The Fourth of July is one of my family’s favorite holidays. It’s an all-day event full of festivities, fireworks, and our favorite people. But don’t get it twisted, it can be the ultimate endurance test for kids and that all has to do with their sensory threshold.
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It’s the last week of school!!! We’ve been making plans all season to make it an enjoyable and fun summer, but we’re also plotting ways to reduce that summer slide. So here’s a collection of books, apps, and activities to keep kiddos (ages 3-10) sharp for the next school year.
Continue readingFor this play date review, we’re tweaking it yet again. We’re sharing our first ever girl date!
Once Mary and I settled our spring break plans, we got tickets for the brood to go to Atlanta’s first-ever Panda Fest, an Asian food festival with dates in multiple cities across the country. Panda Fest vendors are mostly local and they specialize in Asian street food and snacks.
Attending were BOTH sets of twin girls, so no boys this round. My husband Troy also came for the food and to be an extra set of hands. H&K are two years younger than A&Z, so now we’re factoring in age gap for this play date.
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It’s incredible how much can change in just five years! When Patti and I first stepped into parenthood, the landscape of baby essentials looked entirely different. The must-have items evolved. Mamaroos became less of a must-have while baby slings took center stage. Even the reigning travel system brands, Britax and Baby Jogger, have made way for newer favorites like Doona and UPPAbaby. Also, an RIP moment for our beloved (and recalled) Fisher Price Rock and Play sleeper.
Yet, despite the shifting trends, one truth remains: babies need stuff. But what exactly do they need, and how much of it is truly essential? The answer is often subjective and changes if you get to your second or third pregnancy. That’s why for this post, we’re doing a refresh—what baby items proved indispensable, what turned out to be unnecessary, and the unexpected game-changers that saved the day.
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Babies cry. Period.
For those first few months, newborns sound the alarm every time they feel slightly off kilter. As a new parent, it can be rough trying to decipher what your baby needs. Regardless of how many parenting books you may read, decoding cries doesn’t necessarily come with textbook instructions
Crying is the first and most important form of communication infants have with their parents and caregivers. Their entire survival depends on it. The first two months of life, their cries intensify, peaking between 6 to 8 weeks before significantly decreasing by 3 to 4 months of age. This decline aligns with key developmental milestones, such the emergence of self-soothing behaviors (sucking fingers to turning head away when overstimulated), vocalizations (cooing and babbling), and motor skills (reaching, grasping, pushing up onto elbows and forearms during tummy time).
Although it can be tough to handle your baby’s cries, especially in the moment, there’s always a rhyme and reason behind them. Every cry is a way of communicating a need.
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Child(ish) Advice 