Fatherhood anonymous; an open discussion on being a dad.

[Dromond]

IME, Winter Park is really good for complete beginners, they have a whole area devoted to beginners that is ridiculously flat. And maybe this thread will be useful for you: https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...-non-beginners

Thanks for the reccomednations!

[alias_rice]

Beginner areas are usually wide and solid on that front. I spend a lot of time a bit behind my son running interference so he doesn't have to worry about people coming from the back and flattening him. Still got wiped out on a lesson with an instructor when someone plowed into him and a girl next to him.

Yeah, it’s not normally the beginner areas that are a problem, it’s the intermediate areas that scare me. Just get used to skiing directly behind your kid and being kind of a reverse linebacker. It also helps to teach the kids to ski the fall line, where to stop, to only ski a portion of the skier, etc. Basically trying to be as predictable as possible.

And always keep your head on a swivel.

[The Reverend Floater]

Grace hits the pool and this is what happens. First time she did it, she pops up and says, "Dad! That was AWESOME!" Had to ask her "to do that again" so I could film it. I wish I was 4 again, though I wasn't doing that...

https://youtu.be/COrzIG6TyUE?si=eVUcUgJxLKCgmKwB

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[Harry]

^^ I’ve been wondering if Evel Knievel was going to be reincarnated. Now I know the answer.


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[ghosthop]

20 months today. I indulged myself this morning and let him fall back asleep on my chest instead of putting him back in his crib. IMO, there are few greater rewards for being a parent.

Without any provocation, every curb in the neighborhood is being dropped on the balance bike and steeper downhills are being conquered each day. Two months ago he still had trouble coordinating his leg over the bar.

The transition this winter from baby into toddler has been difficult. Testing the limits of no has turned into a battle of wills. The abrupt change between sweet boy and raging toddler is still a surprise.

Two questions for the collective.

Any tips on packing a car seat as cargo on a domestic flight? Checking at the departure desk vs gate check? Positive experiences with renting a seat at your destination? We are flying into NYC but won’t be landing until almost 10PM and would like to get across the river that night.

Best classes/activities to enroll a two year old? We should have excess budget when we move to Los Angeles and will be able to afford another monthly expense. I am thinking swim lessons and then a climbing gym membership but am curious what others were doing at that age. Tumbling has come up by a few of our friends. Currently, our only structured activity is story time 2-3x per week which I am hoping to continue. My goal is to hit every age appropriate museum in the LA Basin, SFV, and SGV but we shall see.

[Joey Joe Joe Junior Shabadoo]

20 months today. I indulged myself this morning and let him fall back asleep on my chest instead of putting him back in his crib. IMO, there are few greater rewards for being a parent.

Without any provocation, every curb in the neighborhood is being dropped on the balance bike and steeper downhills are being conquered each day. Two months ago he still had trouble coordinating his leg over the bar.

The transition this winter from baby into toddler has been difficult. Testing the limits of no has turned into a battle of wills. The abrupt change between sweet boy and raging toddler is still a surprise.

Two questions for the collective.

Any tips on packing a car seat as cargo on a domestic flight? Checking at the departure desk vs gate check? Positive experiences with renting a seat at your destination? We are flying into NYC but won’t be landing until almost 10PM and would like to get across the river that night.

Best classes/activities to enroll a two year old? We should have excess budget when we move to Los Angeles and will be able to afford another monthly expense. I am thinking swim lessons and then a climbing gym membership but am curious what others were doing at that age. Tumbling has come up by a few of our friends. Currently, our only structured activity is story time 2-3x per week which I am hoping to continue. My goal is to hit every age appropriate museum in the LA Basin, SFV, and SGV but we shall see.

For car seats we got a travel bag and just checked them at the desk. Our girls never liked car seats on the plane, especially as toddlers, and we had lightweight umbrellas strollers for the airport that we gate checked. The upside to the car seat bag is there's no weight limit for them so we'd pack all kinds of extra crap in there (like all of my wife's extra shoes) that would have put our other bags over the limit. I think we rented a car seat once and a booster a few times when they were older and they were what you'd expect, fine but used and not as nice as the ones we'd buy ourselves.

Have fun and good luck. A wise man on this forum once said in reference to flying with small kids, "every parent has their day when they're the asshole on the flight with a screaming kid, just embrace it when it's your turn!"

[SchralphMacchio]

Any tips on packing a car seat as cargo on a domestic flight? Checking at the departure desk vs gate check?

As said above, buy a car seat bag and check at ticket kiosk. I got one on Amazon that wears as a backpack for like $40. Airlines used to bag car seats in plastic but they no longer do, and one of my seatbelts got chewed up when the seat was unbagged so I tossed it based on no longer being in the same condition that they test and rate them at. I’ve never rented but it seems like so many question marks, do you know how to install it, can you adjust the tilt, does it have a cup holder or not, do they inspect the straps, do they clean them regularly, does it fit the way your kid’s does, will you spend 15 mins with your kid screaming in the rental lot because it’s waaaaaaaaaay past bedtime, while you are futzing with figuring out how to take the straps apart to set it for the correct shoulder height etc.

At 20 months you’ll be considering the pros and cons of stroller vs Ergobaby set up as a backpack for the airport itself - you want one or the other to lock down the adventurous kid after the second time he just bolts down the concourse while you are trying to buy a coffee or something. I’ve never had a problem gate checking a stroller, but you are definitely less mobile at busy airports with one, especially shitty airports like LAX that have stupidly narrow pedestrian medians between the pickup lanes and shuttle lanes - man, I HATE flying into that airport with kids, was so thankful that my local airport picked up routes into BUR so that I can now avoid it.

Best classes/activities to enroll a two year old?

About to try swim with our 2 year old starting next week! If your town has a Children’s Museum with lots of free play activities, that is a great one our kids love. The best one however is getting a Macride seat for your bicycles and just ripping around town with the kid on your top tube. It’s about to be the time of year here when I can do that again …

[californiagrown]

Airlines used to bag car seats in plastic but they no longer do,

At 20 months you’ll be considering the pros and cons of stroller vs Ergobaby set up as a backpack for the airport itself - you want one or the other to lock down the adventurous kid after the second time he just bolts down the concourse while you are trying to buy a coffee or something.

Alaska and Delta still bag carseats out of the handful of airports we've flown into/out of the past year. Its been quick and easy each time at the normal baggage check counters. YMMV.

Instead of a stroller or ergobaby, my wife has this hip seat thing so junior can basically sit on her hip without having to hold his weight up with an arm. He likes it a lot and it makes it super convenient to both put him down for running, and also to pick him up when you need him close. Something along these lines: https://tushbaby.com/products/tushba...8aAouaEALw_wcB

Most airports now have little playground/playrooms, so search those out if you need to kill some time.

Swim lessons in my metro area are about as competitive as preschools...meaning sign up now for next year or the year after. Id guess socal has an abundance of pools so maybe its not so much an issue there.

Agreed on the macride/shotgun seat. Last summer i rode singletrack with my kid to a playground nearly every day after work. I live a block from a state park with a ton of super mellow trails that connect to 4 different schools or playgrounds so we would sometimes pack a lunch and go for a couple hour tour de playground on weekends. Its cool to be able to take them out into the woods with you on those seats, or to just cruise around the neighborhood.

[SchralphMacchio]

Alaska … YMMV.

lol this was an airline that not only wouldn’t bag for us, but also lost our carseat, and when they found it had a torn belt! Maybe it’s our podunk semi rural airport that is the issue [emoji23]

Instead of a stroller or ergobaby, my wife has this hip seat thing so junior can basically sit on her hip without having to hold his weight up with an arm. He likes it a lot and it makes it super convenient to both put him down for running, and also to pick him up when you need him close. Something along these lines: https://tushbaby.com/products/tushba...8aAouaEALw_wcB

Oh yeah that’s a good idea too. But yeah the cautionary point is the same regardless of device, at the airport you need a way to lock them down at times and places where it’s not safe or convenient for them to just bolt off.

[HappyCamper]

I liked the car seat bag with wheels on it. Could wheel it through the airport with a kid in it (maybe don't zip it up all the way though).

[The Reverend Floater]

FWIW our kids DID like the car seat on the plane until around 2.5 or so. It held them steady and also allowed them to sleep easily, so we didn't mind. You might give it a shot.

Regarding kids being good travelers, repetition and normalization are the key. We never made a big deal about trips and thus the girls just rolled with it. 10 hour flight? No problem. Just make it normal. Kids pick up on your anxiety about just about anything.

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[snapt]

I'm away from the wife and kiddo for a few weeks starting a new gig. She had a 10 week appointment for thing number 2. 7 week was all good, now, no heartbeat. We were cautioned to not panic yet but repeat HCGs are declining. Bummer is an understatement, tough to process with all going on in life at the moment.

[muted reborn]

I'm away from the wife and kiddo for a few weeks starting a new gig. She had a 10 week appointment for thing number 2. 7 week was all good, now, no heartbeat. We were cautioned to not panic yet but repeat HCGs are declining. Bummer is an understatement, tough to process with all going on in life at the moment.

Fuck! We had 3 miscarriages. I'm sorry.

You should fly back to be with the wife asap.

[bodywhomper]

^^^agree

And really sorry for you and your family

[skinipenem]

Fuck! We had 3 miscarriages. I'm sorry.

You should fly back to be with the wife asap.

Same here.

And yes, fly back.

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[plugboots]

So…not-so-low key proud of 25 year old mini plug. (As told to me on her drive home.) She plays rec league soccer most nights, and they were playing a new team. After a bit, some hag from the other team says to one of the other team’s players that mini plug isn’t any good, she’s just fast.
Next time mini plug gets the ball, she rips one at that hag’s head and hag ducks at the last minute but mini gets a hand ball out of it, and converts.

[Bunion 2020]

Worth the watch, RE: Kids and screen time & Social Media

[The Reverend Floater]

I'm away from the wife and kiddo for a few weeks starting a new gig. She had a 10 week appointment for thing number 2. 7 week was all good, now, no heartbeat. We were cautioned to not panic yet but repeat HCGs are declining. Bummer is an understatement, tough to process with all going on in life at the moment.

Fuck, sorry buddy. It happens all too often.

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[johnnyg82]

I'm away from the wife and kiddo for a few weeks starting a new gig. She had a 10 week appointment for thing number 2. 7 week was all good, now, no heartbeat. We were cautioned to not panic yet but repeat HCGs are declining. Bummer is an understatement, tough to process with all going on in life at the moment.

Sorry to hear

[Duffman]

Sorry man. Hope you all get through this as easily as possible. It's unfortunately way way more common than most people realize, since people don't often talk about it.

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[bfree]

Way more common indeed. 2x for us, both requiring surgeries to terminate. The key is to make sure she feels zero guilt. Talking with other ladies that had gone through the same was very helpful for my wife.

[tgapp]

So sorry snapt, sending good vibes to you and the Mrs

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[jackattack]

vibes to snapt and mrs snapt. pregnancy loss is hard, there's no way around it.

[snapt]

Appreciate all the vibes. I made it home. Process seems to be running its course. Real bummed for Mrs Snapt.

[skinipenem]

Appreciate all the vibes. I made it home. Process seems to be running its course. Real bummed for Mrs Snapt.

That's the right attitude man. Hang in there. It'll work out in the end.

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