My husband and I had our first baby 6 months ago, meaning our transformation into lovestruck zombies is nearly complete. We’re obsessed with our little squish—otherwise known as Nathan—and I have officially become that parent who won’t stop sniffing her kid. (I’m sorry, but where does that sweet baby smell come from and why has no one found a way to bottle it up?!)
Of course, we’re not the only ones who can’t get enough of N. As first-time grandparents, my mother and father-in-law, who live a few hours away, don’t want to miss one minute of the “action.” That word is in quotes because, at this point, there is minimal movement to report. And yet! What happened today? Where are the pics? Send more videos! The ping! ping! ping! of text messages was relentless. “Sleep when your baby sleeps,” they say. But these people clearly did not have a Nana who demanded CNN-style breaking news coverage of their grandchild.
I love my in-laws—I really do. I’m beyond grateful for their enthusiasm, but also I need. some. space. I don’t necessarily have the energy for endless back-and-forths while navigating the eat, play, sleep, repeat loop that is my current existence. The fewer asks of me at this point, the better (for all of us!).
Thankfully, Tinybeans offered a brilliant solution: I set up the app to automatically send Nana emails with the latest baby photos her son and I take. She might not be tech-savvy, but she’s a pro at checking her inbox. Now every time Nathan flashes a gummy grin or fakes us out like he’s gonna crawl but nope—maybe next time, suckers!—Nana gets to witness it all going down.
As for my father-in-law, he’s a little more tech-savvy, but whatever it is has to be extremely user-friendly. Before Tinybeans, whenever he wanted to ask about N, it meant a loooonng phone call (or voicemail I didn’t have time to listen to). Don’t get me wrong; I enjoy our conversations. PopPop knows how to tell a good story. But that reminiscing sometimes crosses over into lengthy TED Talk territory. Tinybeans came to the rescue again by allowing him to comment on photos to his heart’s content without always picking up the phone. Plus, it’s fun for us to sit down collapse on the couch and read his incredible notes. We love that Nathan will be able to look back on the comments left by his grandparents one day.
Side note: There’s also the fact that the app pulls double duty as a digital memory book. We’ve used it to document milestones like his weight after doctor’s appointments, an Olympics-worthy front-to-back roll, and his first smile that was probably (maybe?) not gas. Not only has it been super easy to log these fun moments, but doing so helps us be more “in the moment” wherever we are and whoever we’re with—including grandparents IRL. It’s cool looking back to see how far N has come, appreciating every step of his journey and not missing a beat.
Honestly, Tinybeans didn’t just save my sanity; it strengthened our family bonds. Our time with Nana and PopPop is spent making new memories instead of frantically providing updates. And my hubs and I can savor (almost) every sleep-deprived moment with our baby while sharing our joy with the people we love most.
Want to give it a go yourself? Download the Tinybeans app here and watch all those “ooohs” and “ahhhhs” pour in.
