my mum for ages but he did and she talked to him and apologised.

He was still really upset and I took him home because so was I.

Anyway, I just found out they can't get it to work and I apologised and explained that maybe a different location as he does visit often and when his younger cousin is a bit older, she will also get into stuff.

Mum yelled at me that she only had 2 options, there or the dining table.

I apologised again and said I can reimburse and she snapped that I would be.

I explained that while I would I didn't know how much it was and may not be able to afford it right now.

She got mad and yelled at me that they have already paid for stuff my kiddo broke. That was our living room window (they own our flat) and we offered to pay but my Dad said no, so we paid nearly half and they covered the rest.

Anyway, I told her I would contact my brother and ask how much it was and ended the conversation.

I am angry that she seems angry at me, angry that she screamed at him ans frustrated that I now need to outlay money we may not have.

I feel like she dislikes me and resents my sweet kiddo. It fucking sucks.

I have reached out to my brother so I'll see what happens when he replies.

I feel so angry, upset and guilty.

failure

took my child out of nursery, due to the place being absolutely awful and feeling my child wasnt safe there but now im being told to not send my child to any nurseries and wait til starts school when 4, got just under a year. BUT I feel like such a failure of a mother, not providing my child with social interactions and not making friends, family and friends with children dont really both with us either. am I a bad mum for not trying to put my child back into a nursery or should I just wait it out and keep teaching my child myself and get them ready for school?