Conversations

Why "Mama" Has the Same Meaning in Almost Every Language

For most people on Earth, "mama" shares a singular meaning: mother. Here's why.

Two-Minute Warnings Don't Help Kids Transition Away From Screentime

Two-minute warnings may work well in sports, but they don’t, apparently, work for children.

My Kids Have Two Moms To Celebrate On Mother’s Day

My mother-in-law asked my partner and me what we would be doing on Mother’s Day. Our answer: we’ll be mothering on Mother’s Day.

The Best (and Worst) States for Moms to Earn a Paycheck

Which places are doing their best to help moms raise their kids, contribute to the economy, and stay sane all at the same time?

Paradise Lost on a 2-Year-Old

Wherever you go, there you are. With your kids. Bickering at the threshold of The Royal Towers Hotel lobby at the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas

To My Preemie: An Apology

You turn one next month. We will celebrate with tears and sadness mingled with the gratefulness and amazement at all we’ve been through this year.

Do This One Thing So Your College Student Can Manage Money

Knowing how to manage money and stay out of debt can alter the future of any adult - especially those just starting out.

Study Shows Men Discount the Distress Cries of Female Babies

We make gender assumptions about babies almost immediately after they are born.

How Consumerism Makes Motherhood Look Like an Expensive Job

I cannot say this enough: motherhood is not just a job for the wealthy. It's a job for a woman who is ready to love her precious child with all that she is.

Instilling grit in kids means being demanding and supportive, AND sometimes letting them quit.

The rule at the “grit” expert Angela Duckworth’s house? You can quit. But you can’t quit on a hard day. Very young kids, she says, should be allowed to explore, even if that means abandoning projec...

Where’s The Pause Button?

I worry that too soon my little girls won’t be little anymore. But there is so much to look forward to between now and then, so many activities to enjoy.

C'mon Daddy, You're Better Than That!

It’s amazing, and sobering, how the unfiltered and unbiased voice and action of a child can keep you in check.

Dad Joke Playbook

My definition of a dad joke: it makes you groan louder than you've ever laughed. When does a joke become a dad joke? When the punchline becomes apparent.

"How our Friday night pizza night helps us connect with our growing kids"

Memories loosen themselves from the dough and float around me, reminders of times forever past, like when little pudgy hands joined me in that bowl. Source: How our Friday night pizza night helps u...

I'm Not Sure My Kids Really Get It – I Used to Be Cool

I’m not sure my kids really get it – I used to be cool. There was a time before I owned a Prius, rubbed sunblock on the top of my head, and slept with only one woman. How could they know? They see ...

Sometimes My Best Parenting Is Just An Illusion Of Patience

With a lot of work and discipline, I can usually pull off the illusion of patience, but it is rarely without internal stress.

Please, Please Clean Your Room

The New Yorker delivers with this hilarious father-son dialogue.

Hamilton's Lin-Manuel Miranda Recommends A Little Less Parenting

Teach your kid to make their own way. To follow their interests, make their own path.

5 Ways to Stay Connected to Your Little Ones When You're Traveling for Work

Ways to connect while traveling for work (or fun) that help ease separation and keep the family bond strong.

Pura Vida: A Need to Travel, so the Baby Travels Too

"The baby fits into our life, I answered, naïve, yet sure of my parenting philosophy, long before I myself became a parent. We need to travel, so the baby travels, too."

Pride Mingled With Grief as a Father's Son Leaves for College

I knew it would be hard, but I didn’t know it would be this hard. But this is the way it should be. This is what I have worked for since my son was born.

Go Get a Job and an Apartment, Dinosaur Baby

"For sauropods, it doesn’t appear that they were very good parents — at least after their babies hatched."

Why We Have No Limits To Screen Time

I shrug off society’s belief that screen time equals neglectful parenting because when I look at my daughter, I see that she's happy, healthy, and loved.