Magazine

Priya reading a digital thermometer in a dark nursery

What my pediatrician actually said about a normal baby temperature

Dear Priya from six months ago. You're currently standing in the dark next to the crib. You're holding a glowing temporal thermometer like it's a loaded weapon. Your nursing degree is mounted on the wall somewhere downstairs, but it's currently...

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Tired pregnant mom sorting through a pile of gender neutral baby clothes

What Actually Decides If You're Having a Boy or a Girl

I was six weeks pregnant with my oldest, aggressively dry-heaving into a paper cup in the passenger seat of my husband's truck, when my grandma leaned forward from the backseat and said, "If you want a girl, you need to...

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A wobbly toddler standing barefoot on a living room rug holding a wooden coffee table

What Age Do Babies Walk (And Why The Timeline Is A Total Lie)

My coffee was lukewarm, but the tension in the room was boiling. We were sitting on Maya's living room floor, and her kid had just taken three shaky, Frankenstein-style steps across the rug. He was nine months old. The other...

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A barefoot baby pulling to stand next to a pair of flexible first walker shoes.

The Real Deal on Finding Walking Shoes for Babies

I was standing in the middle of the Target shoe aisle with my oldest—who's now four and still an absolute terror, bless his heart—when I realized I had three completely different voices echoing in my head about what to put...

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Tired mom researching vitamin k babies on her laptop late at night

Dear Past Me: The 2 AM Google Spiral About Vitamin K Babies

Dear Past Me from exactly six months ago. You're sitting at the kitchen island, and it's 2:14 AM. You're wearing Dave’s tragic gray college hoodie, the one with the mysterious bleach stain that he refuses to throw away, and you're...

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Exhausted mother comforting her fussy baby after a doctor appointment

Surviving the Vaccine Schedule for Babies Without Losing Your Mind

I was sitting in exam room four with my oldest, Beau, sweating entirely through my favorite beige Target tee while trying to pretend I had everything under control. He was four months old, completely naked except for a drool-soaked diaper,...

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Toddler sitting on a round vegan leather play mat in a quiet nursery

What My Pediatrician Said About Playing Lil Baby Around My Toddler

My brother-in-law swore that playing heavy trap beats would make my son sleep through absolutely anything. My mother-in-law heard ten seconds of a track and claimed I was ruining his spiritual aura. My doctor just blinked at me tiredly and...

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Tired mom staring at a six-month-old baby who just spit pureed peas on the wall

Exactly When Can Babies Eat Food According To A Tired ER Nurse

My mother-in-law was standing in my Chicago kitchen holding a cardboard box of rice cereal like it was some sort of ancient religious artifact. She kept telling me my four-month-old needed a heavy scoop of it mixed into his nighttime...

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My kitchen floor covered in mashed sweet potatoes and a silicone plate.

When Can Babies Eat Solid Food Without Ruining My Life

It was 3:14 AM on a Tuesday, and I was sitting in the dark nursery wearing a nursing tank that smelled strongly of sour milk and desperation. Leo, my oldest, was four months old and currently latched onto me like...

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