Parenting Advice

There are evil people in this world. The kind of people that will dupe a little boy and take his life. You better bet that I'm going to do everything in my power to shield my children from it.

I can't take it anymore so I'm writing this down ... on my phone. I'm watching a dad. He's the ugliest thing I've ever seen. Grotesque.

Motherhood is, by its very nature, a "giving" job. We give physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually to our children. But we need a sense of proportion and limits when it comes to our kids.

It's 6:00 a.m. and a tiny finger is poking you in the face. "Daddy, I'm hungry." You turn to your spouse. With a beleaguered moan, she reminds you that it's your day to get up with the kid.

As I packed up the house at the same time I packed my daughter up for college, I sensed that my timing was predicated on my desire not to have empty nest syndrome when my last child left.

There are many aspects of French culture that I love. But there is much the French could learn from us, particularly the child rearing values that tend to be prioritized in North America: empathy, creativity, and individual motivation (that "can-do" attitude).

Traditions enable us to honor the past, celebrate the present and provide a legacy for the future. Not only a source of enjoyment, they serve as the glue that keeps families united.

Dear Susan, When I was growing up, my brothers and I always had chores on the weekends. We didn't like it, but we just did them. My own kids -- 9 a...

There's clearly a fine line parent's walk when they want to strongly encourage their kid's talents but not overly pressure them or burn them out.

Melanie's husband died suddenly at 35, leaving her to care for their three sons, ages 8, 4, and 10 months. She had no family nearby. Turns out, she had something just as valuable: A network of friends.

How could we learn anything other than that which we grew up immersed in, and usually, are genetically predisposed to as well? The only way we could be any different or more imaginative, is if we put conscious thought and effort into it. Are you doing that?

When your child sees that you are choosing to be with him and not the phone, the computer, the laundry, or the baby, that strengthens your connection.

Dear Susan, My 12-year old used to tell me everything, but recently I found out that she lied to my face. She said she was at the home of a friend wh...

This week in Parenthesis, a dad blogger takes his daughter bra shopping, Katie Allison Granju picks up writing tips from a Hollywood memoir and Ilana ...

When my husband and I were trying to have a baby, going to the farmers market was one of the top reasons we wanted to be parents.

"A mother is only as happy as her saddest child," the saying goes. She's only as anchored, and grounded and reassuring, too. But another part of this parenting job is to do a damn good impression of having our feet solidly on the ground. 

Welcome to motherhood, Jessica! You'll want to cry from happiness and tear your hair out with frustration on the very same day.

Teresa made fun of her daughter's body. She turned an intimate event into a public one, bringing an entire television audience's attention to her daughter's breasts and burgeoning sexuality.

What could possibly be the harm in pulling someone aside and saying, "You know, this is really none of my business. But I think what you're doing is amazing"?

I refuse to let another "must," "ought" or "should" prevent me from savoring this brief window of opportunity that I have to enjoy time with my only-young-once daughters.

Embrace the concept of "Good Enough." Breathe it in, breathe it out. Let it wrap around you and soothe your tired, worried, guilty soul. Everything is going to be okay.

Dear Susan, We are an older couple with only one child, after trying for many years to have a family. I love my daughter very much, but we are extr...

If you have a child older than 2-years-old and haven't taken a CPR class since the birth of your child, you may be unaware that in the last two years, the CPR guidelines have changed. I