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Fatherly is a publication for modern fathers looking to make the best of a good situation. Dr. Sam Hanke fell asleep on the couch with his 4-week-old son Charlie and woke up, hours later, to find his child dead. It was April of 2010 and the pediatric cardiologist and his wife Maura, a kindergarten teacher, were both overjoyed to have a healthy kid, who had come into the world without drama and, occasional fussiness aside, been a normal baby boy....

“Make way, here comes another nanny!” a Midwest tourist announced while herding a group of Midwestern teenagers off to the side on a crowded New York City street, making a pathway for me and my child’s stroller. And there it was: The moment I had been dreading since I married my “white-looking” husband (more on that later) and started a family together. It’s the moment all moms of color with “mixed” babies dread....

If there’s one universal parenting truth, it’s that you’re going to be talking about baby poop a lot. (Cue questions: How often should a newborn poop? How can you help baby poop? What does green baby poop mean? What exactly should normal baby poop look like?) And while it may not be a typical topic of conversation for the dinner table, it’s something you’ll find yourself thinking about all the time....

Love her or hate her, one thing is true: Whatever Kim Kardashian West does, it makes headlines. That was certainly the case when she revealed she planned on eating her placenta after the 2015 birth of her son, Saint, to help ward off postpartum depression. But eating the placenta after childbirth—clinically known as placentophagy—isn’t just a fringe Hollywood trend. With the purported benefits, from warding off the baby blues to boosting a woman’s breast milk production, it’s become a practice more women are looking into as they prepare for birth and delivery....

Sunscreen may not always be the first thing on your mind, but you might want to keep track of how much your partner is slathering on. A new study from the National Institutes of Health links benzophenone chemicals that filter out UV rays to a 30 percent reduction in male reproductive ability. So personal care products that protect skin and hair from sun damage may actually be extending the amount of time it takes to get pregnant....

And the Winner Is: Ubbi Diaper Pail Babies are adorable, innocent creatures—but their shi*t definitely does stink (especially as they grow older!). Given that most kids aren’t potty trained until they’re 2 or 3 years old, you’re likely committed to diapering for the long haul, and that’s a lot of stench to deal with. Which is where a diaper pail comes in handy. Ubbi rises above the rest thanks to its odor-blocking abilities and compatibility with any old garbage bag, saving your nostrils as well as your budget....

Your baby is entering an exciting new phase of development and is ready to eat solid foods. Many parents want to make homemade baby food, but struggle with where to start. Here we give you the top “Do’s and Don’ts” of introducing solids and making homemade baby food. Do Follow your baby’s cues on when to start feeding solids. The American Academy of Pediatric’s (AAP) and the World Health Organization (WHO) both recommend exclusive breastfeeding for six months, after which complementary foods are started, along with continued breastfeeding for as long as mom and baby desire....

Myth #1: Your water will definitely break in dramatic way. “People think their water is going to break like the characters they see on TV or in the movies,” says Sheri Puffer, MD, ob-gyn at Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital. Truth is, most of the time, a mom-to-be’s water won’t even break on its own, and it’s actually a doctor who breaks the water with a specialized instrument once you’re already in the hospital....

It’s easy to get swept into a buying frenzy when you find out you’re pregnant with multiples. The confirmation of pregnancy brings a unique and overwhelming sense of excitement mixed with panic for any woman. Add another baby to the mix and the emotions just intensify! While your first instinct might be to just swipe everything off the shelves, don’t give in. You can scour the internet and find contraptions you never knew existed as you picture yourself with a baby at each boob or as a pack mule wearing one baby one your front and another on your back — but remember, a lot of these contraptions are unnecessary....

By the time you’re ready to think about starting a family, you may already have spent 5, 10, even 20 years of your life trying to make sure you didn’t get pregnant. So when it’s time to turn all that effort around, it’s natural to wonder what effect all those years of birth control have had on your body, and how long it will take you to become fertile again. The good news: “With a few notable exceptions, immediately after you stop using birth control, your fertility will go right back to what it was destined to be,” says Paul Blumenthal, M....

When it comes to baby-related old wives’ tales, we don’t know about you, but we’ve sure heard some real doozies. Read on to get to the bottom of a few common mistruths. 1Image: ShutterstockMyth #1: You need to orgasm in order to conceiveHey, orgasming is always a plus, but when it comes to conceiving, it’s not actually a must. What it does aid in doing is contracting the uterus — which definitely helps sperm travel toward the fallopian tubes faster....

Warm weather and sunshine means lots of fun firsts for your little one. Your child might not be ready for Wiffle ball and Capture the Flag just yet, but there are plenty of great outdoor activities for babies to choose from. And with parents across the country still concerned about COVID-19, turning to the Great Outdoors for some entertainment and fresh air is a simple and safe activity. Here are a few fun ways to make the most of a warm day....

Twice a year the clocks change for Daylight Savings Time, and twice a year it can wreak havoc on babies’ sleep schedules. Having a fussy infant on your hands is never any fun, but thankfully there are a few tricks to helping your little one adjust to the time change. Here’s how to get baby ready to spring forward or fall back—and what to do if the switch gets baby’s sleep off-track....

Anyone who has seen toddlers sort Magna-Tiles by shape and color knows that little kids like compartmentalization. They’re naturally inclined to identify and categorize the things they see. Of course, while squares are squares and circles and circles (easy-peasy!), families aren’t nearly as simple to define and put in a bucket. The first group that a child comes into contact with is their own family—and this familial structure sets the foundation for what they think is the norm....

Most doctors say you shouldn’t worry about infertility until after an entire year of trying to conceive with no success. But if you’ve become impatient after nine months or so and you’re worried something’s wrong, don’t hesitate to ask your OB to refer you to a reproductive endocrinologist (RE) for some tests. If there’s a physiological reason you’re not conceiving, you can start exploring your options, and if the tests come back normal, you can relax and keep at it....

The Bump presents #MomBoss, a series dedicated to showing off all-star moms. We catch up with mompreneurs behind products we love, influencers who get real about motherhood and SAHMs who can multitask in their sleep. Life is full of the unpredictable, and the great unknowns double once you have kids. It’s hard to stay positive and forward-thinking when you have curveballs constantly being thrown at you, but as a parent you have an ever-present audience in your kids....

Social media can be a great way to stay connected and inspired, especially during pregnancy and the early days of mom life. On the flip side, it can also fuel some problematic thinking about health and body image. This is a time in your life when you can deepen your connection with your body and your baby—you’re performing a miracle after all. In order to make this connection though, it’s important to listen to your body and ensure your self love and appreciation practices are in a solid place....

There’s nothing like a baby cough to completely stump parents. Is it something serious, or no big deal? Trying to figure out when to take action and when to let things ride can be incredibly stressful, especially if baby has been coughing at night. While a baby cough can be uncomfortable for baby and nerve-wracking for you, “it’s extremely common for kids to cough,” says Benjamin Nelson, MD, director of pediatric bronchoscopy at MassGeneral Hospital for Children in Boston....

It’s an exciting/scary/awesome/stressful/(fill in the blank) time when baby’s on the way. And after baby comes along a lot more is going to change—including your relationship. While you can’t really imagine what it’s like to be a parent until you actually become one, you and your partner can do a few things before baby gets here (and once he or she arrives) to make the shift as seamless as possible. Here, been-there, done-that moms and dads share their best tips for keeping your relationship with each other—as well as with baby—in tip-top shape....

As baby nears the end of their first year, you’re probably eager to see them take their very first steps. But before they can walk, babies need to learn to stand. For most infants, developing the necessary muscle strength and confidence to remain stable on their feet involves a lot of practice—and a few stumbles. So when do babies stand? For most, it’ll happen before they hit the one-year mark. They’ll probably pull up to stand with support before being able to balance upright independently....