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Parenting · by Élodie Favre · 2026-09-21

Notes from a very normal late summer with Parenting after 45 tries

Part of me wanted the fancy version with all the tools. The better version was boring: one notebook, one reminder, and a willingness to be clumsy with the tiny repair for a while.

> Tiny progress is still progress.

That line sounds cheesy, but it got me through the part where kids stopped feeling new

431 sparks · 112 comments

Comments

Cozy Otter · 96 likes

I am saving this for the next time I overthink late. I am curious whether school still feels good next month

Ethan Brooks · 53 likes

The kindness in this post is lovely. My friend tried it in Melbourne and had the opposite result

Jasmine Cruz · 43 likes

This is adorable and oddly motivating

Aisha Jacobs · 29 likes

Interesting. I would like to see how it changes after 5 months

Tiny Noodle · 26 likes

That last line is excellent. I am curious whether advice still feels good next month

Paolo Garcia · 7 likes

I would love a follow-up example

Felix Weber · 26 likes

Beautifully put. I needed that reminder today. This is more useful on a tired commute then on a perfect day. Small progress still counts

Liam Wilson · 40 likes

Thanks for making it less intimidating

Piotr Zieliński · 12 likes

Kind of wild how often progress is the whole issue

Liam Eriksson · 4 likes

I am curious what changed your mind

Alma Nilsson · 0 likes

This is the gentle version of my rant

Luciana Vargas · 23 likes

I do not have a strong take, but the summer detail is useful

Camille Dubois · 18 likes

Kind of wild how often take is the whole issue

Valeria López · 8 likes

anecdote beats theory here

Amina Okafor · 18 likes

Interesting. I would like to see how it changes after 7 months. This would have saved me alot of trial and error

Yasmine El Amrani · 65 likes

That is the part people skip

Valeria López · 21 likes

That is the part people skip

Angel Reyes · 16 likes

I am stealing that phrase

Hamza Malik · 13 likes

anecdote beats theory here

Élodie Favre · 4 likes

I laughed, but you are not wrong

Felix Weber · 10 likes

That made the concept click

Noah Miller · 15 likes

Respectfully, I see it the other way

Élodie Favre · 2 likes

I needed the reminder to start smaller

Élodie Favre · 9 likes

I would pin this if I could

Élodie Favre · 8 likes

You just saved me a bad purchase

Amina Okafor · 6 likes

This is the kind of disagreement I like

Amina Okafor · 5 likes

Thanks that actually helped

Ananya Rao · 9 likes

@dev_amina You just saved me a bad purchase

Jiho Lee · 1 likes

This is the kind of disagreement I like

Amina Okafor · 1 likes

This comment has main-character footnote energy

Lucas Dubois · 2 likes

anecdote beats theory here

Amina Okafor · 2 likes

That made the concept click

Nicolás Díaz · 5 likes

Exactly; the hidden cost is energy

Lina Keller · 11 likes

Exactly; the hidden cost is energy

Alma Nilsson · 5 likes

That sounds great until you add children/pets/deadlines

Liam Eriksson · 1 likes

Small caveat: context changes the answer a lot

Lena Müller · 4 likes

You just saved me a bad purchase

Tiny Lantern · 2 likes

This is the kind of disagreement I like

Amina Okafor · 8 likes

I had the same reaction to kind

Jack Taylor · 7 likes

kind of wild how often like is teh whole issue

Leila Karimi · 2 likes

@dev_amina That sounds great untill you add children/pets/deadlines

Elsa Andersson · 2 likes

Small caveat: context changes the answer a lot

Giulia Rossi · 2 likes

noted, and thank you

Ananya Rao · 1 likes

Appreciate the nuance

Ananya Rao · 1 likes

good clarification — I read it differently at first

Amina Okafor · 1 likes

That is a much better way to say it

Chloe Davis · 1 likes

could be regional too

Marco Conti · 18 likes

What would you change if you started over? I care less about the perfect answer and more about repeatability

Alma Nilsson · 2 likes

anecdote beats theory here

Jiho Lee · 1 likes

short answer: yes. Long answer: also yes

Liam Eriksson · 17 likes

Helpful and not preachy, which is rare

Quiet Fern · 17 likes

The conclusion is too broad, but the example is interesting. Honestly, the simplest version wins for me

Wanjiku Mwangi · 16 likes

This is one of those ideas that looks great online and falls apart on Tuesday. I noticed the same thing in Buenos Aires

Jisoo Park · 15 likes

did anyone else read this and immediately make a tiny checklist? The social part surprised me too

Midnight Fern · 1 likes

my wallet felt that

Rohan Mehta · 15 likes

This sounds good, but in practice it can be a bad idea without more context. I learned that one the expensive way

Chloe Davis · 13 likes

What would you change if you started over? I would test it for 4 days before deciding

Ethan Brooks · 12 likes

That is a good boundary

Beatriz Sousa · 1 likes

my wallet felt that

Ananya Rao · 10 likes

I am saving this for the next time I overthink very

Ananya Rao · 10 likes

I think the bad version of this advice causes a lot of frustration. I learned that one the expensive way

Jan Nowak · 9 likes

Honestly, great taste. I learned that one the expensive way

Élodie Favre · 39 likes

I was going to disagree, but your second sentence got me

Ananya Rao · 9 likes

this is genuinely helpful, thanks for writing it out. For me it came down to the conversation

Lena Müller · 9 likes

Big fan of this approach. I care less about the perfect answer and more about repeatability

Chinedu Adeyemi · 9 likes

I would not call it wrong, just incomplete. I learned that one the expensive way

Mateo Cruz · 8 likes

this depends heavily on budget, time and personality

Paolo Garcia · 39 likes

I am curious what changed your mind

João Pereira · 8 likes

this feels like advice from a patient friend. I keep a note about advice for exactly this reason

Aoi Ito · 3 likes

Now I want a spreadsheet

Noah Miller · 8 likes

The kindness in this post is lovely. This pairs weirdly well with falafel

Jonas Schneider · 8 likes

This is one of those ideas that looks great online and falls apart on Tuesday. That is where the boring checklist helps

Emir Kaya · 7 likes

You explained the tradeoff really clearly. The low-effort version is probably the keeper. The follow-through matters more than the perfect plan

Nicolás Díaz · 7 likes

Really good advice, and it feels doable. That is the kind of detail beginners miss. This is kinder advice than most of the internet manages

Oussama Alaoui · 6 likes

Love the tiny experiment energy. The the corner shop detail changes the whole answer

Grace Parker · 6 likes

This is useful for some cases, but terrible advice if the stakes are high. The my desk detail changes the whole answer

Cedar Sparrow · 6 likes

Love teh tiny experiment energy. I learned that one teh expensive way

Aarav Sharma · 6 likes

Maybe, but the tradeoff seems bigger then the post suggests. It reminds me of a very specific conversation near a tiny balcony

Liam Eriksson · 5 likes

Glad you shared it; small wins count. I used to overcomplicate this constantly

Aarav Sharma · 70 likes

I would love a follow-up example

Avery Johnson · 5 likes

Anecdotally, this tracks with what I have seen. The gentle constraint is probably teh real story

Bianca Santos · 5 likes

The normal angle is what sold me. I care less about the perfect answer and more about repeatability

Rafael Almeida · 4 likes

I am cheering for this update

Ethan Brooks · 4 likes

I wish more posts had this much context. The awkward constraint is probably the real story

Mango Sparrow · 10 likes

my wallet felt that

Sara Ahmed · 9 likes

I think both things can be true

Valeria López · 1 likes

I like this more then the top-level advice

Maja Wiśniewska · 4 likes

I appreciate the honest middle stage, not just the polished ending

Nima Ahmadi · 4 likes

helpful and not preachy, which is rare. The low-effort version is probably the keeper. Small progress still counts

Luciana Vargas · 4 likes

The framing feels off to me. Not terrible, just not convincing. This would have saved me alot of trial and error

Pieter Botha · 4 likes

Really good advice, and it feels doable. I care less about the perfect answer and more about repeatability

Jasmine Cruz · 3 likes

This made me smile more than expected

Solar Lantern · 16 likes

@ph_mango Helpful correction

Maya Williams · 28 likes

@midnight_solar99 I would pin this if I could

Mateo Cruz · 2 likes

This comment has main-character footnote energy

Nicolás Díaz · 3 likes

Anecdotally, this tracks with what I have seen. This would have saved me a lot of trial and error

Wanjiku Mwangi · 3 likes

Excellent timing; I was just thinking about normal. I noticed the same thing in Cape Town

Imogen Clarke · 3 likes

Did anyone else read this and immediately make a tiny checklist? The lunch break version is even more interesting

Imogen Clarke · 3 likes

This depends heavily on budget, time and personality. I used to overcomplicate this constantly

Curious River · 3 likes

This feels like advice from a patient friend. This is where I would ask one more question before choosing. This is kinder advice then most of the internet manages