Magazine

A tape measure stretched across a living room rug next to coffee cups

My Entirely Accidental Education on the Yamaha Baby Grand Piano

I was literally on my hands and knees on the living room rug, wearing those gray Lululemons with the hole in the left knee that my husband Dave absolutely hates, holding a bright yellow Stanley tape measure while my third...

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Mother checking diaper for yellow watery diarrhea in babies

Yellow Watery Diarrhea in Babies: What I Learned at 3 AM

2:14 AM. Chicago winter. The sound from the bassinet wasn't a cry, it was a wet, unmistakable explosion. I turned on the dim nursery lamp and found my previously pristine infant lying in what looked like a puddle of melted...

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Mom looking at phone confused by baby doll lingerie search results

The 3 AM baby doll lingerie search trap and safe sleep reality

My thumb hovered over the phone screen while my two-month-old used my left shoulder as a mattress. It was three in the morning. I was trying to remember if I gave him his baby d drops, while simultaneously trying to...

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A frustrated mom sitting on a messy rug trying to get her toddler to clap.

What Nobody Tells You About the Clapping Milestone

I was sitting cross-legged on my living room rug, completely covered in pulverized Cheerios and dog hair, aggressively patting my hands together while chanting "yay!" like a deranged cheerleader. My oldest son, Tucker, who was about ten months old at...

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Confused pregnant mom looking at early ultrasound trying to figure out when you can tell the sex of a baby

Exactly When Can You Tell The Sex Of A Baby? The Real Timeline

Dear Sarah from exactly six months ago, You're currently sitting on the cold hexagonal tiles of the downstairs half-bath at 11:42 PM. You're wearing Dave's oversized college sweatpants with the bleach stain on the knee, and you're hyperventilating into a...

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Mother drinking coffee while staring at baby monitor in dark room trying to figure out if infant is too cold without blanket

The truth about when can baby sleep with blanket without panic

It was February, 3:14 AM, and I was wearing Dave's oversized college hoodie that smelled faintly of old garlic and desperation, intensely staring at the glowing green screen of the baby monitor while my lukewarm coffee slowly separated in its...

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A baby looking confused while holding an empty silicone cup

When Can Babies Start Drinking Water: A Nurse's Honest Guide

July in Chicago is an absolute swamp. The humidity hits four hundred percent, the air feels like soup, and everyone loses their minds. When my daughter was two months old, we had a family barbecue during one of these heat...

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Tired mom holding a coffee cup staring at a baby monitor at night

When Can a Baby Sleep With a Blanket? (The Honest Truth)

It was 2:14 AM on a Tuesday in late November. I was standing in my hallway in a pair of stained fleece sweatpants, clutching a breathtaking, hand-knit merino wool heirloom blanket to my chest like a shield, staring at the...

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Exhausted mom holding a teething baby while watching her oldest child struggle to build a block tower.

What's a Nepo Baby? Raising Hard Workers in a Privileged World

It was ninety-eight degrees in July, smelling heavily of cheap sunscreen and chlorine, when I realized I had created a monster. My four-year-old, Beau, was clinging to the edge of the community pool screaming bloody murder while the other kids...

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