5 Parenting Blogs For When You're Feeling Overwhelmed

Informative & Entertaining Blogs About Parenting

Helpful Products for New Parents

If you're expecting your first child and want to make sure you're fully prepared, be sure to add these to your checklist:

• A baby backpack so you can take your little one on-the-go
• Some baby wash to keep away germs & bad smells
• A bottle for when they get hungry
• If you have extra time to cook, a baby food maker is a good investment
• An entertaining play mat will keep a baby stimulated
• Keep track of precious memories with a baby book
• Some cute & comfy onesies
• A monitor so you can keep track of them without being glued to the nursery

9 Chapter Books Parents and Kids Can Read Together

1. The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman & Victoria Jamieson
2. The Trouble With Chickens by Doreen Cronin & Kevin Cornell
3. Saving the Team by Alex Morgan & Paula Franco
4. A Wolf Called Wander by Rosanne Parry & Mónica Armiño
5. The Book of the Wise by J.T. Cope IV
6. No Cream Puffs by Karen Day
7. Scary School by Derek The Ghost & Scott M. Fischer
8. Mo: The Talking Dog by Michelle Booth
9. Nick and Tesla's Secret Agent Gadget Battle by Bob Pflugfelder & Steve Hockensmith

Parenting in the Modern World

In Depth

Parenting is not only difficult, it can frequently be isolating. In addition to sharing information and child rearing tips, parenting blogs and other online forums can offer a badly needed sense of community for overworked moms and dads. This list, presented in no particular order, looks at five of them.

In the #1 spot, Nesting Story was started in 2013 by Joanna Venditti. Already the mother of two children, Venditti created the blog as an appendage to her interior design company, but it quickly shifted focus to parenting when she became pregnant with twins. The site came to wider attention in 2015, after an article about the postpartum body for women with multiples went viral.

In 2016, Venditti, who is based in Ontario, Canada, shifted much of her attention to creating videos. The blog has since expanded to bring in other voices, who contribute their own stories and experiences. In addition to parenting, the site covers family more broadly, as well as home and lifestyle matters. Nesting Story has been featured in many media outlets, including People, Cosmopolitan, and Elite Daily.

Nesting Story has been featured in many media outlets, including People, Cosmopolitan, and Elite Daily.

At #2, Mamavation is a digital community offering resources for parents to reduce the amount of hormone-disrupting chemicals to which they expose their families. Founder Leah Segedie designed the site to empower women through eco-wellness. The blog and her writing are fueled by original research, including hundreds of interviews with scientists, doctors, and other professionals.

Popular posts have addressed toxic nonstick cookware, declining food safety standards, and chemicals found in shampoo and conditioner, among other issues. In addition to home and family wellness advice, the site covers environmental health news, beauty, D.I.Y. projects, and recipes, as well as other subjects. Segedie has published a book, based on her writing for the blog, called Green Enough.

#3 on the list is Gay NYC Dad. The site is run by Mitchell A. Chaitin, a sixty-year-old gay man who adopted a son with his partner of more than twenty-seven years. Winner of the 2017 Iris Award for Dad Blog of the Year, the publication is highly acclaimed. It has been given kudos in outlets like Healthline, The Baby Spot, and Time Out New York Kids.

The site is run by Mitchell A. Chaitin, a sixty-year-old gay man who adopted a son with his partner of more than twenty-seven years.

Many posts address issues around adoption, such as questions about birth parents and the adoption process. There are also explorations of more general parenting questions, like teaching etiquette, the effect of children on a marriage, and school transit. Much of the site is also devoted to promotional content, including contests, travel and product reviews, and celebrity news.

Coming in at #4, Boston Mamas publishes lifestyle content that is, as the name suggests, relevant to Beantown mothers. The site was founded by Christine Koh, who abandoned her career in brain science to become an entrepreneur. In addition to editing the online publication, she contributes commentary to a variety of print and web outlets. With Asha Dornfest, she authored a book called Minimalist Parenting.

In its parenting coverage, Boston Mamas provides tips on D.I.Y. projects, local kid-friendly entertainment opportunities, chores, college funds, and life skills, among many other subjects. The site also produces a podcast, hosted by Koh and Dornfest, called Edit Your Life that offers advice on a number of topics, the majority directly related to childrearing.

In its parenting coverage, Boston Mamas provides tips on D.I.Y. projects, local kid-friendly entertainment opportunities, chores, college funds, and life skills, among many other subjects.

Closing out the list at #5, it's Second City Mom. Created by a Chicago-based mother named Leyla, the blog is designed to inspire other families to explore their home cities and the world at large. It began as an outlet to share photos of her three boys, two of whom are twins, and has since grown into a broader resource on parenting and all things Windy City.

Leyla's writing on motherhood is rooted in personal experiences and reflections. She has covered topics like postpartum style, secondary infertility and miscarriage, making friends as a new mother, and "mom guilt." She also publishes sponsored content from relevant organizations, such as the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau and Huggies.