Magazine

Stressed mom holding coffee while treating a toddler's scraped knee.

Dear past me: Surviving the great scrap baby incident of October

Dear Sarah from six months ago, It’s Tuesday, right? You’re sitting on the hot driveway asphalt wearing that oversized gray NYU hoodie with the mysterious yellow stain on the left cuff that might be mustard but is honestly probably breastmilk...

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A very tired mom drinking cold coffee while her baby pulls a shiny red ornament off a messy Christmas tree.

That Santa Baby Kim Kardashian Video vs Our Real Holiday Chaos

I was standing dead in the center of my mother-in-law's aggressively pine-scented living room in December 2017, wearing a pair of black maternity leggings that still had a crusty white streak of spit-up down the left thigh, clutching a mug...

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Priya chasing her runaway baby across a busy Chicago park

Note to self on surviving the toddler sprint phase without crying

Dear Priya from six months ago. You're currently standing in the produce aisle at the Mariano's on Western Avenue. Your fourteen-month-old just dropped your hand. He is making a break for the automatic doors. You thought this was a phase...

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Mom holding a sick baby with a medicine syringe and oral rehydration drink

What I Wish I Knew About Using Pedialyte for Baby Stomach Bugs

It was 2:14 in the morning and I was standing in the middle of the nursery covered in what used to be breastmilk and cherry-flavored fluid, wondering if I needed to call an ambulance or just burn the rug. My...

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Confused dad looking at a smartphone while holding an 11-month-old baby.

The Accidental Chaos of Searching for Joker Baby Stuff

At 2:14 AM on a Tuesday, I tried to optimize our Halloween strategy by typing a highly unspecific query into my phone with my left thumb, while my right arm acted as a human structural support for an 11-month-old who...

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A dad looking stressed at his phone while his baby daughter spins in the living room

The "Baby Girl Let Me See You Twirl Lyrics" Viral Audio Trap

My thumb was hovering over the bright blue "Post" button when Sarah’s hand shot across the kitchen island and physically tackled my phone into the fruit bowl. "What are you doing?" my wife asked, looking at me like I had...

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Tired dad looking at a laptop screen in a dark room while holding a sleeping baby

The 2 AM Google Panic: What a "Baby Drill" Actually Means Today

It was exactly 2:14 AM when the daycare app pushed a notification to my phone. I was already awake because D (that's how my son is logged in my sleep-tracker spreadsheet, just "Baby D" to save keystrokes at three in...

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Priya testing tub water temperature with a newborn in a grey mesh seat

Surviving The Slippery Newborn Phase With A Mesh Seat

My knees were cracking against the cold hexagonal tile of our vintage Chicago apartment bathroom while I gripped a screaming, six-pound human who felt exactly like a wet football covered in olive oil. The tap was running. Steam was fogging...

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Mom holding a baby wearing noise-canceling earmuffs at a crowded stadium.

Surviving a Taylor Swift Stadium Concert With a Baby in Tow

Dear Jess from six months ago, You're currently sitting on the cold linoleum floor of the laundry room at 2 AM, hiding from your snoring husband, staring at three wildly expensive stadium tickets on your phone. You're hyperventilating because your...

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