5AF Parenting Thread

Postby **shafnutz05** » Sun Dec 12, 2021 12:11 pm

Pretty sure he was sending you a message about being forced to attend church…

We chilled at home today.

Postby **count2infinity** » Sun Dec 12, 2021 1:15 pm

Little shad: “mission accomplished”

Postby **Dickie Dunn** » Tue Dec 14, 2021 4:27 pm

So I just got finished changing DDJ, took him off the changing table into Baby Airplane position, and got greeted with a stomach emptying amount of avocado breast milk baby puke all over my face and into my mouth from arm height over my head.

Postby **count2infinity** » Tue Dec 14, 2021 4:32 pm

My wife and I were finishing up eating dinner, little c2i was already done and in the living room playing. All of a sudden she starts running laps around the house, holding her butt yelling "MY BUTT IS ON FIRE, MY BUTT IS ON FIRE, AHHHHHH, PUT IT OUT! MY BUTT IS ON FIRE!!!"

After we checked to make sure she didn't mean she was sh*tting her pants, we asked if she learned that at daycare. She said no, so we asked where she learned it... turns out it was this:

Postby **shafnutz05** » Tue Dec 14, 2021 5:51 pm

So I just got finished changing DDJ, took him off the changing table into Baby Airplane position, and got greeted with a stomach emptying amount of avocado breast milk baby puke all over my face and into my mouth from arm height over my head.

Oh lord. Sorry.

I have had my son vomit down the front of my chest (inside my shirt) because I would rather deal with that then cleaning it off the carpet.

Postby **meow** » Tue Dec 14, 2021 7:06 pm

Yeah that’s no good

Postby **Tomas** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 11:48 am

What's the "5AF Council of Parents" consensus on kids smartwatches/smartphones?

Context: We plan to buy our soon to be 8-year old and 5-year old daughters kids smart watches for Christmas. Originally, it was supposed to be just something for fun, with possibility of using WiFi to communicate with them while at home (mostly as fun, but to slowly teach them how to use such gadgets). So, I planned something like this:

But that got us thinking about buying something with real "call functionality", e.g.

https://www.verizon.com/connected-smart ... mowatch-2/

Two questions:
1. ALL kids smartwatches have really crappy ratings. Do you have any experience with something that you actually liked?
2. What's your opinion on when a kid should get his/her first functioning communication device (phone or watch)?

thanks!

Postby **meow** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 12:22 pm

We’ve looked in the past for a smart watch for our kids. All the reviews were garbage so we stopped researching

Postby **robbiestoupe** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 12:23 pm

What's the "5AF Council of Parents" consensus on kids smartwatches/smartphones?

Context: We plan to buy our soon to be 8-year old and 5-year old daughters kids smart watches for Christmas. Originally, it was supposed to be just something for fun, with possibility of using WiFi to communicate with them while at home (mostly as fun, but to slowly teach them how to use such gadgets). So, I planned something like this:

But that got us thinking about buying something with real "call functionality", e.g.

https://www.verizon.com/connected-smart ... mowatch-2/

Two questions:
1. ALL kids smartwatches have really crappy ratings. Do you have any experience with something that you actually liked?
2. What's your opinion on when a kid should get his/her first functioning communication device (phone or watch)?

thanks!

Can't comment on #1, but for #2 we'll most likely get our kids "dumb" phones when they get to the age when they start hanging out at their friends' house all day. My two oldest are the same age as yours, so maybe this summer for the 8 year old.

Postby **Morkle** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 12:24 pm

I've been struggling with that, when the time comes. I didn't get a cell phone until I was 16, but I think that's gonna go out the window...

Postby **robbiestoupe** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 12:30 pm

We managed, right? Parents all across the neighborhood would just yell out their doors for their children to come home for dinner. Buying a dumb phone will just save my voice

Postby **DigitalGypsy66** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 12:40 pm

My advice is to keep them off extra/personal screens as long as you can. If I could get rid of my own smartphone, I would

Ours got phones in sixth grade, when they went to middle school. Do not let them keep them in their rooms overnight, regardless of the stupid "parental controls" which don't work well or can be defeated easily. There are Instagram and tik tok accounts that show kids how to override iOS parental controls.

Postby **King Colby** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 1:56 pm

Did you guys see the tik tok school shooting challenge? They deemed December 17th national school shooting day... wife said kids are a mess at her HS today and many stayed home.

Tik tok has to **** go

Postby **count2infinity** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 1:59 pm

Source of the post Did you guys see the tik tok school shooting challenge?

I'm sorry... wat?

Postby **skullman80** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 2:04 pm

Our school district went virtual today (at least the high school), I think others around us did too. I don't have kids, but it's still pretty sad to see stuff like that.

Postby **MR25** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 2:31 pm

From what I've overheard in the office, a ton of schools either closed or went virtual.

It honestly wouldn't shock me if this was some sort of Russian or Chinese troll op.

Postby **count2infinity** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 2:32 pm

Sounds like a 4chany kind of thing...

Postby **NTP66** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 3:21 pm

From what I've overheard in the office, a ton of schools either closed or went virtual.

It honestly wouldn't shock me if this was some sort of Russian or Chinese troll op.

We received an e-mail about it, letting us know that there was no credible threat, and that it was Tiktok/online challenge bullshit. This happened last year, too.

Postby **shafnutz05** » Fri Dec 17, 2021 5:15 pm

I **** HATE TikTok and other "challenges". We got an email from the school about it.

My 61 year old mother is obsessed with TikTok

Postby **mac5155** » Sun Dec 19, 2021 8:57 pm

What did yinz do with your first kids right before you had number 2? Take them on a little trip or anything? Bonus points if it's something I can do in January.

Postby **Beveridge** » Sun Dec 19, 2021 9:39 pm

Took him to my parents and said see you in three days.

Postby **Tomas** » Mon Dec 20, 2021 3:11 pm

What did yinz do with your first kids right before you had number 2? Take them on a little trip or anything? Bonus points if it's something I can do in January.

Taking a trip definitely cannot hurt. But here is a tip what to do AFTER the kid No. 2 is born (at least what worked well for us): our girls are 2.5 years apart, and when we brought the younger one home, the younger sister brought a gift for the older one - Minnie Mouse plush toy. Even though the older one acted a little suspicious when she saw us first, the gift made everything better (and the older one ended up playing with Minnie for quite some time).

Postby **meow** » Mon Dec 20, 2021 3:25 pm

I guess age plays a role in this. We did nothing with a 4 year gap.

Postby **mac5155** » Mon Dec 20, 2021 4:13 pm

What did yinz do with your first kids right before you had number 2? Take them on a little trip or anything? Bonus points if it's something I can do in January.
Taking a trip definitely cannot hurt. But here is a tip what to do AFTER the kid No. 2 is born (at least what worked well for us): our girls are 2.5 years apart, and when we brought the younger one home, the younger sister brought a gift for the older one - Minnie Mouse plush toy. Even though the older one acted a little suspicious when she saw us first, the gift made everything better (and the older one ended up playing with Minnie for quite some time).

Nice tip, thanks. I suppose we can do this.

Postby **King Colby** » Mon Dec 20, 2021 4:49 pm

We had a scheduled induction for #2 on a Saturday. So Friday we kept our older son home from school and had a special day with the 3 of us. Donut breakfast, pumpkin patch, out for lunch, took him to target to pick out a present for his baby brother. Then while in the hospital had my parents give him a "big brother box" with various items around that theme.

Having him pick out a present was clutch