Magazine

A very tired British dad trying to swaddle a wriggling newborn baby.

The Real Truth About How to Make a Baby Survive the First Year

I was standing in the kitchen at 4:13 a.m., wearing a dressing gown that smelled distinctly of sour milk, frantically pumping my daughter's tiny legs like she was participating in the Tour de France. My wife was hunched over the...

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Tom holding a wooden push cart while two toddlers run in opposite directions

Surviving the Baby Walker With Wheels (A Twin Dad's Story)

I was precisely halfway through pouring a vaguely warm coffee down my throat when Florence broke the indoor land speed record. We have a narrow Victorian hallway in our London terrace, which is entirely unsuitable for anything wider than a...

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A tired dad holding two wet towels next to a plastic baby tub

Why the relaxing baby tub routine is actually a massive lie

I'm currently staring at a puddle of lukewarm water slowly seeping into the grout of my bathroom floor, while somewhere in the distance, a rogue rubber duck is wedged firmly behind the loo. My knees are making a noise that...

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A modern baby swing next to a pile of folded organic baby blankets.

Dear Past Priya: Finding the Best Baby Swing for Your Sanity

Dear Past Priya, It's 3:14 AM on a Tuesday in late November. You have dried spit-up on the left shoulder of your nursing tank. You're standing in the dark living room holding a screaming potato who refuses to close his...

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A tired mom holding a very chunky newborn baby in a rustic nursery

Surviving Big Baby Davis: Raising A Literal Ten-Pound Newborn

"Are you absolutely sure there's only one in there?" I was staring at the popcorn ceiling of my OB's office in rural Texas, slick with that freezing blue ultrasound gel, while the poor tech just kept measuring and re-measuring my...

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Sarah holding a giant iced coffee looking terrified in the middle of a crowded baby convention center.

Surviving a Massive Baby Show Without Losing Your Damn Mind

I'm standing in aisle 400 of the convention center, seven months pregnant with Maya, sweating through a maternity shirt that was absolutely not designed for indoor arena temperatures, while my husband Dave is holding three different neon tote bags filled...

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A mother looking tired next to a wooden baby play enclosure

The Honest Truth About Needing a Baby Play Pen

My mother-in-law told me a baby play pen is a cage that stunts gross motor skills and ruins a child's natural curiosity. My neighbor, on the other hand, told me she leaves her daughter in one for four hours a...

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A wooden baby gym sitting in a modern, slightly messy living room

The Great "Baby G" Trap: Gear, Gyms, and Surviving the Plastic

It was precisely 3:14 AM when my left heel made contact with something that loudly announced, in a synthesized, aggressively cheerful accent, "I'm a happy purple turtle!" This was the exact moment I realized my living room had been entirely...

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Mom loading an open box baby stroller into her car trunk in Texas

Why I Quit Sketchy Parking Lot Meetups For Rebel Baby Gear

I was standing behind a deserted strip mall somewhere between Waco and Austin, sweating entirely through my favorite maternity shirt, about to hand a complete stranger a wad of cash for a high chair that smelled faintly of sour milk...

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