Magazine

Tired dad staring at a very cute baby in an organic cotton sleep sack

The evolutionary trap of extremely cute babies and the first year

It's 3:14 AM, and I'm staring at a glowing night-vision screen on my phone. My 11-month-old is doing that weird frog-leg stretch in his crib, completely dead to the world, and I'm just watching his chest rise and fall to...

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A wooden toy block and a soft baby blanket on a messy living room floor.

Spielzeug ab 3 Jahren: The Brutally Honest Guide for Parents

There I was, barefoot in my own living room at 6:30 in the morning, stepping squarely on a tiny plastic firefighter hat that came with some massive, overpriced fire truck my oldest got for his third birthday. I’m just gonna...

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Wooden infant activity arch over an organic mat in a Chicago apartment.

The ugly truth about that neon plastic baby play gym you just bought

I was sitting cross-legged on my living room rug at three in the morning, holding a screwdriver and weeping quietly over a piece of molded plastic that required four D batteries. The box promised it would stimulate my newborn's cognitive...

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A confused dad looking at a mountain of plastic baby presents in a London living room

How to actually choose gifts for infants (without losing your mind)

Before my daughters were born, my mother-in-law insisted we urgently needed an engraved silver rattle because "it's tradition and builds character." The very next day, a hipster barista in Dalston earnestly told me that tiny babies only require the atmospheric...

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Dad holding a baby girl wrapped in a subtle terracotta rainbow bamboo blanket next to a pram

Surviving the pink tulle avalanche: Practical presents for girls

I was staring at a mountain of aggressively pink tulle that had somehow swallowed our entire living room. It was day four with twin girls, the house smelled vaguely of sour milk and sheer desperation, and the delivery driver had...

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A dad looking exhausted in a brightly lit toy store aisle.

A Letter to Myself: What I Wish I Knew Before Entering the Toy Store

Dear Tom from exactly six months ago, You're currently standing in the middle of aisle four of a massive, warehouse-style toy store just off the M25, sweating profusely into your supposedly breathable cotton t-shirt while the twins double-team a meltdown...

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A tired mother sorting through practical organic baby gifts for boys on a nursery floor.

Surviving loud baby gifts for boys and what parents actually want

It was 2:14 in the morning on a Tuesday. I was standing in the dark hallway of our Chicago apartment, holding a baby who had finally stopped crying after forty-five minutes of unexplained misery. The silence was thick and fragile....

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A wooden rainbow play gym on a natural rug surrounded by simple baby toys

What I Got Totally Wrong About Buying Educational Toys Toys

It was 2:14 in the morning, and the glowing plastic octopus under my bare heel was loudly singing the Spanish alphabet. I was holding a screaming newborn, trying not to wake my husband, while this neon monstrosity cheerfully flashed strobe...

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A mom holding a coffee looking stressed in a desert backyard setting.

The Biggest Baby Rattlesnake Myth Ruining Your Desert Vacation

I was standing in my mother-in-law's Scottsdale backyard at 7 AM, wearing these completely impractical wide-leg linen pants that I thought made me look "resort casual" but actually just made me look like I was in a cult. I was...

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