As parents, our responsibility is to keep kids unharmed. That doesn't mean shielding them from all possibility of defeat. It means letting them fail safely. Here's how to help your child take risks -- and make mistakes, inevitably -- safely.

Being away from parents is a good thing. It gives kids room to grow and explore in new ways. We will still be the most influential people in our children's lives, but they don't have to be -- and shouldn't be -- our mirror image.

When your parenting style differs from that of your partner, it can be frustrating at best and destructive at worst, creating dissonance and distance between partners and confusion among the kids. But different parenting styles needn't spell disaster. Divergent styles can help prepare kids for a world of negotiating various types of people.