Conz Preti

Before the pandemic made remote work a thing, I was already working from home. It's allowed me to be present in my kids' life while being the breadwinner.

At first I thought the man in his 70s next to me was the parent of a band member. I was wrong, he was there to enjoy some punk rock just like me.

I have the Bogg Bag in two sizes and it's perfect to carry all the things my kids need when we are out. The colors are fun, and my husband is into it too.

We live in Maine and we did more in a week in California than we do in a month at home. I can't wait to go back and explore more.

You can access Universal Studios Hollywood an hour before the park opens, just to experience Super Nintendo World. It was great to be there early.

I went to Boston to see Green Day play, 27 years after the first time. As soon as I arrived, I regretted leaving my 6-year-old son at home.

Becoming a parent is a whirlwind of emotions. It also means spending a lot of money on items for the new baby.While babies need very little — a safe place to sleep, diapers, and to be fed around the clock — parents with disposable income often turn to high-end products that offer extra features and stylish designs.As a parent of three kids under the age of 6, I’ve seen the same products make the rounds over and over again from momfluencer Instagram accounts, celebrities, and friends’ baby regist…

When I found out I was pregnant with twins in 2019, my first thought was, “We won’t fit in our apartment.” At the time, my husband, our 2-year-old, and two dogs were already living in a cramped one-bedroom apartment in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.We loved our life in the city but also wanted to give our kids space. We debated where to move and settled in Maine for two reasons: it’s where my husband was born, and I needed to be near the ocean.We moved in 2020 and adjusted pretty quickly to living in t…

I’ll admit I’m not the most outdoorsy person. I love the beach and can lay on the hot sand for hours on end, but sleeping in a tent and fending off bugs is not my idea of fun.That said, my husband and I moved our family from Brooklyn to Maine to spend more time outside. Our kids love getting dirty and playing outdoors regardless of the season. We had been talking about taking them camping — something I hadn’t done in nine years but that my husband loves doing — but hadn’t come around to actually…

When I woke up, all I could feel was my entire body itching. I’m allergic to bug bites, and my first thought was that a mosquito had snuck under the covers and attacked me.When I looked at my body, I was shocked. Yes, it was extremely itchy, but it looked more like a rash than a bite. All I wanted to do was scratch my entire body. Desperate, I went to my dermatologist to make sure it wasn’t something dangerous. She took one look at me and said, “Yup, you got the classic presentation of browntail…

I’ve always wanted my kids to experience the joy of summer camp — hiking, singing, and weaving colorful friendship bracelets. But even day camp is exorbitant in New York, where I live. Thankfully, I’m an educator who doesn’t work full-time during the summer, so we usually pursue an economical option, the DIY “Mama Camp.“My daughters — now 11 and 5 — make our own schedules and go to museums, libraries, and parks, sprinkler-hopping across the neighborhood. “Let’s make our own camp T-shirts, just f…

I have three kids, ages 6, 4, and 4. I also work full time, and while my kids attend Montessori school, they are usually home before my workday ends. Because of that, I’m always looking for ways to keep them entertained and playing with minimal parental supervision.That’s a lot to ask from a toy or an activity, since my kids are at an age where there’s a lot of competition between them while also still needing a lot of help from me. Crafts are a big no-no because someone inevitably ends up cover…

I grew up in the late 80s and 90s and was an avid Nintendo player. I had the NES in my room and pretty much unlimited time with it.When I became a parent, I realized that too much screen time was not good for my kids’ developing brains. Also, I felt like they needed to move more after spending all day sitting in school, even though they were still on the younger side for organized sports.But my oldest, aged 6, kept asking to play video games because all his friends were already doing it. Thankfu…

After my the dog I had had for 10 years died, I went to a pet psychic for closure. She didn't tell me anything new, but it helped with my grief.

When my surgeon told me that after my ACL reconstruction surgery, I was going to have to delay my trip to Florida, I panicked. I had planned the whole trip so my twin daughters and I could fly together to spend some time in the sun with the grandparents.I had to change my tickets, and when I checked the airline’s website, the only three available were in first class.I doubted whether it was crazy to take not only one toddler but two on first class, and what other passengers would think of us. I…

I remember the day perfectly. We were in chemistry class and I was sitting next to one of my best friends in high school. Her name was Roberta, but we all called her Robz. I told her I wanted a cool nickname with a Z like hers, and so she came up with Conz.From that day on, most people in my life have known me by that nickname. I even use it professionally as I feel it’s easier for it to stand out and be remembered.But as I get older, I have conflicted feelings about going by a nickname instead…

A daughter says her dad got a call saying she had been kidnapped. The scam demanded thousands in ransom. She explains how to avoid these fake threats.

My 93-year-old father learned of the death of two close friends recently. When Dad didn’t hear from Bob over Christmas, he called his childhood friend’s home in Virginia. Dad learned from Bob’s wife that he had died. Soon, Dad also received the news that his fraternity brother Jim had died in Denver.Dad has always been a social animal and an example of a good friend. He, always the instigator and organizer, had many friends and even more stories.He loved taking his friends to Wrigley Field in Ch…

As an only child, my parents weren’t too thrilled when I reminded them — once again — that I was never (ever) getting married, and they could very much let go of the idea of having grandchildren. Kids were not in my plans.For a long time, I believed it. I had long relationships that always ended when things needed to get serious — whether it was moving in together or talking about what would come after.In 2014, after a horrible heartbreak, I met my now-husband. It sounds like something that happ…

My twins were born in March 2020, which means they missed out on a lot of toddler activities because of the pandemic. One of those was seeing Santa in person, which didn’t happen until they were almost 3 years old.While we were visiting my family in Argentina in 2022, we spotted a Santa at the mall. My older son, who was 4 at the time, was excited because he wanted to share his long list of requests for Christmas. The twins, on the other hand, were a bit timid. I get it; a stranger with a big be…