Why We Started Little Big: Lost in Conflicting Parenting Advice

We still remember the time our child had a small issue, and we did what most parents do: picked up our phones and started searching.

It didn't help. One article said one thing, the next said the exact opposite. The doctor told us one thing, the grandparents told us another, and friends had a third take altogether. After all that conflicting parenting advice, we put the phone down feeling more worried than when we started.

We're Yvonne and KidInn, two ordinary parents. That moment is where Little Big began.

Later, chatting with friends, we realised it wasn't just us. So many parents feel the same way: more information than ever, more opinions than ever, and somehow less sure who to listen to. You try so hard to get it right, and still end up feeling a little guilty and very, very tired.

If that sounds familiar, it's okay. We've been there too, and some days we still are.

When conflicting parenting advice makes it harder, not easier

Since becoming a mum, I've noticed just how much parenting information is out there. On its own, that isn't a bad thing. But when everyone's answer is different, parents get stuck in the middle.

Do you go with the doctor? The grandparents? The friend whose kid is the same age as yours? Every one of them means well, and each answer makes sense. Put together, though, it all turns into pressure.

Sometimes it's a baby who won't stop crying at night. Sometimes it's a toddler who barely touches their food, or a small rash that appears out of nowhere. None of it is necessarily a big deal. But when you hear five different takes at once, that uncertainty can make a small thing feel huge.

What we slowly noticed was that the thing that actually helped was someone explaining things in a way that made sense to us, and then thinking it through with us.

So we started Little Big

That's when we started wondering: what if there were a place that shared parenting knowledge in a way parents could actually understand?

That's how Little Big started. We wanted to help more mums and dads skip a few of the wrong turns we took.

Here, we share what raising our own kids has really been like, the parts that went smoothly and the parts we got wrong, told in plain words that parents can actually use.

Little Big isn't here to teach anyone how to be a parent. It's here to grow alongside you.

We're still learning ourselves. Something that works in our home might not suit yours, and that's completely fine. Every child is different, every family is different, and there was never one single right way to begin with.

What we hope is that after reading our content, you feel a little lighter, and maybe think: oh, so it's not just me.

Dads, try getting a bit more involved

This part is from KidInn.

"As dads, a lot of us think of looking after the kids as mum's territory, and our job is just to back her up.

But dads can be a much bigger part of it than that. It doesn't have to be perfect. Playing together for a while, reading a book, chatting before bed: any of those is a good start.

If you're willing to try, then in your child's eyes, you're already the best dad there is."

What the name Little Big means

There are two meanings behind it.

The first is simple. Little is the child. Big is what that small child is to their parents: a whole big world.

The second is about decisions. Little is the small choices we make every day, the ones that hardly feel like choices at all. Big is who our kids grow into, the grown-ups they'll one day be. In Chinese, a grown-up is 大人, and we like to joke that it's really a "Big人".

Little choices, Big people. That's why we're called Little Big.

One last thing

Parenting doesn't come with a standard answer, and nobody has it figured out on day one. We're just like you: raising our kids, learning as we go, and growing up a little alongside them.

If you're in the middle of all that conflicting parenting advice right now, we hope Little Big can be somewhere to catch your breath. There's no rush to get everything right. Slow is fine.

Thank you for reading this far. We'll keep sharing what we learn along the way, and we'd really like to hear about your family too.

When was the last time a pile of different parenting advice left you more anxious than before? Tell us about it in the comments. We'd love to hear your story.