Magazine

A cute cheetah cub playing in the grass looking very confused

What a Baby Cheetah Taught Me About My Own Crawling Toddler

We were standing in front of the big cat enclosure at the Bronx Zoo last Tuesday. I was wearing my aggressively stained Lululemon leggings, holding a lukewarm cup of drip coffee that tasted faintly of pennies, while Leoβ€”who's four going...

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Stressed mom looking at a sticky bottle of pink baby benadryl liquid

The 2 AM Baby Benadryl Panic and What I Actually Did Instead

It's 2:14 AM on a Tuesday in February. The wind off Lake Michigan is rattling the windowpanes of our Chicago apartment, and my toddler is sitting on the bathroom counter looking like a lightly boiled lobster. We had tried a...

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A frustrated dad looking at a white floral crown in a nursery

System Error: Why We Banned the Baby's Breath Flower at Home

My mother-in-law texted me four massive paragraphs about how Gypsophila represents everlasting love and is a hard requirement for the nursery design if we wanted to respect tradition. Three hours later, our Portland neighborβ€”a guy who brews his own seasonal...

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A realistic modern baby nursery with neutral colors and a bare crib next to a half-empty coffee cup

Chasing the Pottery Barn Baby Dream Without Losing Your Mind

When I was seven months pregnant with Maya, I was a walking target for unsolicited opinions. I remember my mother-in-law cornering me at my own shower, wearing this aggressively floral blouse, and insisting I needed to buy a massive, heavily...

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Exhausted mom holding a screaming baby in a dark kitchen at 3 AM

Living With The Boss Baby: Sleep, Siblings, And Your Sanity

There's a massive, glittering lie floating around pregnancy message boards that newborns sleep eighteen hours a day, and I just need to laugh hysterically at that for a second. Picture me at 3:17 AM last Tuesday, standing on the cold...

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Toddler girl wearing a comfortable organic cotton babydoll dress playing in the grass

Why Babydoll Dresses Are Secretly a Parent's Best Friend

It’s ninety-five degrees in East Texas, and my mother-in-law is trying to shoehorn my oldest child into a stiff, tulle monstrosity that looks like a wedding cake exploded. My kid is screaming like a feral cat in a church pew....

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A spotted fawn resting quietly in tall green grass.

The Backyard Fawn: A Guide To Not Kidnapping Wildlife

Listen, the first time you find a tiny, spotted woodland creature curled up next to your hostas, your brain short-circuits. You immediately assume the worst. You look at this fragile thing breathing shallowly in your mulch, and your mind goes...

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Tired mom holding a sleeping baby in a bamboo wrap doing a crossword puzzle

Dear Exhausted Jess: The Baby Beluga Magic You Need Right Now

Dear Jess from six months ago. You're sobbing into a sour-smelling burp cloth right now. It's 3:14 AM. The baby is doing that rigid-plank scream that makes your own spine ache, the toddler is asleep in the hallway for some...

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A pregnant woman looking slightly exhausted while shopping for a maternity party dress

The Chaotic Truth About Finding Brilliant Baby Shower Dresses

Dear Tom of six months prior to the twins' arrival. You're currently standing outside the changing rooms at a high-street maternity shop, holding a lukewarm flat white, waiting for Sarah to emerge. You've been here for forty-five minutes. You think...

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