Category Archive

Families

Our sister site Offbeat Mama launched in 2009, became Offbeat Families in 2012, and was merged into Offbeat Home & Life in 2015. This archive contains all the posts ever published on those sites! We believe that while children change your life forever, being around kids doesn’t necessitate abandoning your identity. We believe in supporting and inspiring parents and caregivers who are moving beyond mainstream visions of parenting. We welcome anyone who’s interested in families, whether you’re pre-parental, in the process of becoming a parent, or choosing to live childfree.

The most perfect baby bootie ever made

Doesn’t it seem like ALL baby booties should be easy to get on and secure once they’re on? It just makes sense. These are pretty much the only shoes Tavi will wear from now until he’s 2 years old. And they’re on sale, 2-for-1 now!

Miracle baby proves there’s no such thing as a 100% diagnosis

From the age twelve years I have been told I would never carry a child to term. There were days of depression, fears of never having my own children, feeling like an oddity that I didn’t menstruate like my friends and all around not feeling like a “real” woman. Eventually I came to the conclusion […]

Bonnaroomama’s baby photos

bonnaroomama explains: “After my son was born, complications from my c-section left me hospitalized for about three weeks. My family worked very hard to keep my son near me and support my breastfeeding efforts.” It looks like despite those rough first three weeks, Bonnaroomama and her family have gone on to enjoy a rich life […]

How to DIY a purty baby bow out of fabric scraps

I didn’t really plan this project. I just thought “Hmm, what can I do with these extra scraps of fabric?” and ended up with this headband idea! Please keep in mind that I measured nothing and am just giving my best guesstimate on the sizes of things. If anyone else tries this and finds better […]

White or brown, girl or boy. It doesn’t matter.

It makes no difference to me whether it’s a boy or a girl, whether he has brown skin like me or she has light skin like my husband. I was born in Mexico City and my husband is from California, he is half Mexican and half Guatemalan with British ancestry (we think, sometimes he seems more Scottish to me) that makes him look white.

Adorable rockabilly family

I mean seriously, does it get much cuter than this family, photographed by Philadelphia’s Allebach Photography?

Breastfeeding was crazy hard, but weaning is sad too

My son Conan is pretty much weaned now, at 13 months. It’s been about a week since he last nursed, and he’s perfectly happy without it. I have mixed emotions about it — on the one hand, it is SO liberating, but on the other hand it’s the end of a really close part of our relationship, a connection we will never have again. But time moves on, and my little guy is rapidly metamorphosing from a baby into a toddler.

Thinking back on my early experience of breastfeeding, the thing that really jumps out is that I never, NEVER believed that we would make it through a whole year…

Breastfeeding your toddler never looked more beautiful

Mama C-Ta says of this beautiful portrait of her and her son Julian: “Nursing my 2 year old — I want to capture it before it ends which can happen without a moments notice.”