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babybaby toysbehavioral developmentearly developmentinfant healthinfant safety
Toddler playing with wooden sensory toys on an organic cotton mat

Dear past Priya: The brutal reality of the circus baby phase

Listen. It's Tuesday night, you're sitting in the dark of our cramped Chicago living room, and the baby finally went down after forty-five minutes of heavy rocking. You're holding a lukewarm mug of chai, staring at the harsh glow of...

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Exhausted dad staring at laptop searching for a transparent boss baby png

The Boss Baby PNG Invite Crisis and Other Parenting Dad Bugs

2:14 AM. The cursor blinks at me mockingly. I'm staring at a layer mask in my photo editing software that's systematically failing its primary objective. The biggest myth they sell you in the hospital discharge paperwork isn't about infant sleep...

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A wooden teething ring and soft baby blocks scattered on a very messy living room rug next to a cold cup of coffee

Finding The Best Baby Toys That Won't Make You Totally Insane

It was 3:14 AM on a Tuesday in November. I know this because my brain permanently recorded the exact time of my near-death experience. I was wearing my husband Dave’s horribly stained gray sweatpants from a 2012 Turkey Trot, holding...

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Mother looking skeptically into a plastic storage bin full of dusty 90s plush stuffed animals

The Hard Truth About Beanie Babies Worth: A Letter to Past Me

Dear Jess of six months ago. Right now, you're standing in the gravel driveway in your pajama pants, squinting in the Texas sun, watching your mom's Honda CR-V idle while she wrestles three massive, dust-caked Rubbermaid tubs out of the...

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A vintage 90s plush toy sitting on a wooden shelf next to modern baby nursery decor.

The Strange Logic of Beanie Babies Birthdays & Safe Sleep

It was exactly 3:14 AM on a Tuesday, and I was standing in the pale, unforgiving light of the open refrigerator, holding a slightly dusty, bright pink plush platypus inside a gallon-sized Ziploc bag. My 11-month-old was finally asleep after...

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11-month-oldauditory safetybaby toysbabyproofingeducational toysmillennial dad
A dad looking exhausted while his baby plays with a plastic electronic toy

My Honest Review of the Fisher-Price Laugh and Learn Baby Toys

"Buy the talking dog, it taught your cousin to count," my mom texted me on a Tuesday morning while I was trying to compile code. "Don't let that plastic nightmare into your house, it'll literally nuke his dopamine receptors," my...

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baby mbaby toysearly developmenteducational toysmillennial mom
Small robot toy sitting on a rug next to wooden building blocks

The Late-Night Reality of Setting Up That Baby Miko Robot

It's 11 PM on a Tuesday. I'm sitting cross-legged on my living room rug, holding a microscopic reset pin, violently whispering at a plastic screen that keeps telling me it's thinking. My toddler is asleep in the next room, completely...

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baby toysearly developmenteducational toysfine motor skillsmillennial mom
Wooden infant piano sitting on a living room rug surrounded by toys

Dear Past Me: What I Wish I Knew About Buying a Baby Piano

Dear Jess from six months ago, I know exactly where you're right now. You're hiding in the walk-in pantry, sitting on a sack of jasmine rice, pretending to look for the good coffee while actually just trying to escape the...

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A confused dad looking at his phone while an 11-month-old chews on a wooden toy

Decoding the True Meaning of Baby (And Other Strange Slang)

I just had to explain the concept of nepotism over FaceTime while my 11-month-old attempted to eat a rogue USB-C cable. My mother-in-law had seen some hashtag on Twitter and wanted to know what the kids were talking about, which...

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