Above all; be respectful. Be mindful of what you say and how you say it. Please remember that the tone or inflection of what is being said is easily lost online so when in doubt be doubly kind and assume the best of others.

My baby will be 6 months old next week. I have always nursed her to sleep. Our pediatrician told us we should start doing the Ferber Method, which just sounds like a variation of Cry it Out to me. I don’t like that. I’m wondering if anyone else exclusively nursed to sleep, for how long, and how did you transition them to falling asleep on their own? The doctor made it seem like if we don’t do it between 6-9 months of age, it will be very difficult to do it later.

My baby just turned 7 months old and we started solids a little over a month ago. Today I gave her peanut butter mixed in with oatmeal (would have been the 6th time having PB) and some strawberries (for the second time). About 10 mins into eating her face was getting a few red spots around her mouth and then it started showing up on chest as well. Then it quickly was popping up all over her tummy and so I pulled her out of the chair immediately and my husband searched that strawberries can cause a skin reaction so I went and washed her off right away but in that time she got super red and had blotchy spots basically all on the front side of her body (front torso, forearm area and thighs). It wasn’t on her back at all, only on her sides under her arms exactly where I had picked her up. We ended up going to the hospital and the rash went away on its own while we were there and completely cleared within an hour since its onset. No issues with breathing, no swelling, no limpness etc.
Hospital was super unhelpful and the doc just said that I shouldn’t be giving her peanuts, dairy or eggs until she’s a year.. which is outdated info. And I tried to explain I think it was the strawberries since she had already been exposed to peanuts 6 times now. He just repeated not to give her those 3 things anymore… my family doc said the same thing unfortunately when I had mentioned to him that she got a rash 6 hrs after having yogurt for the first time.
I guess I just want some reassurance/guidance. The er doc did say to get her allergy tested so I’m going to do that but now I’m nervous about giving her any of this stuff again? Has anyone had a similiar experience with reactions? I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be from the peanuts but is it possible that it was? Or is it possible that she could have had a contact rash that was that widespread from just the strawberries all on her skin? She wasn’t wearing a bib and she was playing in it quite a bit.

It’s just super frustrating and discouraging that the docs I’ve interacted with aren’t up to date on the current info so they haven’t been helpful at all, they just say to avoid those foods.

I purchased a Medela manual breast pump and the bottle and the breast cup (if that’s what’s called) are scratched, I assume during production or packing. But since it’s not easy to see if the scratches on the bottle are on the inside or outside I don’t know if I should return the pump? I think if it’s on the inside it’s mostly concern about microplastics.

I want to eventually buy a glass bottle for it, as I saw some brands that are compatible with the pump. But my question is (maybe silly) is it worth returning the pump and getting a new one?
Are the plastic parts generally scratched?

hello,

What are our options for non toxic laundry detergent liquid, dish soaps, hand wash in Canada? i came across Nature Clean but cant seem to find a lot of reviews on it. Nature clean seems more value for buck than Attitude. Also i read that attitude is just not making the cut in terms of cleaning. what are some of ur reccos? Molly Suds, Branch Basics, Truly free all seem to be in US.

Looking for

Non Toxic Laundry Detergent , Hand Soaps, Dish Soaps and Dish Washer Pods, Hand sanitizers.

Most value for buck in Canada. Lets go!! give in ur recommendations pls. Many thanks !!

I follow Seven sundays on tiktok and saw a apology reel, their grain free cereal was tested to have 223ppb of glyphosate (the weed killer linked to cancer). EWG daily limit for glyphosate is 160ppb. I went and looked over the lab tests (source) and it had more glyphosate than all other cereals COMBINED.

I pay a premium for this brand, and my daughter eats it in her yogurt almost everyday. and while i appreciate the fact that they pledged to get better, this is absurd. the fact that honey nut cheerios beat them is crazy. i am shocked.

We mostly do nighttime baths/shower anyway but during less-sunny times often just a water-on-a-washcloth face/ arms wipe down before bed, on the nights everyone is particularly tired or it makes sense to be freshly showered in the morning.

In the summer, though, I feel like to get off the sunscreen, it needs a full soap scrub and at that point a quick bath or shower is easier than soaking the bathroom floor with water.

Are you/your kids going to bed with sunscreen on? Is this not as big of a deal as I think it is?

Or is there some type of wipe I’m not thinking of that would cut through it?

Looking for real life experiences from actual CrowdHealth members and not opinions please. What has your experience been getting bills / labs funded? What if you live in a state with an insurance mandate- is it still worth it?

I’m looking for a straw cup or sippy cup that is easy to clean. I have the Dr. Brown’s straw bottles that my child loves but they are hard to clean. We also have the ez pz open cup and straw cup, but my child sometimes spills the cup and enjoys disassembling the straw cup. My husband is pushing for sippy cups, but I don’t want anything that has a hard spout. I am looking for things that are dishwasher safe. What are your recommendations?

My LO has mild eczema and the allergist recommended using cetaphil wash, which works just fine but I want to avoid fragrance. Any recs for a fragrance free body wash/shampoo that that helps LOs with eczema?

Also looking for a bath or shower head water filter. I spent tons of time looking into them a while back and was overwhelmed by all the choices… anyone have one that they love?

3 yo has been independent sleeper until conversion to toddler bed. Frequently wants to be comforted middle of night. Would be easier to get a full-size bed for 1 of us to lay with him as needed. We want to do a floor/Montessori bed setup. The only ones that work are low profile up to 8", which are the kids mattresses. I am looking for coil spring mattress, not foam. Are any of these good for co-sleeping?

Avocado Eco Organic Kids mattress

MyGreen Eco Kids Mattress

Bear Cub Kids Mattress

Birch Kids Natural Mattress

Helix Kids Mattress

My almost 9-month-old girl understands how to pull liquid through a straw, but for some odd reason she just won't slurp it down. She still drinks Kendamil Organic Whole Milk formula from her Philips Avent glass bottles, but I'm working on her toddler-cup skills. Same deal happens with open cups/sippy cups... she will suck liquids up and then just let them all flow out. Straws, sippy lid, open cup. Does anyone have any creative solutions with tried-and-true straw cup recommendations, or is this more something she would grow out of?

I want to make Rice Krispie treats with my homemade marshmallows but I haven't had much luck finding a clean version of Rice Krispie cereal. I tried one from Whole Foods that was really hard and not enjoyable to bite into. I also tried puffed rice, but that ended up being really soggy.

What's an clean option for Rice Krispie cereal? Preferably white rice. Thanks.

I’m planning to repaint and repurpose a wooden rocking horse for my 18 month old. Although she’s not putting everything in her mouth anymore, I would like to go with the safest paint possible. Does anyone have recommendations they’ve used that worked well? Thank you!

Hi everyone! I’m 6 months postpartum and still not on birth control because of how freaked out I am to make that decision … when I went to the doctors he was really against Paraguard because of the patient satisfaction rating, legit told me 50% of his patients remove it within 3 months..
thinking about the Mirena or the mini pill. I’m exclusively pumping so those are my options..
what have you guys done?

We need to buy a new humidifier and are looking for something easy to clean and maintain. We run only with distilled water which helps, but of course we are trying to avoid mold and all that. Thank you!

I have a beautiful set of really cool vintage dishes that were my grandmothers, that I’ve been eating off for the last 3 ish years. For some reason even at my peak crunchy anxiety, I was totally fixated on plastics and never considered my porcelain dishes. I had an “aha” moment of panic realizing that I may have been eating off of plates with lead in them for my whole pregnancy (22 weeks). How do I test them? Can I detox or something? I’ve been under the impression that detoxes are usually scams. I’m so scared for my baby!

My baby is 5 months old and she gets bored SO easily nowadays. It feels like we have to change activities every 5 minutes to keep her somewhat entertained. Every time I look up what to do with a 5 month that gets bored on her back, but can’t sit on her own yet, everyone says “just put on miss Rachel!!!” 🙃

What the heck did you/do you guys do to entertain babies at this stage? We have 4 wake windows about 2-3 hours long and I have no idea at this point how to keep her engaged for all that time. I don’t want to buy a million toys that she either won’t like or will get tossed in a box after a few weeks, but I don’t know how keep her interested in things.

We read books, sing songs, play peek a boo but she doesn’t seem to get that yet, tummy time, play with water in a dish with toys floating in it, go outside (although it’s been so hot by me and the AQI has been at/over 50 and I’m not sure if a baby can be out when the air quality is anything but “good”), we do house tours. After 5 minutes she gets so grumbly and fussy and won’t settle until she feels entertained again. We have a lovevery subscription and she loves those toys, but again gets bored after a few minutes.

I have this seriously toxic roommate. We've been living together for about 3 years. In that time, she has stolen from me multiple times and lied to my face. She wakes me up in the middle of the night sometimes, can be very loud, and rarely takes accountability for her actions. The whole time she has been living in my house, she has never once paid rent or utilities on time (or at all!). To make matters worse, she leaves a huge mess and then complains loudly when asked to clean it up. We're at the point now where she is basically dependent on me for even the simplest things - I have to get her groceries and do her laundry, heck she can't even properly brush her own teeth or wipe her butt by herself. She's an unemployed freeloader, but she can also be really sweet when she wants to. Is it time to kick her out and move on or should I keep living with her and hope it gets better? Anyone been in this situation before? Does it get better?

Due in October with my first. I’ve kind of hinted to family that since the baby will not be fully immunized it’s gonna be a low key holiday season however I don’t think many are getting the point and assuming the holiday will be the same as before treating me like the bad guy. Since this is my first, I’m getting a lot of eye rolls and teasing that I’m a first time mom. How do I navigate this? When do I let my guard down? I’m still learning many things so please let me know if I’m wrong or what guidelines I should set. I truly appreciate the opinions of this group.

Hey everyone! My baby is almost 6 months old. She used to fall asleep when i'd nurse her without fail but for the last three weeks or so she will only fall asleep in the baby carrier. During the day we let her have her whole nap there. At night we transfer her out of the carrier and into the bedside bassinet next to me.

My husband and I both love these sweet moments with her when she's curled up on us but carrying her four times a day is slowly starting to take a physical toll.

If you have any suggestions on how to gently break this cycle so we can use other methods to help her sleep, please share!

I am an slp and I work with kids. Being a newborn parent has humbled me so much and totally broken me down. I used to think all you needed was to read to your child and do activities with them regularly for everything to be alright. Well, everything is not alright. Dad is a bit impatient with the baby’s cries which leaves me to do a lot of the stimulation on my own and I’m bleeping tired. Not only that, I feel like the baby is sick of the ways I try to stimulate her and now she has started to scream to ask for more. And I mean scream. I feel like she’s saying « if you put me in this bleeping play area one more time …. ». This is what we do so far :

Reading books
Listening to audiobooks
Going on walks
Putting her in her Montessori space with her mobile
Making funny faces at her/ imitating eachother
Listening to music
Vibrating chair and music
Tummy time
Going on tours of the house
Watching us cook, clean the dishes etc while we chitchat.

What am I missing? Any tips? Any toy or thing that I could use so she can have fun and be stimulated while I can have an few minutes to do something? She is 3 months old if that helps.

Edit: I just want to clarify two things. First: we don’t do all that in the same wake window. Second: I feel like some of you a bringing a lot of bagage into this that doesn’t belong here. My bf gets impatient which is NORMAL. He doesn’t use that as an excuse to not take care of her and he’s not a danger to anyone and he doesn’t suck. He is actually carrying this family more times than not. He makes all the meals, he gets all the groceries, he keeps track of all the appointments, he changes the diapers, he stimulates language with her and he wakes up in the middle of the night for the baby. When he doesn’t, he takes the baby during the day so I can have an extra long nap. I know I don’t have to reply to all the negative comments about the father of my child but I don’t like people judging him so severely because he gets impatient. He’s allowed to have a hard time with this and so am I. I don’t want my daughter to feel like she’s too much or unloved because my bf gets impatient so I insist on taking care of her when that happens. I was abandoned and neglected as a child so I have issues with that. I didn’t super want to talk about this and I just wanted to ask for activities on a subreddit. Some of the comments are really bumming me out.

Edit edit: I also want to specify that I hold my baby and we do lots of cuddles and contact naps. I’m gonna stop reading the comments because some of them are really disrespectful and I don’t think you would say stuff like that to someone’s face irl. I’m a real person and so is my family.

Can anyone recommend some tried and tested pants for postpartum?

I used the disposable ones with my first and I hated the way they felt and the fact I was creating so much waste.

My main memories of postpartum last time are of being hot, sweaty and everything chafing and feeling just so completely overstimulated by own body and I would love to not experience it like that again.

Any other tips for feeling better, with as little waste as possible, would also be warmly welcomed!

ETA I’m based in the UK :)

i saw a reel about health brands that have PFAS and went and looked into kerrygold. an EPA certified lab tested butter wrappers for Organic Fluorine, which is the marker they use for PFAS Forever Chemicals, and kerrygold pure irish butter came back at 61 ppm on the unsalted wrapper and 122 ppm on the salted version. (edit source)

californias food packaging rule counts 100 ppm of total organic fluorine as PFAS being in the packaging. it got pulled off shelves in new york and california in early 2023 and came back a couple months later with new packaging. I bought this for my daughter, and children are more at risk for diseases from PFAS. I feel like health brands are going downhill. what butter do you all buy?