I am in need of deodorant so I really appreciate the recommendation and the chance to smell like a rich lady in my pits.
I haven’t read the full article on leaving your baby in the hotel room but I will say, I’m PRO doing it. My husband and I took our oldest to Hawaii when he was 7 months old and going to sleep at 6p. We went to the beach to watch the sunset and were within reach the whole time. Once we had more than 1 kid, this was no longer even an option so you just make do with what you have!
Thanks for that great slate article! I feel like it really gave a well rounded perspective. I’m majorly pro baby monitor on vacation! We’ve done it with the hotel restaurant loads of times and it’s made everyone’s trip actually restorative and lovely. The one time our daughter woke up screaming my husband was back in the room in under 60 seconds.
I liked the point about the fearmongering being a coping mechanism, like if I can find a reason to blame those parents then I can guarantee it won’t happen to my kid. And I found it fascinating that older baby books had a section on “baby’s first accident”!
I wish we didn’t have such anxious parenting pervading our world these days - it’s already hard enough without the external anxieties.
Isn't that note about the "baby's first accident" so fascinating?! Thanks so much for sharing, Sydney. I also thought that I'd be totally fine w/ the baby monitor approach...but then heard enough people put it down that I started doubting myself...so this is helpful/validating!
We moved to a new city and the first day in our new apartment the neighbors down the hall brought us welcome cookies. It was such a nice gesture. And we definitely thought we’d have building friends but they moved a few months later. 😄
So when we moved into our house and saw people on our street moving in, we’d drop off homemade granola with a note welcoming them to the neighborhoods and it’s sparked so many friendly relationships.
When it comes to neighbors, I always remind myself that even if we live totally different lives/schedules/etc. we all live where we live for a reason and those shared values mean something! And it’s worth cultivating. 🥰
I can't remember where you live, but I recently learned about a new support network for Jewish women in the Cambridge/Somerville area experiencing fertility challenges. They're planning to offer pregnancy loss care packages, anonymous meal trains, and connection with others who've been through it. I don't know who's organizing it, but thought it sounded like a beautiful and much needed resource!
I'm right outside of Cambridge (in Watertown) but hadn't heard about this yet - thank you so much for sharing! This is amazing!
I've thought a lot about how it can be so much harder to show up for people experiencing fertility challenges than it is to pop by with a meal for new parents... especially given how long and drawn out the process can be! This is a beautiful idea. x
My very New England answer is to make it a competition to be the friendliest neighbor 🩷 I WILL have the best relationships with my community goddamnit.
So those loose social connections are pretty important to well being, and I would say as important to me feeling at home in a city as making good friends. Knowing your regular barista by name. Frequenting the same local businesses in person (butcher, shoe repair, tailor, farmer’s market vendor, pediatrician’s waiting room, specialty grocer, panini place, playground, library). We actually don’t like our across the hall neighbors very much so we all just give each other our space, but my neighborhood includes a ton of acquaintances from mom group who are willing to pay any favor forward without guilt, and we all keep an eye out for each others’ kids. Today at the playground someone left the gate open (a big no-no) and my 17mo eloped and two moms and a nanny I vaguely knew helped me chase her down while another watched my son.
I make a point to remember names if I meet anyone and I prompt my kids/husband on peoples’ names. Saying Bonjour and Au Revoir (or ciao where appropriate) is extremely important etiquette for my kids, and I’d say one time in ten it turns into a bonafide conversation on the street or at the grocery store. Making casual small talk is a skill I’m trying to teach them!
Going to the same local businesses over and over again is such a great way to build community!! And I love that you're teaching your kids small talk; such an important (but often overlooked!) skill.
I love this too! It's actually one of the reasons I really like bringing my son to the grocery store (trader joe's especially). I love that he's learning to chat w/ people -- even if it's just telling them he found the stuffed frog so he can pick out a lollipop!
1) Knowing neighbors feels not only nice but also important! I feel above average in knowing my block but I keep wanting to host a casual block coffee hang out or happy hour, but know my husband will be a reluctant co host so I’ve put it off.
2) Never did the baby monitor thing but last summer did leave my kids (7 and 9) “home alone” for the first time in a very secure Paris Airbnb bc we reeeeeeally wanted to go shopping without dealing with them hahhaha.
3) Really want to try these jeans but dread the whole ship try on returns thing, especially doing that to a small business.
That Paris shopping outing is inspiring - love that! Okay... and on the jeans... I had the exact same concern, but I will say, Aja and I both found they fit pretty true-to-size?
Befriending neighbors has completely changed our daily life in small, rewarding ways. We’re actually close friends with a couple who lives across the street (we went to their wedding, they come by for backyard drinks often), and a retired neighbor a street over has walked our dog nearly every day since our baby was born. I met some neighborhood moms by desperately asking one when I was 2 weeks PP that walked by with a stroller if it gets easier, and we immediately exchanged numbers. I love going to the park, or walking through the neighborhood and almost always having someone to say hi to.
I love when we leave town we have people right here to watch our house and grab packages. We do favors for them when they’re gone, too. I think any of us past apartment dwellers are nervous about the “repercussions” (hello making MORE noise after I asked you to quiet down), but it’s different when everyone owns. We’re all invested in these places, so we want to invest in the people around us. Highly recommend putting in the effort to get to know your neighbors!
I loved the ideas on how to get to know your neighbors! We're in a similar situation, we've lived on this street for three years now and wave and smile at our neighbors but I'd love to get to know them a little better. I'm determined this year!
So very much pro baby monitor on vacation and for life in general to be outside/with adults nearby! We live in a city townhouse and are close with our neighbors who we often have dinner with while our daughter is sleeping next door. Overall, our general rule of thumb is if the distance/time it takes to get to our daughter is equal or less than what it would be if we lived in a suburban McMansion we feel okay. It may seem arbitrary but it makes sense in my head! 😂
I am in need of deodorant so I really appreciate the recommendation and the chance to smell like a rich lady in my pits.
I haven’t read the full article on leaving your baby in the hotel room but I will say, I’m PRO doing it. My husband and I took our oldest to Hawaii when he was 7 months old and going to sleep at 6p. We went to the beach to watch the sunset and were within reach the whole time. Once we had more than 1 kid, this was no longer even an option so you just make do with what you have!
Looool at a "smell like a rich lady in my pits," will definitely hear that every time I apply this deodorant. LMK what you think!
Me too - I love it!
😂😂😂
That Hawaii trip sounds dreamyyy. Thank you for telling me this!
100% pro baby monitor on vacation! Let us live for one hot second!!
Okaaayyy thank you!
lol was not intended as aggressive as it sounds 😂
Hahaha oops, my response was a very very positive “okaaay!” intended as “amen!”💛
Thanks for that great slate article! I feel like it really gave a well rounded perspective. I’m majorly pro baby monitor on vacation! We’ve done it with the hotel restaurant loads of times and it’s made everyone’s trip actually restorative and lovely. The one time our daughter woke up screaming my husband was back in the room in under 60 seconds.
I liked the point about the fearmongering being a coping mechanism, like if I can find a reason to blame those parents then I can guarantee it won’t happen to my kid. And I found it fascinating that older baby books had a section on “baby’s first accident”!
I wish we didn’t have such anxious parenting pervading our world these days - it’s already hard enough without the external anxieties.
Isn't that note about the "baby's first accident" so fascinating?! Thanks so much for sharing, Sydney. I also thought that I'd be totally fine w/ the baby monitor approach...but then heard enough people put it down that I started doubting myself...so this is helpful/validating!
We moved to a new city and the first day in our new apartment the neighbors down the hall brought us welcome cookies. It was such a nice gesture. And we definitely thought we’d have building friends but they moved a few months later. 😄
So when we moved into our house and saw people on our street moving in, we’d drop off homemade granola with a note welcoming them to the neighborhoods and it’s sparked so many friendly relationships.
When it comes to neighbors, I always remind myself that even if we live totally different lives/schedules/etc. we all live where we live for a reason and those shared values mean something! And it’s worth cultivating. 🥰
I can't remember where you live, but I recently learned about a new support network for Jewish women in the Cambridge/Somerville area experiencing fertility challenges. They're planning to offer pregnancy loss care packages, anonymous meal trains, and connection with others who've been through it. I don't know who's organizing it, but thought it sounded like a beautiful and much needed resource!
They're on Instagram @heartstrings.camberville
I'm right outside of Cambridge (in Watertown) but hadn't heard about this yet - thank you so much for sharing! This is amazing!
I've thought a lot about how it can be so much harder to show up for people experiencing fertility challenges than it is to pop by with a meal for new parents... especially given how long and drawn out the process can be! This is a beautiful idea. x
I learned how to be an aggressively friendly neighbor from my Midwestern husband and never looked back!
Tell us some of the tricks!! I'm a friendly southerner...but sometimes I think I've lived in new england too long...
My very New England answer is to make it a competition to be the friendliest neighbor 🩷 I WILL have the best relationships with my community goddamnit.
My fiance is an East-Coaster born and raised... I think I see the problem.
lol!
So those loose social connections are pretty important to well being, and I would say as important to me feeling at home in a city as making good friends. Knowing your regular barista by name. Frequenting the same local businesses in person (butcher, shoe repair, tailor, farmer’s market vendor, pediatrician’s waiting room, specialty grocer, panini place, playground, library). We actually don’t like our across the hall neighbors very much so we all just give each other our space, but my neighborhood includes a ton of acquaintances from mom group who are willing to pay any favor forward without guilt, and we all keep an eye out for each others’ kids. Today at the playground someone left the gate open (a big no-no) and my 17mo eloped and two moms and a nanny I vaguely knew helped me chase her down while another watched my son.
I make a point to remember names if I meet anyone and I prompt my kids/husband on peoples’ names. Saying Bonjour and Au Revoir (or ciao where appropriate) is extremely important etiquette for my kids, and I’d say one time in ten it turns into a bonafide conversation on the street or at the grocery store. Making casual small talk is a skill I’m trying to teach them!
Going to the same local businesses over and over again is such a great way to build community!! And I love that you're teaching your kids small talk; such an important (but often overlooked!) skill.
I love this too! It's actually one of the reasons I really like bringing my son to the grocery store (trader joe's especially). I love that he's learning to chat w/ people -- even if it's just telling them he found the stuffed frog so he can pick out a lollipop!
1) Knowing neighbors feels not only nice but also important! I feel above average in knowing my block but I keep wanting to host a casual block coffee hang out or happy hour, but know my husband will be a reluctant co host so I’ve put it off.
2) Never did the baby monitor thing but last summer did leave my kids (7 and 9) “home alone” for the first time in a very secure Paris Airbnb bc we reeeeeeally wanted to go shopping without dealing with them hahhaha.
3) Really want to try these jeans but dread the whole ship try on returns thing, especially doing that to a small business.
That Paris shopping outing is inspiring - love that! Okay... and on the jeans... I had the exact same concern, but I will say, Aja and I both found they fit pretty true-to-size?
Check out how Patty Smith started Stoop Coffee to get to know people in her neighborhood! https://supernuclear.substack.com/p/stoop-coffee-how-a-simple-idea-transformed?
Yes, I love it! We had this in the newsletter a few weeks ago and I was trying to track it down again. Thank you!!
Humble Brand deodorant in Palo Santo and Frankincense for those that are aluminum free!
TY for the tip!!
Thank you for sharing yours, I wish I was petite this week ;)
Befriending neighbors has completely changed our daily life in small, rewarding ways. We’re actually close friends with a couple who lives across the street (we went to their wedding, they come by for backyard drinks often), and a retired neighbor a street over has walked our dog nearly every day since our baby was born. I met some neighborhood moms by desperately asking one when I was 2 weeks PP that walked by with a stroller if it gets easier, and we immediately exchanged numbers. I love going to the park, or walking through the neighborhood and almost always having someone to say hi to.
I love when we leave town we have people right here to watch our house and grab packages. We do favors for them when they’re gone, too. I think any of us past apartment dwellers are nervous about the “repercussions” (hello making MORE noise after I asked you to quiet down), but it’s different when everyone owns. We’re all invested in these places, so we want to invest in the people around us. Highly recommend putting in the effort to get to know your neighbors!
This is my dream... thank you for the inspiration!
I loved the ideas on how to get to know your neighbors! We're in a similar situation, we've lived on this street for three years now and wave and smile at our neighbors but I'd love to get to know them a little better. I'm determined this year!
We can tackle it together 😉
So very much pro baby monitor on vacation and for life in general to be outside/with adults nearby! We live in a city townhouse and are close with our neighbors who we often have dinner with while our daughter is sleeping next door. Overall, our general rule of thumb is if the distance/time it takes to get to our daughter is equal or less than what it would be if we lived in a suburban McMansion we feel okay. It may seem arbitrary but it makes sense in my head! 😂
That rule makes lots of sense to me!