Although at one time young professionals who started having babies packed their bags and headed for the sprawling lawns, minivans, and block parties of the suburbs, it seems that the face of young parenthood is changing for many city couples today.

Following in the footsteps of many New York-based celebrities who raise their children in the city, more and more young families are viewing city parenthood as a natural step. And cities from New York and Chicago to L.A. and Seattle have all been responding. With news of more kid-friendly restaurants, an expansion of public parks and playgrounds, and even nightclubs making way for the kiddie scene with designated nights of music and activities for babies and toddlers, the city offers a new draw that suburbs just can’t match.

It seems that many city dwellers appreciate the fact that having a baby doesn’t have to entirely change their routines, and with numerous cultural and family-oriented activities to keep them busy, the city provides something that suburbs often don’t. Not to mention the diversity, something many parents believe it’s important to expose their kids to. One mom, Malia Keene, quoted in a recent Seattle Post-Intelligencer article, claimed that even the panhandlers don’t bother her. "You don't have to explain things like you do if you were in suburbs,” she says. “Like I don't have to say, `Henry, there are different kinds of people.' He's just growing up with it."

The expanding opportunities and conveniences that cities are offering to families, as well as the ability to continue living the life they lived pre-children has proven to be an irresistible draw for many. Unlike in the past, where cities seemed to keep birth rates down or encourage flight to the suburbs upon the birth of a couple’s first baby, more and more couples today seem to be discovering the advantages of city life for kids. Could this be a symptom of an increasingly family-focused society? With newly kid-friendly cities, workplaces, and even bars, it’s not hard to imagine that this might be the real trend of late.

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