Magazine

A dad pushing a baby in a warm stroller footmuff during winter.

Finding the Right Wintersack Kinderwagen (Without Boiling Your Baby)

On Tuesday, three different people gave me completely conflicting advice about taking my 11-month-old son outside in the Portland winter. My mother-in-law told me to bundle him in three layers of wool plus a down jacket, a neighbor in gym...

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Toddler wearing durable Scandinavian winter clothing walking through the snow

Why skandinavische kindermode labels survive the toddler years

I spent my first Chicago winter as a mom stuffing my son into a puffy fast-fashion snowsuit that made him look like a very angry, overstuffed marshmallow. He could barely lower his arms to his sides. When we finally made...

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Tired dad holding a baby in a wearable sleep blanket

Why I Finally Stopped Fighting Blankets for Baby Sleeping Bags

It's 2:14 AM. I'm standing over a crib, attempting to fold a standard square blanket into some kind of secure, un-kickable origami structure around my eleven-month-old son. He is currently employing the evasive maneuvers of a startled squid. Every time...

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Toddler wearing a merino wool base layer and sleeping comfortably

Why I Ditched Fleece for Baby Wolle in the Freezing Chicago Winter

It was two in the morning in mid-February. The kind of Chicago night where the wind off Lake Michigan sounds like a structural failure. I reached into the crib and unzipped my son's heavy fleece sleep sack. His chest was...

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A wooden bunny baby rassel resting on a messy living room rug

Surviving the Night with a Baby Rassel: Why Simple Toys Win

The digital clock on the microwave glared at me in aggressive, glowing red numbers: 3:14 AM. I was standing barefoot in a puddle of something unidentifiable (let's optimistically call it water) while holding a screaming two-year-old who was currently producing...

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Baby wearing a thin organic cotton sweater over a base layer in a car seat

Dear past Priya: A winter reality check about baby knits

Dear Priya from six months ago. You're currently standing in the baby aisle of a boutique in Lincoln Park, heavily pregnant, holding a chunky cable-knit wool outfit that costs more than your monthly parking spot. The wind is howling off...

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Toddler wearing a long sleeve smock covered in spaghetti sauce.

The aesthetic feeding myth and why you need a lätzli mit ärmel

Instagram sells this absolute lie that babies learning to eat is a minimalist, beige-hued journey of discovery. The video always starts with a perfectly clean child in a ribbed neutral outfit, sitting in a wooden high chair. They gently mouth...

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A crumpled bamboo baby blanket draped over the arm of a wooden nursery rocker.

The Truth About Baby Blankets (And Why Your Crib Looks So Sad)

I remember standing in my oldest son's nursery at 38 weeks pregnant, crying actual hormonal tears of pride because the crib looked like a freaking Pottery Barn catalog. I had a thick quilt neatly folded at the bottom, a perfectly...

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Marcus's baby wearing a heavily textured organic cotton sweater in Portland.

A Dad's Guide to Surviving the Chunky Knit Sweater Trend

It was a standard damp November Tuesday in Portland when my kid’s winter wardrobe triggered a minor family crisis. My mother texted me a photo of my son in a thin cotton bodysuit with the caption, "Put a thick sweater...

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