Magazine

3-month-oldbaby developmentcommunicationhealthinfantmillennial mom
A tired mother holding a babbling baby in a nursery setting

Decoding Baby Vocals 3 Months In: A Nurse's Guide to Cooing

I was standing in the dark at three in the morning, holding a screaming potato of a human, trying to follow advice from a very expensive parenting app. The app told me that early language development requires measured, calm adult...

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babycommunicationearly developmentinfant developmentmillennial mom
Mom lying on floor making funny faces at her baby under a wooden play gym

Why The Way We Do Baby Talk Actually Matters

Standing in the H-E-B checkout line back in 2019, I was balancing my oldest son on my hip while digging for my wallet, doing that incredibly high-pitched, brain-melting nonsense voice we all fall into. "Does my widdle smoosh-smoosh want his...

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8-month-oldbaby developmentcommunicationearly developmentmillennialsmotherhood
Exhausted mom drinking coffee while teaching the milk gesture using sign language for babies in a messy kitchen.

My Utterly Chaotic, Milk-Stained Guide To Sign Language For Babies

It’s 5:43 AM on a Tuesday in November. I'm wearing my husband Dave’s stained gray sweatpants and a maternity tank top that I’m pretty sure has been inside-out since Sunday. Maya is exactly eight months and two days old, and...

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baby shower giftscommunicationfatherhoodgiftingmillennialnew born
A tired dad staring at a blank greeting card next to a sleeping baby

Debugging the Perfect New Baby Wish (Without Sounding Unhinged)

When my friend Dave's wife had a baby last month, I asked three different people what I should write in the card, which was my first mistake. My project manager told me to keep it strictly professional and focus on...

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babycommunicatione babyearly developmentmillennial
Mother talking to her infant on an organic play mat

Talk To Me Baby: Why We Need To Stop Sounding Like Tax Attorneys

I was at a coffee shop in Lincoln Park yesterday when I heard a mother next to me explaining the concept of municipal bonds to her three-month-old. She was using a flat, monotone, deeply serious voice. The infant was staring...

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baby milestonescommunicationdevelopmental milestonesearly developmentmotherhood
A toddler holding a wooden toy looking like they are trying to speak to their mother.

When Should Babies Start Talking? A Real Mom's Messy Timeline

I was sitting cross-legged on my faded floral living room rug, aggressively thrusting a plastic cow at my nine-month-old son, Wyatt, and loudly mouthing the word "MOOO" like a deranged person. He just stared at me, blinking slowly, probably wondering...

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babiesbaby developmentcommunicationdevelopmental milestonesinfant healthmotherhood
A mother sitting on a rug looking skeptical while her baby chews on a wooden block

Panic vs reality: exactly when do babies start to talk anyway

I was sitting on the beige rug in my living room, aggressively holding a wooden block in front of my ten-month-old's face, enunciating the word block like I was teaching a hostage how to defuse a bomb. He just stared...

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baby milestonescommunicationearly developmentmotherhoodparenting anxiety
Worried mom holding coffee while toddler plays on the floor

When Do Babies Start Talking? My Meltdown And What I Learned

I was sitting on the sticky laminate floor of the community center at 10:45 AM, wearing black leggings that definitely had dried yogurt crusted on the left knee, while a 14-month-old named Brayden pointed at a plastic truck and clearly...

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behaviorcommunicationeducational toysparenting tipstoddler development
Toddler reading a jungle animal book on a cotton playmat

Why a baby jaguar book fixed our worst speech therapy meltdowns

We were sitting on the living room rug surrounded by flashcards when he just stopped trying. My toddler had his mouth open, a tiny little gasp of air caught in his throat, his face turning a blotchy red while he...

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