Magazine

Two babies lying on a high contrast floor area surrounded by wooden toys

Why The Wrong Infant Play Mat Will Ruin Your Tuesday Afternoon

It was 2:14 PM on a particularly bleak, rain-lashed London Tuesday, and a plastic, primary-coloured toucan was aggressively singing a distorted, tinny version of β€˜La Cucaracha’ while swinging precisely three inches above my daughter’s nose. I was sitting on the...

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A wooden bunny baby rassel resting on a messy living room rug

Surviving the Night with a Baby Rassel: Why Simple Toys Win

The digital clock on the microwave glared at me in aggressive, glowing red numbers: 3:14 AM. I was standing barefoot in a puddle of something unidentifiable (let's optimistically call it water) while holding a screaming two-year-old who was currently producing...

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A tired dad holding a wooden baby rattle while looking at his laptop

Why I Was Completely Wrong About Rasseln FΓΌr Babys As A New Dad

It was Tuesday at roughly 4:12 PM, and my living room looked like a warehouse explosion at a brightly colored plastics factory. I was sitting on the rug holding a neon green plastic hippo. I shook it. It emitted a...

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A messy living room floor with a round waterproof baby mat and wooden toys.

How I Finally Found a Play Activity Mat That Did Not Drive Me Crazy

When I was pregnant with my oldest, Tucker, I swear everybody had a loud opinion on where exactly the baby was supposed to exist when I wasn't holding him. My grandmother told me to just throw a handmade quilt on...

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A baby holding a large soft silicone twenty-sided die while sitting on a playmat

Safe Baby Dice: Why We Banned Regular D&D Sets At Home

Tuesday night, 8:43 PM. I'm wearing yoga pants permanently stained with breastmilk and a three-day-old messy bun that's defying gravity. My husband, Dave, is mid-sentence explaining how his half-elf rogue is going to pick the lock on the dungeon door,...

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A chewed up wooden sorting block next to a half full coffee mug

My chaotic journey to the perfect Holz Steckspiel toy

It was 3:14 in the morning. I was wearing a pair of yoga pants that had a mysterious, crusty yogurt stain on the left thigh and an oversized t-shirt that belonged to my husband, Dave. I was carrying my then-11-month-old...

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A dad holding pureed homegrown organic lettuce next to a baby in a highchair

Botanical Interests Organic Lettuce Mesclun Gourmet Baby Seed

I was standing in aisle four of the Pearl District Whole Foods, aggressively cross-referencing a bag of pre-washed spinach with the CDC’s active E. coli outbreak database on my phone, while my eleven-month-old actively tried to lick the shopping cart...

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A baby covered in edible yogurt paint sitting on a high chair tray.

Real Paint Adventures vs That Homestuck MSPFA Internet Trap

I was up to my elbows in plain Greek yogurt and beet juice, desperately trying to whisk together a Pinterest-perfect non-toxic finger paint, when my oldestβ€”let's just call him Baby M for this story, though he's five now and a...

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