With three kids under 8, we're constantly burning through our limited PTO for sick days. Is there an app or spreadsheet template that helps you plan this better? Something that syncs with a calendar? Trying to be smarter about it instead of just scrambling each time.
I hate even typing this out. My son told his mom he'd "rather stay home" during his scheduled time with me. He's 11. I have him Wed nights and every other weekend. His mom thinks it's because I'm "too strict" (he has screen time limits, gets off the couch sometimes) but I genuinely don't know what ...
My 8-year-old asked me something totally reasonable the other day and I just automatically said "go ask your mom." She looked disappointed and I immediately felt like garbage. I didn't have a good reason, I was just scrolling on my phone. Had to own up to it and actually answer her question. Why do ...
Looking for some solid reading material. Want something about being a better father, raising kids with character, that kind of thing. Preferably something practical not just theory. What have you guys found useful? Open to anything from actual parenting books to memoirs from men you respect.
Saw this app where you build creatures and it gamifies chores/homework. Looked kinda cool but it's like $5/month. Anyone actually use it? Does it work or is it just a gimmick to get kids away from TikTok for 30 minutes?
Idk why but every Sunday when I drop my kids off is brutal. My 7yo gets quiet and withdrawn, my 4yo cries. Ex says they settle down after 20 mins. I believe her but man, those goodbyes wreck me. And then I have this empty house and no kids for 5 days and it's weird. Anyone else find Sundays hardest?...
This is the most wholesome chaos I've experienced. He set up a card table, printed menus (with typos everywhere lol), and made his little sister the waitress. They served us PB&J sandwiches cut into triangles with Doritos on the side for like $2 a plate. Took payment in coins and kept a "cash regist...
I tried to make those "painted rock garden markers" with my daughter last weekend. You know, the cute ones where you paint rocks to look like veggies and put them in your garden? Looked SO EASY on Pinterest. Took us 4 hours, the paint kept chipping, and they looked like abstract blobs. Meanwhile my ...
Monday mornings when I drop the kids at school after having them the weekend hit different. My 5yo gets clingy, my 9yo is grumpy, and I'm trying not to cry in the carpool line. Then when I pick them up from their mom on Friday afternoon they're either hyped up or emotionally distant depending on w...
It's October and my ex is already demanding to switch Christmas. We have it in writing that I get Christmas morning but she wants the actual Christmas Day this year because her family is coming in. We can trade Thanksgiving but not Christmas - that was the whole agreement. She's acting like I'm bei...
Started a sourdough culture with my 7yo daughter like 3 weeks ago. She feeds it every day, names it (currently "Bubbles"), and is genuinely invested. We finally made our first loaf yesterday and ngl it was actually pretty good. She wants to make it every weekend now. It's simple enough that she can ...
My son has ADHD and online school was a nightmare for him. But we've found that certain apps actually help him focus better than traditional learning? Like Duolingo for reading, Khan Academy Kids for math. The games keep his attention in a way worksheets never did. Anyone else use apps intentionall...
Divorce is final next month and we're trying to nail down holiday agreements. She wants Thanksgiving week and Christmas Eve-Dec 25, I want Christmas evening through 26th, New Years she wants entirely. Seems lopsided to me but I'm not sure what's actually fair here. How do you guys usually split the ...
Everyone's always going on about "screen time bad" and "video games rotting brains" but my kids actually learned to read faster because they wanted to understand the dialog in Stardew Valley. Plus my 10yo and his friend play Minecraft together and they're constantly problem-solving and building craz...
Our son is 3 months old. Before he was born we fought maybe once a month, just stupid stuff. Now? We're bickering constantly. She thinks I'm not doing enough, I think she's being critical of how I do things, neither of us is sleeping, we haven't had sex since before the baby, and honestly I can't re...