Tag: kid

Moms Are Sharing The Moment They Knew They Were Done Having Kids

The number of kids people want to have varies wildly. Some moms are strictly one and done, while others are looking for a bigger family (and then of course there are families like the Duggars…).

But there comes a time for every mom when she knows she’s done having kids. It could be because she’s just so over pregnancy, or that she’s exhausted enough (or even happy enough) with the number she has. Or it could be for so many other reasons.

Here, 19 moms share the moment they knew they were D-O-N-E, period.

1. A positive reaction to a negative test.

“I didn’t realize I was done until we were trying for a second baby, the pregnancy test came back negative, and I was so damn happy. I figured that wasn’t really the appropriate response if I was serious about a second kid.”

—thefirstn

2. A lack of joy at motherhood.

“I knew the day I brought my first baby home and realized I didn’t take joy in motherhood like I felt other moms did.”

—samp40f492cb7

3. Because having another one could be dangerous.

“I had a traumatic birth experience with our second child and almost had a heart attack afterwards. I knew we were done when my husband looked at me and said, ‘Having another baby is not worth the possibility of losing you.'”

—jessicabp

4. A super long time in labor.

“I knew when I was 36 hours into labor with my first…Three years later and I haven’t changed my mind.”

—jessicam40704b8a1

5. Unbearable grossness.

“I always wanted four kids. Then we had twins. I knew I was done forever when they realized they could remove their diapers and ‘paint’ each other with their poop. I dry-heaved through their bath and swore never again.”

—s478a8926f

6. Happy with just one.

“I always pictured myself having three kids, but then I had my daughter and immediately felt so complete. My husband, daughter and I are so happy that I don’t see us changing a thing.”

—jma367

7. Pregnancy can be the worst.

“I hated pregnancy immensely. I hated how I looked, felt like shit, and never got that ‘glow’ so many women talk about. So I busted out two kids and that was it.”

—laurenp48b42f47b

8. Too expensive.

“When my bank account told me.”

—jessicaz4d684525e

9. Freedom!

“I knew I was done when both of my kids finally learned to buckle their own seatbelts, and I realized we could leave the house like normal human beings again.”

—rachelramseyw

10. Holy ouch.

“I knew I was done when my 9-pound third baby came ‘too fast’ for an epidural.”

—Kristen Morrow, Facebook

11. Too much male-ness.

“When I found out we were pregnant with our third boy and panicked about being outnumbered by penis in my own home.”

—flores922

12. Already overwhelmed enough.

“I realized I was done having kids when I locked myself in the bathroom to cry in peace because I was so overwhelmed with the ones I have.”

—d4ea205bf0

13. Again, OUCH.

“When I cried on the toilet from painful hemorrhoids while taking my first post-childbirth poop.”

—Jessica Allen, Facebook

14. For the sake of the relationship.

“When my marriage almost didn’t make it through our first pregnancy, we decided one was enough.”

—childrenofthecornbread

15. Traveling can be a nightmare.

“When we were on an airplane with our two kids and I imagined trying to do the trip with a whole other human. It was so overwhelming that I told my husband to get a vasectomy consult as soon as possible.”

—lindsayb42bb479a4

16. Always knew there would be just one.

“We were always ‘one and done’ from the beginning of our relationship. We have career goals, we want to travel, we want to give our kid great experiences, and we want to be selfish. We wouldn’t be able to do those things with more than one child. We feel complete with our daughter, and with knowing we can give her everything we want to while still maintaining the lives we’ve become accustomed to.”

—blueeyedbird

17. GIVING BIRTH IS EXCRUCIATING.

“When I was having my vagina and perineum repaired with over 100 stitches after birthing an 11-pound baby WHO GOT STUCK. She’s 10-years-old now, and shit still ain’t right with my delicate area.”

—leannetillyk

18. Kids fighting.

“I knew I was done when I was at the store and saw a mom with two toddlers in her shopping cart fighting over who was touching who. No thanks!”

—careyanneg

19. And finally, just no desire for another baby.

“When my friend brought her newborn to a Christmas party, and neither me nor my hubby had any desire to hold her.”

—Jennifer Castillo, Facebook

h/t: BuzzFeed

Mom’s Viral Post Explains Why We Shouldn’t Be Teaching Kids ‘Not To Stare’

Staring isn’t something that only kids do—there are rude people all around us who are happy to stare, long, hard, and unembarrassed, at people around them who look different than they do. But kids are prone to staring by nature simply because they’re absolutely full of curiosity and everything is new to them. They haven’t yet learned that it’s a rude thing you’re not supposed to do.

But one mother is saying that we shouldn’t be teaching our kids not to stare because that just means ignoring everyone around them who looks different, and that’s not exactly ideal either.

Jenna Gines wrote a post on Facebook about how parents should react when their kids are staring at someone who looks different from most people, whether it’s gender-related, a physical disability, or just about anything that people tend to gawk at. Instead of just looking, she suggests actually interacting.

Facebook: Jenna Gines
Facebook: Jenna Gines

Her post, which includes pictures of two of her sons, one of whom uses a wheelchair, reads:

Please stop teaching your children not to stare!
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What are we teaching them when we say that? Don’t look at someone that is different then you. Don’t be curious or want to learn about something you’ve never seen before. Stay away from things that are different.

“Instead, let them stare. Let them ask questions, talk about it. What is it that they see? What is it that they’re curious about? What is different? What is the same?

If it’s someone using a wheelchair, say hi. If it’s someone that looks or acts different, say hi. If it’s someone ofshort stature, say hi.

“Teach your child about differences. It’s okay to be different. It’s okay to notice it & to talk about it. It’s even better to make a new friend. It’s not okay to ignore, look away, or act like a person who is different isn’t there.
?
Let’s embrace different. Let’s talk about differences & be the change we want to see in this world.”

People (other parents, as well as the people who so often find themselves being stared at) shared their thoughts in the comments.

Some moms learned something new and decided they’d be changing the way they interacted with people when their kids were staring.

Of course, there’s a difference between looking at someone and just straight-up gawking at them. Gawking is never okay.

And some people might not feel like talking about themselves, so it’s important for parents to be able to gauge the situation.

But it is true that by ignoring people completely, we teach our kids to be mean.

The ultimate goal is to make it so that kids learn to accept that there are people different from them, and that’s great. It’d be boring if we were all the same.

h/t: Someecards, Facebook: Jenna Gines

30 Things We Thought That Only Rich People Could Afford Growing Up

Most kids don’t know a ton about money. They do tend to know when their families don’t have it, but they don’t typically have a very good grasp of the difference between (upper) middle class and super wealthy.

Twitter user and makeup artist Samantha Ravndahl asked people to share what they thought “was the pinnacle of wealth” to them as kids. Her question got a lot of attention, with people coming through with all sorts of answers from brand name snacks to actual boats. Now that we’re adults, some of the ideas we had about “rich” as kids turned out to be less than accurate, but some of them still hold up (like that boat).

https://twitter.com/SsssamanthaaMUA/status/1109336973217431553

Ravndahl started off with her own idea of true wealth as a child: chrome spinner rims on cars.

https://twitter.com/SsssamanthaaMUA/status/1109337120085176320

And here are 30 other people’s ideas of being stinking rich when they were kids.

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https://twitter.com/AztechDan/status/1110231378279481346

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https://twitter.com/sibyls_makeup/status/1109341392600551424

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h/t: Petty Mayonnaise, @SsssamanthaaMUA

Concerned Mom Points Out That Companies Should Stop Marketing ‘Diet Culture’ To Kids

Being a mom of girls today can be challenging. With society pressuring girls and trying to manipulate them into conforming to stereotypes of “beauty,” many mothers will be faced with self-esteem issues and struggles. Today, where social media is constantly reminding young girls that they are not “rich enough,” “skinny enough,” or “fun enough,” it’s hard to get a grasp on how our daughters will feel about themselves, especially when people are constantly telling them that they’re “not enough.”

Sonni Abatta—a mother, podcast host, and writer—shared her thoughts on how companies market inappropriate products and cultures to young girls. Specifically, Abatta discussed the new fad of “diet culture,” where people are joking about losing weight, skipping meals, and depriving themselves of what they really want in order to conform to the “skinny world.” Abatta saw the lunchbox in a store in Florida, placed next to a candy stand in a Nordstrom Rack. Abatta figured that due to the placement, and the color/style of the lunchbox, it was catered to young girls.

She wrote:

See this? This is a picture I snapped today of a little girl’s lunchbox that I saw for sale at a popular department store. Why do I say it’s marketed toward little girls? It’s pink, it has sequins and it was surrounded by other girls’ merchandise. So, safe to say that it’s aimed at our daughters.

I am SICKENED that this phrase is on a lunch box.

We scratch our heads when we see our little girls struggle with body image, with self worth, with confidence.

We wonder, “Why do our girls worry so much about their bodies so young?” … “Why does my five year old call herself ‘fat?’” … “Why does my middle schooler stand in front of the mirror and find all her flaws?”

THIS. This is part of the reason why.

Our world is telling our girls that it’s “cheating” if they eat something that’s not 100% fat-free and perfectly healthy. In turn, that tells them that self-control and denying herself is to be valued above all. And that if she dares to step outside of the foods that will keep her perfectly slim and trim, then she is by default “cheating” and needs to feel some sense of remorse.

Look, I’m not saying a diet of strictly sugar and chips is right either; but by God, why would a company ever pile onto our girls’ already-fragile senses of self by making her feel as though she’s “cheating” by eating something that’s–gasp–not made of vegetables and air?

“You’re overreacting!” you might say. To which I say, No. We are not overreacting when we ask more of the world when it comes to how they treat our girls.

Can you imagine a similar message directed toward little boys? For the record, I’d be equally offended… but I haven’t seen anything that is aimed at making our boys feel bad about what they eat, or how they look.

So here’s what I want to say, and what I will tell my girls. Girls–you are not “cheating” when you enjoy good food. You are not “cheating” when you eat pizza. You are not “cheating” when you have a cookie, or two, on occasion. You are not “cheating” when you live in moderation and allow yourself things that make you happy.

Girls–you are MORE than your bodies. More than your faces. More than your complexions. More than the clothes you wear and the things you buys and the other girls you hang out with.

You are beautiful, worthy, intelligent, and whole beings–whole beings who are worthy of so much love and respect, no matter what anyone, or anyTHING, says.

Many people on Facebook agreed. Mothers and parents everywhere shared their stories on how their own children are affected by the push to support diet culture and fads just to look cute and fit in. Most people online agreed that the rant was warranted because it’s wrong to try and persuade young girls to starve themselves just to appear thin.

We totally agree.

Anti-Vaxxer Asks For Measles Protection Advice And The Internet Delivers

An anti-vaxxer mom in Washington recently asked a Facebook group called the Vaccine Education Network how she could protect her unvaccinated three-year-old child from a measles outbreak in her state. To be clear: she didn’t vaccinate her child, and then became concerned about how she could make sure he didn’t get measles. Too bad there’s not already some way to make her child immune to…oh, wait. VACCINES.

Her message read, “My 3 year old is not vaccinated and there is currently a measles outbreak in my state. Any suggestions for precautions I can take to protect her would be very much appreciated.”

Now, there are some cases where a parent can’t vaccinate a child, like when there are immune system diseases present, but this mom didn’t mention any of that, so it seems safe to assume she just chose not to vaccinate.

Anyway, as you can imagine, she got a whole bunch of advice from the group, most of it in the form of sarcasm and dark jokes. Because if a parent won’t listen to doctors and science and instead endangers their child by not getting them vaccinated, what can you really tell them?

People, PLEASE, vaccinate your children!

h/t: Bored Panda

The Internet Is Obsessed With This 9-Year-Old’s Genius ‘New Yorker’ Cartoon Captions

The Internet has chosen a new favorite comedian— and she’s only nine years old.

Screen and comedy writer Bess Kalb provided the world with a shining beacon of light in the swamp that is Twitter by tweeting out New Yorker cartoons captioned by her cousin’s nine-year-old daughter, Alice.

Kalb’s photos of the quippy one-liners quickly went viral, and once you read them you’ll have no trouble understanding why. “Everything is terrible but my cousin’s 9-year old daughter Alice has been quietly and masterfully slaying the @NewYorker’s caption contest and it’s pure delight,” Kalb wrote.

I know what you’re thinking, but the word “perfect” is actually an under- not an overstatement.

“(She’s freaking out with joy at your comments – I’m sending the screenshots to her mom),” tweeted Kalb. “Vintage Alice from 2017. I think you’ll like her earlier work. (She asked for a collection of EVERY cartoon with the real captions removed.)”

Unsurprisingly, folks went wild for Alice’s brilliant New Yorker captions.

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Kalb wrangled her viral tweet into a larger message and societal call to arms: encourage and support girls to be funny. She mentions how social ‘norms’ for the longest time dictated that girls simply had no right to be funny, citing writers of several popular comedy television shows as examples.

She notes how important it so to remember that young girls have literally everything going against them– sometimes even their own families or teachers. And how boys don’t like to be less funny than girls, leading many to quell their inner humor and comedic prowess.

Amen. While white men make room for women in comedy, we’ll be reading Alice’s forthcoming autobiography: Well, That’s New.

Mason Ramsey Just Released A Christmas Music Video And It’s Bonkers

Mason Ramsey became an internet sensation in 2018 when a video of him yodeling Hank Williams’ “Lovesick Blues” at Walmart went viral. He skyrocketed to fame and stayed famous because he’s truly talented. Since then, he’s put out an EP, called Famous, and he just released a video for his cover of the Irving Berlin classic, “White Christmas.”

The video features young Ramsey crooning away on the stage of a theater that looks to be setting up for a Christmas play.

Other kids dance in front of the stage. Some of them are dressed as newsies. No explanation for the newsies other than that the whole vibe of the video is old-fashioned and quaint.

Mason is singing into an old-timey microphone, wearing a shirt with fringe and a pair of cowboy boots and looking fully in his element.

Mason definitely learned some cool microphone moves.

The whole video has a dream-like quality to it.

Check it out below!

Mom Sends Precious Child To School Nativity With Inflatable Sheep Sex Doll

The annual Christmas pageant: adorable kids in a play about the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. The epitome of innocence and purity—except for the blow-up sex doll sheep that came with the child size “shepherd” costume this mom purchased from Amazon.

Helen Cox, psychology student and mother of Alfie, 5, bought her son the costume to wear in his school nativity play. It was listed on Amazon as “Labreeze kids boys brown shepherd costume inflatable sheep nativity fancy dress outfit.” There really doesn’t seem to be anything “fancy” about the costume so they must be referring to the sheep, because she does look fancy. (Also, it doesn’t look like Alfie is wearing the actual costume in those pictures, because that is definitely a bathrobe and a towel on his head.)

Screenshot by The Sun

The costume came and Cox opened it up and put the contents into another bag, with her son’s name on it, to bring to school on the day of the play. She didn’t bother inflating the sheep that came with the robe, since they could easily do that at school.

So she was confused when the school asked her to take the toy back, until she blew it up and noticed it had a big ol’ hole right there in the butt. It also has a bright red nose, a bow, and noticeable eyelashes (I guess that makes it a lady sheep?).

Alfie, being five, doesn’t know what the hole is for, so Cox reportedly told him it was for the sheep’s toilet paper, which is hilarious.

Cox told The Sun, “He’s probably in his room right now stuffing Lego in the hole.” She added, “I just can’t believe it. I don’t know whether to laugh or cry! How am I going to explain this to his teachers?”

So now the only problem is that Alfie wants to keep the inflatable sheep, and Cox can’t really think of a reason she can give him as to why she doesn’t want him to.

“I told him, ‘you can’t have this sheep Alfie’ but he kept asking why so I had to make up a reason.” she said. “I told him it didn’t look like a proper sheep because it had a mustache, red lipstick and a bow on its head, but he still wanted to play with it. I couldn’t think of any more reasons why not.”

But she came with an idea to pull the wool over his eyes (SORRY). She’s going to say that the Elf on the Shelf took it. That’s right, the ol’ “blame it on the Elf” trick. [Side note: this kid is going to hate that elf.]

The listing has since been removed, an Amazon spokesperson told The Sun. And I checked, and indeed it has, so this will hopefully not happen to any other people who don’t want their sons or daughters to get attached to, um, fancy sheep.

Parents Are Supporting Chrissy Teigen By Sharing Adorable Pictures Of Their Kids In Helmets

Chrissy Teigen—mom, cookbook author, model, Twitter queen, and just general breath of fresh air in human form—posted an absolutely adorable picture of her son Miles on Instagram on Monday. Okay, yes, all pictures of her kids are adorable, but this one is like off the charts. Why? Because little dude is rocking a HELMET. A wee baby helmet, for Pete’s sake. Continue reading Parents Are Supporting Chrissy Teigen By Sharing Adorable Pictures Of Their Kids In Helmets

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