Almost all kids will sleep with a comfort item like a lovey, stuffed animal, or special blanket for the first few years of their life. The official name for them is transitional objects. They've been shown to bring comfort to kids who form a strong attachment to them, and this process is extremely healthy and promotes good self-esteem in growing kids while fighting off separation anxiety. So, there's nothing wrong if your kid wants to keep snuggling his favorite stuffy for years and years! Many adults still keep theirs from childhood, too.The attachment can be incredibly powerful. Some kids rotate through a roster of different stuffed animals, picking a new one every night, but some absolutely can not spend a moment apart from their favorite transitional object. For my kids, it's always been loveys (half stuffed animal, half small blanket). Other kids might make more, uh, non-traditional choices.One little girl is going viral after her mom shared a video of her snuggling the most nightmarish, horrifying doll you could possibly imagine: Chucky, of Child's Play fame. She doesn't just snuggle Chucky; she sleeps with the most terrifying version of him!By SYFY - Fair useKatelyn McCormick-Nevin works in special effects makeup, so her daughter Georgia grew up being around scary things all the time. The family would particularly go all out for Halloween, McCormick-Nevin told Newsweek, but mom was always cooking up some kind of gruesome design or another year-round. Georgie grew up loving famous horror characters like Freddy Krueger and Michael Myers, to name a few.But McCormick-Nevin just had to share Georgia's current attachment with the world. So, she took to TikTok and posted a clip:"Is there any other 5 year old girl in the world that sleeps with a life size Chucky Doll?? Or is it just mine ..." she captioned the post.In the clip, Georgia can be seen snuggling not just a realistic Chucky doll, but the most horrific version of Chucky. This is Chucky toward the end of the movies when he's been battered and beaten and has finished hacking up a bunch of the protagonists. Just see his bloody, nightmarish face for yourself: @katelynnevin The other Teddy’s sitting there like ?? #fyp #foryou #daughter #babytok #trending #viralvideos #weird #obsession #Chucky #chuckydoll #dolls #stuffedanimals #abcxyz #xyzabc #momsontiktok Despite Chucky's appearance, Georgia isn't fazed. The video shows her sleeping peacefully, knowing she's safe next to the fictitious vicious murderer.The short clip was viewed nearly 800 thousand times, and commenters were endlessly tickled by Georgia's choice:"At least you know she’s protected when she’s sleeping""he makes her feel safe and she knows no monster is a match. Love it""I used to ask for a Chucky doll when I was little, would always get told I’d get one but nobody ever got one for me :(. Your daughter is living my younger dream""That kid has no fear"A few commenters had jokes:"Then you hear: Mommy Chucky says he doesn't like you""She'll scare [off] robbers ... robber be like: 'Heck nah, nope nope, we're leaving'" Chucky says goodnight.SYFY via GiphyThe five-year-old isn't the only kid to choose an unusual or even bizarre transitional object. There are no rules as to what will bring a child comfort. These objects don't even need to be soft or cuddly! Kids have been known to cling to water bottles, old cell phones, silverware, and even dead bugs. Once the emotional imprinting happens and the object begins to ease their separation anxiety, the bond is formed.As for why a kid would choose something so objectively frightening, who knows? I wonder if it's the same reason some kids are fascinated by roadkill and graveyards—it's a way of facing their fear of death or monsters or uncertainty. In Georgia's case, it sure helped that she has a mom with a flair for creepy visual effects. Commenters on the post shared that their own kids had morbid tastes, too, choosing to sleep with dolls like Pennywise the clown or the ever-creepy Annabelle.Hey, whatever helps you sleep at night!

Raising kids has changed with every generation. For Millennials raising kids, the parenting landscape has changed immensely since the experiences of their Boomer parents.In an online parenting community, member @Eclectic7112 posed the question to fellow Millennials: "Millennials with kids, what's something you have to deal with, that your parents didn't have to deal with at the same level or at all?" They followed it up with more details. "A lot has changed in the last 40 years. This includes raising kids. If there was something that you had to explain to your parents that's 'different' than it was when they raised us, what would it be? Come Here Season 6 GIF by This Is Us Giphy As the first response, @Eclectic7112 shared, "I'll go first ---> the cost of childcare." And their peers did not hold back on their responses. Millennial parents opened up about 15 major changes they've faced as parents compared to the previous generation, from technology to sports to momfluencers.1. "The expectation that work never ends and you should be reachable after work hours and weekends." - Beberuth11312. "My kids expect me to play with them ALL the time. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t allowed to talk to my dad while he was watching TV." - Dadbod646 Work From Home Kids GIF by MOODMAN Giphy 3. "Having grandparents who don't help. My grandma helped, and I spent months with my grandparents during the year." -SandiegoJack4. "Prices of stuff in general. My mom managed to raise three kids on one income at a gas station and we always had everything we needed. Did she struggle? Of course, but it was still do-able. It is beyond impossible now, even at my $20/hour paycheck." - Old-Capital50795. "Momfluencers." - Puzzleheaded-Sphinx6. "Sports are so different now. I'm 43. My kid is 9 and plays hockey. Youth sports have gotten nuts. When I was a kid, you played hockey in the winter. You played for your town's team. You had a practice each week and a game each week. Now there are spring leagues, and summer leagues. There are 'competitive' triple A programs that cost tens of thousands of dollars a year. Practices are 2+ times a week or more. I've talked to other parents who are already talking about college scholarships or going pro... it's nuts. Like you don't HAVE to sign up for all of it but once you put your kid in a sport there is SO MUCH pressure to do more. I used hockey as an example but I have friends with kids who've had the same experiences in baseball, cheerleading, gymnastics, swimming, soccer..." - seanofkelley bring it GIF by Lifetime Giphy 7. "Play dates... apparently nobody can be trusted enough to watch your kid until they're like 8 or 9." - JP968. "The fact that technology is so integrated with school. I can’t keep my kids off screens because that’s how they do 90% of their schoolwork. Their schools start providing Chromebooks in kindergarten. Half of their assignments require watching Youtube videos. They have to fill out google forms for school events. And my kids’ band director pushes out music and drill on google drive. I constantly have to find new ways to try to give them access to what they need but still limit the constant unfettered access to the internet." - UnhappyDimension6819. "How we sit in cars. We kind of just laid in the back on road trips. Now they're in boosters until their big. I understand safety obviously but big difference in Long road trips!" - Jessssiiiiccccaaaa Happy Honda GIF Giphy 10. "Social media and keeping-up-with-the-Jones. Almost every 8-year old in my daughter's class has a cell phone OR an Apple Watch. It's hard for my wife and I to explain to our daughter why we don't think it is a good idea for her yet. There was even some TikTok drama at her school that got the district's attention where some 5th graders were randomly matching up 5th graders as if they were dating." - dr_z0idberg_md11. "Monitoring their consumption of media is far and away the hardest thing. I haven't caught them watching anything TOO out of bounds, but the other day we were talking about someone who'd only go on a trip if someone else was paying for it, and my 10 y/o daughter asked 'You mean like a sugar baby?' and I just...how? Where? She likes watching Youtube shorts and tutorials and those "oddly satisfying" videos, and sometimes looks up musicians she likes, but I can't screen everything she can get her hands on. I looked at her history and nothing pops out, and maybe it was someone from school, but I just don't know." - andmewithoutmytowel12. "Summer camp. My ass was out from morning to 7 at night." - awiththejays summer camp GIF Giphy 13. "School drop off and pick up. I walked to school and home from school as an elementary school kid. Now, if your elementary school kid tries to walk to the school door without a parent, they’d be on the phone with CPS before your kid’s butt crossed the threshold. Walking to/from school is still a common practice in other countries but sadly not here anymore." - TrickyOperation611514. "Every birthday party needs a theme now." - Janeheroine15. "The fact that we can never watch tv because the kids can watch exactly what they want on demand at anytime, not having to wait for the cartoons to come on." - Woefulraddish

Some people are born with a green thumb and love the idea of having a garden full of all kinds of produce. Others of us struggle to keep basic houseplants alive and feel overwhelmed by the idea of trying to grow our own food. Anyone who's tried to grow a garden knows it's not as simple as just throwing some seeds in the dirt and waiting, and if you don't really enjoy it, gardening can feel like it isn't really worth the time or effort. However, there are some fruits and vegetables that are worth trying to grow, even with some initial cost and time investment, simply because growing them is so much cheaper than buying them. That's not automatically true of all produce, but for these six foods, if you succeed in nurturing them to harvest, you can save a bundle vs. buying them at the supermarket. (Yes, even when they're on sale.) Growing your own food can save money, especially with certain crops.Photo credit: CanvaTomatoesThere's nothing like a fresh tomato right off the vine, first of all, so that's a reason to grow your own tomatoes all by itself. But tomatoes are fairly easy to tend and cost approximately six times less to grow than to buy by some estimates. And that's even if you include some initial cost for soil, a pot, and a starter plant. If you already had a garden plot and grew from seed, it would cost you even less. - YouTube www.youtube.com Tomatoes can be frozen or canned to make a large harvest last longer than the growing season and then used in sauces and soups. Baby or cherry tomatoes can be frozen whole and roasted in the oven straight from the freezer. Zucchini and other summer squashHave you ever had a friend with a zucchini plant who tried to give you zucchini every time you turn around in the summer? Once these famously prolific plants start poppin', they don't stop. You can grow zucchini in a bed or in a pot. You can also grow it vertically, like this: - YouTube www.youtube.com Zucchini's cousin, yellow squash, is similar. Before you know it, you've got squash coming out your ears. You can give it away, but you don't have to. You can slice it up and freeze it for soups or stir fries after the harvest comes to a close. PeppersIf you buy bell peppers, you know they can be on the spendy side, especially if you buy organic ones. Growing your own can save a pretty penny, though, especially once you get a garden plot or container established for them. One gardener demonstrated how a successful crop of pepper plants in his raised bed can save approximately $320 a year, and that's including initial startup costs. Savings would be even greater in subsequent years since most of those costs aren't recurring. @geekygreenhouse How much money can you save by growing your own bell peppers? #gardening101 #gardeningtips Peppers can be frozen fresh to be used in cooked dishes later. (Are we getting the hint that a large freezer is a necessity when you have a garden?) And the grow-your-own savings goes for all kinds of peppers, not just sweet bells. Poblanos, jalapenos, serranos, chili peppers—you can have a whole array of pepper plants right at your fingertips.LettuceSalad lovers, rejoice, because growing your own leafy greens can be a big boon for your diet and your pocketbook. Romaine lettuce in particular is a fast-growing green that replenishes in just a week or two, so if you have a few of these babies planted you'll be eating fresh salads on the regular through the spring and summer (and into fall as long as the weather holds). Lettuce is a comparatively easy crop to grow, so don't be intimidated if you've never done it. - YouTube youtu.be To harvest lettuce, you can cut off the largest, most mature leaves to eat, leaving the interior of the plant alone so it will keep on growing. Another method is to slice the whole lettuce plant straight across, as long as you leave the "crown" in the center so it can keep regrowing. With lettuce, unfortunately, you don't get the ability to freeze for later, but having fresh salads for many months of the year makes up for it.CucumbersIf you enjoy the fresh, crisp crunch of a cucumber, growing your own is where it's at. While how much you can save will vary depending on where you live, where you shop, and how successful. your crop is, a cucumber patch can yield a ton of cucumbers, especially if you learn some tricks specific to cucumber growing. - YouTube www.youtube.com One of those "tricks" is to regularly harvest your cucumbers. The more you pick, the more the plant will produce—nifty, eh? Another tip is to keep them watered well. Cucumbers are largely water, so they do require a lot of water to grow. Just don't get the leaves wet—keep the watering at the base of the plant. Fresh HerbsThis might be the most cost savings you'll see in a garden, especially if you use a lot of fresh herbs (which you should—they're so good!). Have you ever bought fresh herbs in those little plastic clamshells at the store? They're usually $2 to $3 each for just a handful of leaves or sprigs, and they don't stay fresh for long. An herb garden can save you tons and provide a nonstop source of fresh flavorings. Basil, oregano, rosemary, and mint are particularly easy to grow and you can even grow them in your kitchen. - YouTube www.youtube.com But a full-fledged herb garden is even more fun. Cilantro, parsley, holy basil, chives, dill, thyme—there are so many herbs you can grow yourself. In fact, you may find yourself using more herbs if you grow them since you won't have to spend money on them at the store and they need to be harvested in order to keep growing. Aromatic, healthy, delicious, and cheap—win, win, win, win. And you can dry or freeze excess herbs to use for cooking later as well. So much winning.Growing your own food isn't always easy, but learning how to garden crops that can save you big money is definitely worth the time and energy investment to try.

There is a lot of discussion in online parent groups these days about how Gen Xers and millennials with baby boomer parents aren’t getting any support from them with their grandchildren. Sure, they will send a Christmas present or upload a photo to Facebook saying how much they love their grandkids. But even though they are retired, they just can’t make time for their grandchildren. Maybe it’s all the travelling they do, or they have a doctor’s appointment in a month, so they can’t be by.Although it’s wrong to paint an entire generation with the same brush, it’s hard to ignore that baby boomers aren’t as interested in being grandparents as their silent generation parents, who seemed to have a different commitment to family. Baby boomers are more likely to be well off than their parents were, so they have more lifestyle options that take them away from family commitments. A lot of folks aren’t shocked that baby boomers aren’t that into being grandparents; they weren’t that into being parents, so why should we think otherwise? The “Me generation” cohort started the massive upswing in divorces, was the first to embrace double-income households, and raised the least supervised generation in American history. A baby boomer water skiing.via Canva/PhotosA group of parents who have absentee baby boomer parents tried to get to the bottom of why baby boomers aren’t that into being grandparents, and they came up with six reasons why they just aren’t around. 1. They weren't around when raising their own kids"I’ve seen this question asked before, and it seems like answers boiled down to them not being particularly present parents themselves. Meaning, they often relied on their own parents to watch their kids, and this behavior carried on into their grandparenthood. They want the status of being grandparents without the heavy lifting.""They’re just extremely selfish and were literally the ones that let us be latchkey kids, so they really didn’t parent either… I don't know why I expected anything different once they turned 60."2. Self-absorptionThe reasons are pretty varied, but come down to a level of self-absorption inherent in that generation. They are, and we’re driven by their wants, needs, and glory/success. My mom was an older mom, having establishing a very driven career. She was INCREDIBLY hands-on and present, honestly a fantastic mom, and we always joked about her needing grandbabies. Well, I finally gave them to her, and she’s just… not there. She lives half the country away from me, and there was the pandemic, of course, but it’s just been very noticeable and very odd. She sends gifts, she talks about how much she wants to see them, but just doesn’t. She hasn’t seen my second since she was born 7 months ago. ... She wants to focus on her now. Coming out to see the kids, being out of her comfort zone, not being in charge, not getting anything tangible from it, doesn’t meet a want that she’s not already meeting by sending gifts and delighting over pictures. A baby boomer couple. via Canva/Photos3. They are spoiled"So I think it’s because they were an extremely spoiled generation that was emotionally stunted. So the boomers parents lived through the Great Depression. A lot of them had childhoods filled with poverty hardship, and very few childhood joys. So when they had their kids, they tried to give them a lot materially. This continued into their adulthoods when A LOT of us were pretty much raised by our grandparents. A lot of boomer were kind of absentee parents who either left us with family all the time or left us alone. Plus, their generation had very little access to mental health, and Vietnam was very traumatic (even for those who didn’t get drafted)."4. Affluence"They’re the last generation with a solid middle-class life with one breadwinner and can afford to retire. They DGAF about anything!" An older couple eating outside.via Canva/Photos5. Zero interest in paying it forward"I think the part that's really hard to grasp is how much help many boomer parents had with their kids. ...I spent entire summers with my grandparents and remember them even coming to eat lunch with me at school. My child never recognizes my MIL at family gatherings. She has to be reintroduced each time. It's bizarre and beyond sad.""When I realized how bullsh*t it was, especially since 75% of the time I was with grandparents, extended family, etc, it made me so mad. Like I was ALWAYS at someone’s house over the weekends and all summer vacation, my parents had so much help and ‘me time’, it’s ridiculous how little they help. Maybe that is the problem, they had TOO MUCH help."6. The world revolved around them"Baby boomers are named after the baby boom. As in - there are a LOT of them. When there is a big demographic, the world takes notice. Advertisers, planners, and politicians all jockey and cater. For most of their life, Boomers have had the world revolve around them a bit more than people of other generations."

The saying "it takes a village" has never been more true than for young married couple Keali'i and Riho Maruyama (@rihomaruyama). The couple married during their freshman year of college.During her senior year of college in Utah, Riho became pregnant with their daughter Hinami—news that was "a total shock." However, their fellow college friends and students rallied around them to help raise her after she was born in spring 2023. Riho documents their journey as young parents managing parenthood with higher education goals in a series of sweet videos. "POV: having a baby in college means your friends get a free, hands-on parenting crash course," she captioned the video. @rihomaruyama Their future wives can thank us later ?? #babytok #collegeparents #firsttimemom #firsttimedad #d1athletes #babiesoftiktok #parenting #wasian #fyp #teamwork #futurehusband #collegelife #iykyk #raisedby In an interview with Business Insider, Riho shared, "I felt like there was this stigma that once you have a baby, your life would be over, and you can't do all that you love anymore."The couple indeed faced many challenges as they balanced playing collegiate rugby, finishing their studies, and working part-time. "With only a year left, I was so close to finishing. Work was a necessity. We needed the money, so quitting wasn't an option," she added. So, the couple's friends stepped up. "Soon after her birth, our group chat became a day care forum to talk about who could take care of Hinami, with different people volunteering to have her when my husband and I weren't around." @rihomaruyama Anything but ordinary?? #ourvillage #family #friends #utah #collegekids #babygirl #toddlerlife #newparents #fyp #bestlife #hawaii #byu #uvu #ordinarygirl The experience not only changed the couple, but deeply impacted their friends as well. "Raising her around people who don't have children has allowed me to become a first-time mom without fear of judgment. We are all learning what it means to take care of a baby together," she shared.They credit their supportive friends for making it all possible: "I wouldn't have been able to raise Hinami without this village of friends around us. It's been a game changer. Because of them, life didn't have to stop. I could be a mom, an athlete, a student, and an employee, even with a newborn," she said.Hinami recently turned two years old, and it was a milestone that meant so much. "We were two college kids who had no idea what we were doing—just trying to figure life out while figuring out how to raise a baby. We didn’t have much… she didn’t have the cutest nursery, most of her clothes were gifted or thrifted, and our resources were limited," Riho shared in an emotional Instagram post from her birthday party. See on Instagram Their friends gathered to celebrate her birthday, and Riho shouted them out for their support over the years. "BUT looking back at the past 2 years… she’s been able to experience a special type of childhood—one full of adventure, sports games, rugby practices, study halls, concerts, and gym sessions. But the real gift? All her aunties and uncles who’ve loved her like their own. We’re beyond grateful for you guys!!"Viewers on social media could not be more supportive of the village. "What a loved baby," one wrote. Another said, "It’s beautiful. It takes a village to raise a child, and I think you’re blessed you have such a supportive one." "She’s gonna have the best memories with all the aunties and uncles. ?" one predicted (and they're probably right).

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HUGE ‼️ Secretary Brooke Rollins announces the USDA website for farmers to submit if they’ve been subject to lawfare by Democrats is NOW LIVE! “I look forward to running out every single bad actor in these federal agencies who use their position to go after private citizens”… pic.twitter.com/ugFMLHPKjh — Wall Street Apes (@WallStreetApes) May 18, […]