Even though parents might prefer to give kids gifts that aren’t toys, children love getting new toys. But a lot of playthings are only great for entertaining kids, not so much for teaching them about the world around them. Fortunately, the latest technology and research has led to booming demand for educational toys appropriate for

“Sesame Street” premiered 50 years ago this year, and from the start, its mission has been to make quality early education accessible for every child. The show’s idea of education isn’t limited to just letters and numbers: It means empathy, kindness, resilience and the other social and emotional skills kids need to thrive. To celebrate

The eighth annual IAPBP Image Competition celebrates winners in the categories of labor, delivery, postpartum, birth details and Fresh 48. “Birth photography encompasses the tears of joy, the wonder of bringing a new life into the world and celebrates family,” the contest press release notes. “The photographers who specialize in the field use their art

Baby name trends come and go, but many choices remain popular for decades and even centuries. Luckily, if you’re interested in examining historical patterns, the Social Security Administration offers lists of the top baby names of every decade going back to the 1880s. Looking back to the 1890s, there are many timeless names on the

Pregnancy cravings are a myth, or so I thought until I found myself 13 weeks pregnant and ravenously scarfing down nachos for the second time that day. I went from regularly eating salads to demanding tortilla chips piled high with beans, queso dip, salsa and extra sour cream (emphasis on extra). It was literally all

Parenting in age of iPads and “Fortnite” comes with a special challenge known as screen time. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends placing “consistent limits” on kids’ consumption of digital media, but exhausted parents have trouble making this work at times. With that in mind, we’ve rounded up 45 funny and too-real tweets from parents

“When we encounter people who have experienced extraordinary success … we can’t help but wonder: How did they do it? Was it just natural talent? What transformed their natural-born abilities into extraordinary adult success?” These are the questions journalist Tatsha Robertson began asking herself more than a decade ago as a national correspondent with The

Birth photographers capture moments of deep intensity and emotion for parents. To celebrate this work, an international community of birth photographers called Birth Becomes Her holds an annual contest honoring labor, delivery and postpartum images. The organization invited birth photographers around the world to submit images taken in 2018 for the categories of hospital, out

Baby name trends come and go, but some monikers have real staying power ― like 100 years’ worth. Knowing that the Social Security Administration’s database tracks baby name popularity going back to the 1880s, we decided to take a look at parents’ top picks from a century ago. It turns out that many popular names

Artist Bonnie Kimmerly has put a fun twist on the usual parenting comics by creating hilarious charts and diagrams about what it’s really like to be a mom. The mother of two liked drawing when she was a kid, but didn’t pick the hobby back up until she welcomed her first child. Sharing her parenting-focused

Helping kids regulate their own media use is an ongoing process, and along the way you’re likely to experience some struggles when it’s time to turn off the TV or any other digital device. When it’s time to transition from TV watching to another activity, using prerecorded shows comes in handy. On traditional broadcast TV,

Growing up, my mother loved to tell stories of her father, a family doctor who had died while she was in high school. I heard about things like his dramatic wartime escapades, his subsequent three-pack-a-day habit, and his practice of exchanging medical services for the art of dubious quality that decorated my childhood home. So

Looking at the most recent SSA data from 2017, we identified the most popular baby names for boys and girls in the South. While most of these names align with the national popularity list, there are points of divergence. Obviously, what constitutes the South is a topic of much debate. So for simplicity’s sake, we

For nearly a decade, federal law in the United States has given breastfeeding women certain protections at work, like time throughout the day to pump and a space that’s not a bathroom in which to do it. Though that may not sound like much, the so-called “Break Time for Nursing Mothers” provision added to the

Parenting author Adrian Kulp knows all about post-baby sex. In all four of his wife’s pregnancies, their kids were nursed for 26 months. “That means that we’ve either had a co-sleeping crib next to the bed or had many nights in which the baby split the difference of our king-sized bed,” Kulp, the author of

Playdates with other children can help kids develop crucial social skills, but for parents and caregivers, they can also be a source of stress and worry, especially if the playdate location or host is unfamiliar. Regardless of whether the child is old enough to go to friends’ homes by themselves or their caretaker prefers to

This article is the fifth installment of “One Year Later: Larry Nassar And The Women Who Made Us Listen,” a seven-part series that commemorates the seven days women stood in a Lansing, Michigan, courtroom last year and faced their abuser, former USA Gymnastics and Michigan State trainer Larry Nassar. Read more: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3,

Mindy Kaling is familiar with the radical changes that come with parenthood. Since giving birth to her daughter, Katherine, in December 2017, Kaling has been learning the ropes of parenting. The actress, writer and producer spoke to HuffPost about her adventures in motherhood while promoting her new partnership with Protein One. One lesson she has

Parents have all sorts of criteria when it comes to choosing a baby name. They may want to honor a particular family member, make a nod to their cultural heritage or pick a first name that goes well with a specific middle name. It’s also very common to want to stick to a certain first

Shonda Rhimes is no stranger to the joys and challenges of parenthood. The award-winning writer and producer has three daughters ― Harper, Emerson and Beckett. Over the years, she’s opened up about motherhood in interviews, personal essays and her best-selling book, Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun and Be

Talking to your child about masturbation may feel a little awkward, embarrassing or even deeply uncomfortable. But these are necessary conversations for parents who want to raise kids with a healthy understanding of sex and their bodies. “Masturbation is a really important part of human sexuality. It informs our individual conceptions of autonomy, pleasure, identity

Take the West Coast, for example. Looking at the most recent SSA data from 2017, we identified the most popular baby names for boys and girls born in California, Oregon, Washington and Alaska. (We know some count other states as part of the West Coast region, but we’ve limited this list to the four states

Stephanie Walton’s breastfeeding challenges began as soon as her first baby was born. She needed an emergency C-section and wasn’t able to try feeding him for hours. When she did, her son clamped down hard on her nipples, which soon cracked and bled. For the first few days, she struggled to breastfeed him at all.

Although it’s hard to believe that celebrities are just like us, the cliché can ring true in a few areas of life ― like breastfeeding and childbirth. Over the years, many famous moms have opened up about their experiences giving birth to their babies. From the thought processes behind their birth plans to the indescribable

Popular toys come and go, but one that remains an enduring classic is, of course, the stuffed animal. Much like the children of days past, kids in 2018 still love to cuddle, play with and generally lug around soft teddy bears or monkeys or whatever their animal of choice might be. In a way, the

They also look beyond U.S. borders to see what names moms and dads in other countries are choosing for their newborns. That includes the land of romance: France. Sweet French baby names include Coralie (a name that means “coral”) to Océane (which means ― you guessed it ― “ocean”) for girls, and Timothée (à la

“Ask a Dad” is a regular parenting column by author, speaker and dad Doyin Richards in which he tackles some of the toughest questions today’s parents face. Have a topic you’d like him to take on? Email askdoyin@huffpost.com. LightFieldStudios via Getty Images Adults love to joke that “the boys are gonna come knocking soon; better

Several wonderful children’s books were released this year, but which titles really deserve a spot on your kid’s bookshelf? There’s no better expert to turn to for book advice than a librarian, which is why we reached out to several across the country to get their takes on the best children’s books of the year.

Jasmine, 32, is looking forward to Christmas, a rare opportunity to spend an entire day with her twin 8-year-old boys. But she’s also anxious ― anxious that she’ll disappoint them because she can’t afford to buy them the few gifts they asked for this holiday season. “Some days I feel like I’m failing them,” Jasmine,

Parenting is a tough gig as it is, but it seems to get even harder when winter break comes along and throws any semblance of routine out the window. Standout quotes include “No, you are not bored ― because Santa just brought you a sleigh-load of gifts!” and “School resumes on January 7th. That’s like