My oldest has problems with dry skin and excema and her pediatrician recommended we use fragrance free/dye free, etc. We use Cetaphil cleanser too, instead of soap. If you're truly concerned try switching to "free" detergents or all natural ones. Check out your whole foods store or co-op, there are tons of "irritant-free" products of all sorts!

I also know a ton of people who swear by California Baby products-they didn't help my daughter, but she has a lot of trouble-everyone I know that uses that stuff LOVES it-they make a full line of skin care-from wash/shampoo to lotion even to sunscreen and hair detangler. 

I feel your frustration. While I am comfortable with being subject to the searches, etc. in the name of safety-after all I CHOOSE to fly-there is NEVER any consistency. I can't tell you the # of times I've found a 12oz. bottle of soda at the bottom of my carryon that just went through TSA screening, but they insisted on taking my larger than 3 oz. bottle of kid's ibuprofen that I, like a good citizen, remembered to show them I had.

It's the lack of consistency that makes the whole thing seems pointless to me.

I know it's frustrating-I just keep thinking, if they catch just 1 bad thing (even if they miss a few others) it's worth it-just keep telling yourself...

On our anniversary, which was just less than a month ago, my husband snuck me to this fancy french country restaurant (I was supposed to be on bedrest) where dinner takes like 4 hours and everything was wonderful...we made it a goal NOT to talk about kids. It was extra special because I hadn't left the house in WEEKS.

My mother saw this episode too and told me about it and it sounded good, so I tried it starting a few nights back and last night I only had to put her back once--as opposed to the ten times the first night we tried it. There haven't been any more tears or drawn out bedtime rituals either. YAY!!

I still am letting my oldest fall asleep in my bed and then moving her, so once we've got this down with the little one that will be the next adventure!

Thank you all so much for your advice!!! 

My oldest potty trained a couple months before she was two and we did it by commiting a week to her being naked and us going NOWHERE. At first I'd sit her on the potty every 30 minutes or so and ask her if she wanted to go. We'd read books, we'd sing songs, etc. for about 10 minutes each time and finally one time she just went in the potty. We made the hugest deal and explained to her what she had done and gave her a couple of M&Ms. After the M&Ms she always just wanted to sit on the potty, but we explained she only got them if she WENT in the potty. It didn't take long. Within days she was not having many accidents and after one week we were able to go out with no pull-ups or anything.

I know using chocolate/bribes is objectionable to many, but after a couple of weeks we she started getting M&Ms only for #2 and then shortly thereafter we just said, you do this because you're a big girl and she was quite happy with that. 

22 is not too young to have children, but waiting a little after you get married is not a bad idea either. My husband and I had our first child 11 months after we got married and it saddens me for US that we didn't have the couple of years I hear some of my friends talk about where they travelled and were really active together.

Please don't misunderstand, we're about to have our 3rd child, and I LOVE the life we all have together, but I think it would have been really helpful for my husband and I to have some more time to get to learn about each other as husband and wife, rather than just mommy and daddy.

Also, you say you'd like to go back to school...if you've got personal ambition left unreached...go after that before you have kids because once you do have children your own pursuits become a lot more difficult-not impossible, but a lot more difficult and then there's a lot more on the line.

Good luck! I was 23 when I had my first and I don't regret anything for a second. If it's in your heart to have children, nothing can be more fulfilling! 

While the weather here in Colorado is beautiful, it's been such change for us. We moved from NC and this is our second summer out here. While it's not NEARLY so hot and muggy as it was back east THERE ARE NO AIR CONDITIONERS in this town!!!!! So while it's 85 outside today, it's 85 in my house too!!!

It don't remember it bothering me so much last summer...then again I wasn't almost 37 weeks pregnant then either :-) 

I am right to the end of my pregnancy now, despite earlier preterm scares. It's been in the upper nineties most days, which for some of you I know is nothing, but since it's not normally so hot here there are NO air conditioners!!!AGGHHH! (Sorry to whine) The real issue however is that my in-laws arrive in 5 days and if I don't have this baby before then, my girls will be expected to stay with them while I'm delivering-this would NOT be good AT ALL!!

I'm 4 cm-90% and holding steady there-what can I do--this is baby #3 and I've tried all the old tricks (minus castor oil-which I really don't think I can handle)--do any of you have some good ideas you might want to share????

They told me at my appointment today that they would happily send me up to L&D and see what happens, but once you're in and past 4cm if your body doesn't start doing its thing they'll induce which I am REALLY trying to avoid.

I can't listen to my husband tell me one more time-"it couldn't possibly be more than another week or two--that's not so bad now, is it??"