1. For those of you who have a baby and work, but have very little in the way of non-work related friends and family around you, what do you do when the baby can't go to daycare for whatever reason? I'm currently stuck on the having to call in train.
2. When you can smell that your kiddo took a little poo during the night, do you wake them up to change them or just wait until they awaken?
3. Thrift store shopping pointers please? Not a lot of money can be spared for the new wardrobe I need. Though the poundage is back to normal, the shapage is not.
4. In the same vein - suggestions on good post baby jeans? I did buy a decent pair of Mossimo ones on clearance at Target for $8 (woot!), but they are more of a bought-them-because-of-the-price-and-they-actually-fit pair than a really good investment. Incidentally, I also bought a shirt for $2. Due to the aforementioned rearrangement of my fatty bits, I look like a middle aged woman trying to play sexy teenager in most of my old shirts.
5. For those of you who became stay at home or part-time working Moms... could you please tell me how you did it and managed? Our hugely looming problem by far is health care, so I'm particularly interested in those of you who bought your own policies etc.
Friday, September 17, 2010
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Barb, email me with your measurements. I may be able to help. . .
Just email today or early tomorrow, I have an appointment to donate a LOT of clothes.
When Z can't go to daycare, I usually have to take the day off unless it is between Feb-May, then DH is the default. Usually, DH will take off the second day if it requires more than one day out. We are very fortunate in that we both have rather understanding bosses.
I can't help you on the clothes issue although when I was skinnier (as in not plus-sized) I puffy hearted Gap jeans.
As far as going to SAHM status, we just can't do it unfortunately, but I do drop my hours considerably for half the year and my salary as a result, but this is actually something that is encouraged at my job (and one of the few reasons I stay there b/c it is not career-making).
I am not sure I can help on the clothes. I have heavily relied on online sales at Old Navy. I recently bought a ton of shirts for $8 each. my jeans look terrible on me. Muffin top.
As for the SAHM thing, we are in an apartment, still saving for a house, so at the moment, we don't have too many expenses. However, it does mean I have NO car and plan LB's needs accordingly. Luckily we are able to get by with me having no car, which dramatically helps. I am also trying to figure out how to be a part-time WAHM.
K- is lucky to have decent health care through his job. If we were both self-employed we would be screwed. Individual policies are ridiculously expensive.
Let's see...I think I can help with some:
2. I definitely wake up and change a poopy diaper at night. During a nap, no way...but at night, yes. That probably sounds insane, but she's much more likely to stay dead asleep at night then at a nap, and plus I don't want her sitting in it for hours. Also...she's a girl, so it's a little different to leave her in poop than it is for a boy.
3. At our old house, we had a really nice Goodwill nearby - there was a really ritzy country club down the road, and many of their castoffs wound up there. I recommend finding a thrift/goodwill store near rich people. :-)
4. Not sure how these jeans are specifically for post-baby bodies, but I love Eddie Bauer jeans. They have several different fits, and if you can get to a store to try them on, you may find some that you like.
5. We slid further and further down in our checkbook until we were dipping into our savings. Not a great situation. We were managing the past two years knowing that we'd be moving and Matt would be finishing fellowship, but if life were going to stay the same, we definitely would have had to make some changes. Major changes. I can't help too much with the health care issue, but is there any way your work would let you cut back hours just to the point of barely being full time? Like 31 hours a week? Or just above whatever the threshold is? Worth a shot....
I got to be a stay at home mom through magic, so I am no help. (Matt got a job at his old salary plus my salary when I was six months pregnant. Magic.)
I'd say that you let the poop decision make itself based on when you think he'll wake up on his own. And also how prone to diaper rash he is. If he's not that prone and you think he'll be up within an hour anyway, then wait. If he's like Elizabeth and gets a rash if he sits in poop for more than two seconds, then wake that boy up! Also, he ought to stop pooping during the night eventually. Elizabeth did at some point, though I don't remember when.
I second the thrift store in the nice area too. You have to go a lot to find good stuff, like Eric Carle books. ;) If you get really desperate, I'll have my mother-in-law shop for you. She's a bargain hunter and shops for a living.
1. Here in Sarasota there's a program called "kids under the weather" at the hospital that will watch your baby if they're sick. Maybe look into that at your local hospital. We have no one to watch A if she's sick and right now I'm lucky that I still have 3 sick days left this year.
2. We wait.
3. Goodwill. Go alone, look for name brands. All of my work pants are name brand and all are from goodwill.
4. Again for me, Goodwill. I've been wearing some American Eagles ones.
5. No help here, I will forever be a working mom since I get the benefits at work and higher pay than DH.
Thanks so much for the help everyone! I happen to be in a career path where most people don't have children, so that makes it kinda suck.
MS - I want your job!!! (Besides the fact that I can't do it. haha)
I hope you work it out WB.
Heath - Glad things are looking up for you. That is NO good! It seems like every time we build up any savings, we have to use it all again. I vote neither Hub nor I do anything big now for a long time. And E recently developed another stinking yeast infection, except this time between his little butt cheeks,so I think we'll be waking up. :)
Thanks Christina, Jen and Mrs. Spit! XO
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