A day in the life…

I live… in New York City with my husband Chris, daughter Agnes, and Boston Terrier named Olive.

I am currently reading… between the World and Me by Ta-Nahesi Coates, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell by Susannah Clarke (Thanks Netflix), The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande, and the New Yorker. 

I’m listening to… podcasts mostly- National Public Radio News, Fresh Air, the Ezra Klein Show, This American Life, The Moth, and Death, Sex, and Money. 

My weekends start with… a hug from Agnes and bagels. 

One item I can’t live without is…my tote bag so I can lug all my stuff around the city. And sadly, my iPhone. 

Must have baby essentials? A muslin sleep sack for summer and wool sleep sack for winter. Agnes moves around a lot when she sleeps so it's the only way to keep the covers on her at night. 

mums around the world: jane kim

We wanted to hear a little about what it was like raising a family in different parts of the world, so we have interviewed a few different mums about themselves, their little ones, and their location. Our first Mum Around the World is the talented architect, Jane Kim from New York City. 

I work full time as an architect and run my own architecture firm in New York City…

And also teach at an architecture design studio at Columbia University. My daughter Agnes is two years old and goes to a Montessori pre-school in the mornings and is with a nanny in the afternoon.

Our neighborhood is filled with art deco apartment houses and a lot of trees, with views of the Hudson River…

Our home is an apartment in Washington Heights on the northern end of Manhattan. It's a wonderful place to raise kids, and there are a lot of families in the neighborhood. 

New York City is a wonderful place for families because there is so much to see and do…

Everything is a short walk or subway ride away. We walk to our local park, Fort Tryon, every weekend. There is an amazing Heather Garden there with beautiful English flowers and plantings, and many walking paths and things to see. We also try to do at least one cultural activity every weekend, whether it be to go to an art museum like the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Natural History, or the zoo. 

Sometimes it's hard to get around the city without a car…

We take the subway all around Manhattan, but to get to some places like Brooklyn, it is much faster to drive, so we end up needing to rent a car. 

And storage in New York City can be tough. Car seats and strollers take up a lot of closet space! Every New York neighborhood has a local listserve where you can buy and sell baby gear, which has been helpful in getting more space in our closets. Parents can use it to share information about local events and issues too.

Don’t be too hard on yourself…

Is my only advice for new parents. Especially in the beginning, no one knows what they are doing, contrary to how it may look from the outside!

Everyone says that having a newborn is hard, but there are really no words to describe how difficult it can feel sometimes…

Related to my advice above, having been a capable, responsible adult for so long, it can be difficult to adjust to such a drastic change as having a child. Now that Agnes is older and becoming her own person, having a balance of work and home life is the most difficult now. It helps that I run my own company so I don't have the added pressure of meeting someone else's expectations professionally. 

My parent friends have become my support network...

Living in New York City, Agnes's grandparents are across the country or across the world in New Zealand, so my parent friends have become my support network. I am so grateful for the caring, smart people I am lucky to call friends that I can talk to and ask questions to. 

My husband has been buying vintage Sesame Street records…

For Agnes recently, she really likes to get down to the Cookie song. We read books in the morning and evening as part of our family routine, and now that Agnes is potty training, it happens a lot now when she is on the potty. We also read in bed before she goes to sleep. A recent favorite is "A Sick Day for Amos McGee". 

For more of our motherhood stories, see here.