Dear Susan,
I am just plain worn out over getting my six-year old to do the simplest things like brushing her teeth or putting on her shoes. Why can't she just say, “Okay, Mom” and get with the program? Why does she have to put up a fight about every...
13 Comments | Posted February 6, 2012 | 02/06/12 01:01 AM ET
Dear Susan,
My step-children, five and seven years old, refuse to eat the healthy food I put on their plates. Their mother doesn't care what they eat and feeds them pasta almost every night. When they are with us, we try to serve food that is good for them but...
37 Comments | Posted January 26, 2012 | 01/26/12 10:58 AM ET
Today my son leaves on a road trip, driving back east to college with his girlfriend. Frankly, it's a big "ugh." I not only love my son; I like him. He's a great person, and I'm extremely happy when he's around. After four months in Africa and then ten days...
47 Comments | Posted January 22, 2012 | 01/22/12 01:02 AM ET
Dear Susan,
My 4-year-old old granddaughter lies regularly. She makes up stories about things that couldn't possibly be true, looking you straight in the face as she tells something that is obviously a lie. I want her to grow up to be an honest person. What can be done?
Signed,
...
29 Comments | Posted January 18, 2012 | 01/18/12 09:22 AM ET
This week's episode of "Modern Family" already has people talking, and it hasn't even aired yet, because little Lily is going to (inaudibly) say the F-word.
How will Mitchell and Cameron react when their little darling lets loose with something so naughty? As daring as it is...
15 Comments | Posted January 11, 2012 | 01/11/12 12:58 PM ET
Dear Susan,
Every time I take my five year old to the pediatrician, she screams bloody murder when she has to get shots. Is there anything I can do that will make it less traumatic? She is terrified of needles.
Signed,
Dr. Mom
Dear Dr. Mom,
...1 Comments | Posted December 30, 2011 | 12/30/11 11:23 AM ET
Dear Susan,
Even though I am tired after a long day at work I put something together so we can all sit down for dinner together. The trouble is, my kids -- 8 and 14 -- won't come to the table unless I threaten to take away the younger one's...
3 Comments | Posted December 23, 2011 | 12/23/11 01:12 PM ET
I recently sat down with Jennifer Garner to talk about holiday traditions, as well as her favorite cause, Save the Children. Her passionate support for this organization is fueled by her deep concern for children. Jennifer talked about how much she feels for the mothers that Save the Children supports,...
Posted November 22, 2011 | 11/22/11 01:30 AM ET
A few nights ago I watched one of the "Parenthood" episodes queued up in my DVR list. The show is a gem; one of the most honest looks at the beauty and complexities of family relationships ever to grace the screen.
One of the stories in this particular episode had...
Posted August 27, 2011 | 08/27/11 03:02 PM ET
As unnerving as it is for parents who find themselves in Hurricane Irene's path, it can be terrifying for kids. When faced with a stressful experience, one of the ways children (and adults, for that matter) cope is to refer to prior times when they got through similar experiences. A...
Posted June 29, 2011 | 06/29/11 03:07 PM ET
I admit, it's funny. And there's another thing I like about Adam Mansbach's Go the F**k to Sleep: It exposes the underbelly of parenting -- that dark, secret part of us that needs a little time to ourselves when we can do grown up things -- or maybe just crawl...
Posted May 31, 2011 | 05/31/11 10:00 AM ET
I love what I do. I get to learn something new every day, participate in a variety of forums that let me share what I know about raising great kids without power struggles with parents around the world, and enjoy feeling appreciated for my work. It's a great life, and...
Posted May 25, 2011 | 05/25/11 10:24 PM ET
There was no ugly cry. No over the top sentimentality calculated to tug at our heartstrings. It was simple. It was clean. And she was elegant.
Frankly, I wasn't sure what to expect. I thought that perhaps now that she'd made it relatively intact emotionally throughout her final season, Oprah...
Posted May 24, 2011 | 05/24/11 09:57 AM ET
I love that my house is messy. I love that there are dishes on the coffee table and socks carelessly tossed around the living room. I love that several slightly used tissues are peeking out from under the pillows on the couch, next to my son's ever-present guitar. And I...
Posted May 6, 2011 | 05/06/11 06:25 PM ET
Apart from parents who have taken extraordinary measures to isolate themselves from the world, there probably isn't a child alive who hasn't heard about the death of Osama bin Laden. Most of our kids know that killing is "bad"; the very fabric of our society is built upon the notion...
Posted May 6, 2011 | 05/06/11 01:40 PM ET
In the course of helping organize a local movement to save one of the last remaining mom and pops in my town of Malibu, California, I have been given the opportunity to reflect upon what defines a business as "successful."
Generally, we look at numbers: Inflows, outflows, accounts receivable...
Posted April 16, 2011 | 04/16/11 02:14 PM ET
A few days ago, while in New York, I went to an IMAX at the Natural History museum that simulated the world in prehistoric times. As the cameras allowed the audience to "fly" over the landscape, I began imagining how the creatures of that time would react to the landscape...
Posted March 4, 2011 | 03/04/11 04:21 PM ET
1:30 am...
It's what my heart would sound like if it stepped out of my body and sang... hearing my boy singing, hearing traces of his dad's voice in his, and probably mine, and hearing/feeling/sensing that in his voice is life experience that has been his alone,...
Posted February 16, 2011 | 02/16/11 12:58 AM ET
I hosted a memorial at my house this weekend for a member of my tribe, a dearly beloved friend who had passed away suddenly. It was sort of a Big Chill event, but without the covert sex going on in back bedrooms.
Old friends gathered from near and far --...
Posted February 7, 2011 | 02/07/11 01:44 PM ET
In a year in which schools have made headlines for every problem imaginable, one issue is slipping through the cracks, the consequences of which not only impacts our kids' education, but every aspect of their lives. Schools are lobbying for students' attention by embracing technology in ever increasing ways. This...

Posted February 17, 2012 | 02/17/12 09:03 AM ET