Magazine

Pediatric nurse mother applying mineral sun protection to her infant at the beach.

The brutal truth about sunscreen for babies and summer safety

I'm sitting on the sand at Oak Street Beach with a three-month-old who looks like a poorly powdered donut. The wind is whipping off Lake Michigan. I'm holding a tube of thick white zinc oxide paste, trying to coat my...

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Stressed mom holding an iced coffee looking at a baby car seat in a messy car.

The Big Lie About Finding the Best Car Seat (And Surviving the Drive)

It was 98 degrees in a BuyBuyBaby parking lotβ€”RIP to that store, honestly, I spent half my pregnancy wandering those aisles in a dazeβ€”and I was sweating through my gray maternity leggings. You know, the ones from Target that always...

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A sleep-deprived mom staring at a complex car seat manual on the living room floor.

Dear Past Priya: The Truth About Infant Car Seats

You're currently sitting on the garage floor in your maternity leggings. There's a half-eaten granola bar on the bumper of the Honda, the manual for the convertible seat is open to page forty-two, and you're quietly crying because the little...

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Sarah holding a lukewarm iced coffee looking distressed in a brightly lit toy store aisle.

Dear Me: Put Down the Flashing Plastic Crap in That Toy Store

Dear Sarah from six months ago, It's 2:14 PM on a Tuesday. You're currently standing in Aisle 14 of that massive, soul-crushing infant toy store off Interstate 80. You're wearing those black lululemon leggings with the mysterious yogurt stain on...

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A messy pile of organic baby sleepwear and sleep sacks on a wooden dresser

The 3 AM Pajama Panic (And How I Finally Figured Out Baby Sleepwear)

It was 2:14 AM and the red numbers on my alarm clock were basically mocking me while I stood in the middle of our drafty farmhouse nursery trying not to have a complete meltdown. My oldest son was four weeks...

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Folded organic cotton infant bodysuits and untreated wooden teething rings on a bed

The reality of newborn wardrobes and the toy box triage

I was thirty-eight weeks pregnant sitting on the floor of the nursery folding a pair of microscopic stiff denim jeans. I actually ironed them. I think about that night a lot. I think about how profoundly stupid I was to...

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A tired dad scrolling his phone in the dark while a baby sleeps in a crib

What an elon musk baby mama taught me about dad anxiety

It was 3:14 AM on a Tuesday, and my 11-month-old son was doing this weird, rhythmic dolphin-screech breathing in my arms. Every time I tried to transfer him to the crib, his internal gyroscope detected the change in altitude and...

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Toddler buckled into a car seat looking out a rolled-up car window

The Hudson Meek Baby Driver Tragedy and Car Safety Wake-Up Calls

I was doing about 55 down FM 1431 with my three kids in the back of my Honda Odyssey, singing along to some Disney garbage to keep the peace, when I heard the unmistakable, heavy thunk of a car door...

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Jess looking exhausted holding a baby in a carrier while staring at her smartphone

What the Blueface Baby Tabloid Drama Actually Taught Me About Safety

My mom called me last week in an absolute panic saying I needed to delete my apps because parents were chucking their infants at walls, my neighbor Sarah cornered me at the mailbox to tell me belly button hernias mean...

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