The Parenting Thread

[BigTransformerTrev]

My 4 yr old son had a dress up day at his child care. We have a lot of costumes - TMNT, Super Heroes, and TFs. When I asked him what did he want to go as he ran and got an Optimus Prime costume, when I asked him to clean his teeth the then comes out wearing a Ratchet costume. My 2 yr old daughter (who doesnt have a dress up day for her child care) ran and got a Bumblebee costume. What could I say she was so excited and so cute how could I refuse. After dropping my older 2 boys at school I took the younger 2 to their child care center. My daughter walked into her room and yelled "Im Bumblebee" it was just adorable, I couldnt help but laugh.

Very cool


Did anyone elses toddler go through a stage where they seemed to need hardly any sleep? Up until a few months ago Orion would have a daytime name for 1 1/2 to 3 hours, be in bed by 8pm and then get up around half seven in the morning.

Now if he has even a short daytime nap he's up half the night! And it seems no matter what time we put him to bed he is up 10 hours later at maximum. So if he goes to bed at 9pm he's up by 7am. Last night he was asleep by 8.30pm but then was up this morning at 5.45am!

Shouldn't toddlers sleep more than this? He's still only 2 1/2. But he doesn't even seem tired with this drastic reduction in sleep.

[Bartrim]

Very cool


Did anyone elses toddler go through a stage where they seemed to need hardly any sleep? Up until a few months ago Orion would have a daytime name for 1 1/2 to 3 hours, be in bed by 8pm and then get up around half seven in the morning.

Now if he has even a short daytime nap he's up half the night! And it seems no matter what time we put him to bed he is up 10 hours later at maximum. So if he goes to bed at 9pm he's up by 7am. Last night he was asleep by 8.30pm but then was up this morning at 5.45am!

Shouldn't toddlers sleep more than this? He's still only 2 1/2. But he doesn't even seem tired with this drastic reduction in sleep.

I went through 6.5 years of that. We eventually discovered that Marcus' brain does not produce Melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep. Thankfully he now takes 3ml in a synthetic form before bed and he now sleeps 10-12 hrs a night... As opposed to the 4 I got for the those first 6.5 years.

For any adult having trouble sleeping I recommend Melatonin. It is a natural hormone so there are no side effects. However in Australia you need a script for it. You can purchase it off American based websites like onnit as it is an over the counter product over seas.

[GoktimusPrime]

Here's a list of foods that naturally contain melatonin. I can personally vouch for rolled oats as I love tucking into a bowl of muesli after a hard day before going off to sleep.

[Megatran]

For any adult having trouble sleeping I recommend Melatonin. It is a natural hormone so there are no side effects. However in Australia you need a script for it. You can purchase it off American based websites like onnit as it is an over the counter product over seas.

I use to have trouble sleeping, until my better half gave me chloroform or rohypnol. Works a treat. Couldn't remember much of the night before but I did feel less energetic in the morning. But yeah, seek advice from your GP / pharmacist before taking medicines.

[Bartrim]

Here's a list of foods that naturally contain melatonin. I can personally vouch for rolled oats as I love tucking into a bowl of muesli after a hard day before going off to sleep.

Milk contains melatonin and my son has a glass before bed and that doesn't help. I'll stick to the synthetic version.

[GoktimusPrime]

My last post wasn't meant to sound like some tree-hugging "Go organic!" hippie thing. I just meant that for those of us whose kids don't have a diagnosed medical issue that affects sleep, then these natural sources might help. But if your child's brain actually doesn't produce the hormone, then yeah, by all means use the synthetic!

[BigTransformerTrev]

I went through 6.5 years of that. We eventually discovered that Marcus' brain does not produce Melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep. Thankfully he now takes 3ml in a synthetic form before bed and he now sleeps 10-12 hrs a night... As opposed to the 4 I got for the those first 6.5 years.

For any adult having trouble sleeping I recommend Melatonin. It is a natural hormone so there are no side effects. However in Australia you need a script for it. You can purchase it off American based websites like onnit as it is an over the counter product over seas.

Hmmm, something to consider, though hopefully it's just a phase he's going through

[BigTransformerTrev]

Just a couple of nice little moments I'd like to share

We are trying to get our 6 month old daughter Acacia to sleep in the crib of a night instead of with us with limited sucess. But the other night as I was falling asleep I reached over and my hand touched hers. Her little fingers curled around mine and we both fell asleep holding hands

Then two nights ago I was reading my 2 1/2 old son his usual litany of bedtime stories in the rocking chair. He decided to just lie back sideways in my lap and looked up at me with a very peaceful loving face. He then very lighly reached up and was tracing parts of my face (eyebrows, forehead etc) with his fingertips. For a lad who is so rambunctious it was a very peaceful & sweet moment

Anyway, they were just two happy little bonding moments I felt I'd like to share

[Bartrim]

Those bonding moments make you forget all about the screaming and fighting

The other night I was reading a bedtime story to Josh and since it was a weekend I hadn't shaved in a couple of days. Josh looked up at me ...

Josh "Does it hurt Daddy?"
Me "Does what hurt buddy?"
Josh "When those spikes come out of your face?"

[Trent]

Happy Fathers Day to all the dads here. Hope you got some cool loot!