Infants as young as 6 months have the ability to demonstrate empathy, according to current research. Whether or how empathy develops as the child grows is a whole different story. Here we go again, nature vs. nurture. A recent experience of mine points to an answer.

Cancer came...

I've just returned from a funeral for a friend's husband -- a father of five who died way before his time was up. And it was a five-Kleenex affair.

My mirror neurons, the ones that make you match the emotions of others, were hard at work. (You...

You tell your child it's time for bed. Instead of the pitter-patter of feet running up the stairs, you get "Whyyyyyyy?" All parents have heard it. The funny thing is, you know your child isn't really looking for an answer.

"Well, dear, your body needs sleep in order for...

There are no good words to explain to anyone -- let alone to kids -- what happened at the elementary school in Connecticut this morning. The horrific incident is every parent's worst nightmare, unfathomable and unspeakable. The air is heavy with the horror. The president of our country wept during...

Hanukkah is here, and there are just two weeks until Christmas. The world is kicking into high gear for the holidays. It's inescapable. The media, advertisers and merchants are targeting our children and us, pointing us towards their ultimate goal: buy buy buy. It's no wonder that children across the...

"I'm almost finished reading [insert-name-of-parenting-book]," the first-time mom confessed, "and I have to tell you, it's really stressing me out!"

"Well, don't read it!" I urged. "Just put it away." (I think I actually suggested that she throw it away.)

That's kind of an odd recommendation from a parenting expert...

I finally figured it out. I have found the magic key for getting along with your adult children: Whatever comes into your head to say, don't say it. This is especially true when those adult children become parents.

Relationships are evolutionary, and the parent-child one is no exception. It starts...

The mother unwrapped the straw, poked it into the box, and handed the drink to her toddler as they walked out of the grocery store. The sliver of straw paper slipped from the mother's hand. I doubt that she even noticed it.

Rolling my grocery cart back to its...

Summer time and the livin' is easy... well, sort of.

The dog days are laced with so many expectations -- relaxed schedules, lazy days, warm evening bar-b-ques, no homework, lighter responsibilities, and vacations. Many parents have memories of fabulous family vacations from their youth. And for the kids, vacations...

Olympic fever is starting to rise, and here is the good news: There are enough benefits to watching the Olympics as a family that you can throw your standard TV rules out the window. Beyond sheer entertainment, there's much to be learned by watching the games on the demon screen...

As Olympic fever is starting to rise, TV trays are coming out of the closet and families across the country are getting ready to adjust their one-hour-a-day screen time rule. Hey, it's the Summer Olympics! (Sports don't really count as screen time, right?)

Olympic fever is starting to rise, and...

The horrific tragedy in Colorado has left us all speechless, shaking our heads in disbelief. How could this have happened? Could anything really have been done to stop this mad man? And what can we possibly tell our children...if they ask?

Parents are rendered tongue-tied when it comes...

Seems like almost every parent today knows that spanking is verboten. Everyone except that parent who says, "My father spanked me, and I turned out fine." To him I want to say, You don't remember how you felt while you were being spanked -- the terror, the helplessness, the anger.

Technology is here to stay. No question there. Children born today must become technologically literate in order to thrive in their world as they grow. No question there. Advanced technologies make parts of raising children easier. No question there either.

Wait! It's spinning out of control. The horse is driving...

"If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands." Every kid knows that insipid song. It scrolls through a palette of feelings, "If you're sad... If you're angry..." always pointing to the refrain "but if you're happy and you know it, shout hooray!" as if that's the right way...

There's nothing like a toddler's tantrum or an older child's meltdown to bring a parent to her knees. It's one of those behaviors that makes you feel inadequate and helpless, to say nothing of incompetent.

Put that tantrum in a public place -- a restaurant, the grocery store, the school...

The horror at Miramonte Elementary School in Los Angeles has my blood boiling, to say nothing of my stomach turning in disgust. The story is still unfolding, layers added every day. (A 30-year veteran third grade teacher, uncovered by a photo lab technician who alerted police to photos...

I might hold the record for having given the most single birthday parties. Each of my kids (triplets) had his/her own party from age two years old on up. It's not that I am a glutton for punishment; it's that there's not much that is all yours besides your name...

I don't like New Year's resolutions. They scream failure. It doesn't start that way. But inevitably the best laid plans... Two weeks into that new diet, that exercise routine, that tidy bedroom, and it's back to square one and self-flagellation. Oh well, maybe next year.

That doesn't mean there aren't...

At one of my parenting groups recently, I asked people to share a memory of their grandparents from when they were growing up. Among the responses were: baking cookies, working in the garage, sleeping at Grandma's house, and going to London. How telling that not one, not one person shared...