ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly altered family life, and research among adults and families has found increases financial stress, mental health problems, screen time, parental conflict, and child behavior problems. Given these patterns, we sought to replicate these findings with a younger and largely non-white sample. Using the Family Stress Model, we consider how these constructs might relate to each other during the pandemic. From surveys of 247 predominately Latine mothers and fathers of children under 4 years of age in the U.S., we found that financial strain was related to children’s media exposure and use, largely through impacts on parents’ mental health and coparenting relationship. Interestingly, only use of television in the background and during mealtimes were associated with increases in parents’ perception of increases in children’s behavior problems. Such findings better capture how stress may operate in a family system and offer a way to counsel parents about healthier media habits for young children.