• Last updated Today by AmandaK

                  It often seems as if I have spent my entire life in search of a specific moment.  A moment when all of my goals are met, all of my tasks are completed, all of my obligations are met, and I can sit back and rest in perfect peace knowing that I am, indeed, good enough.This pursuit took on different faces in the various seasons of my life.   When I was a student, I believed that peace would come when I finally had all of my work done, all of my reading finished, and all of my exams prepared for.   As a young wife, I believed I would earn... read more

• Last updated 3/31/13 by mamazee

Turns out many dinosaurs were stay-at-home dads:   Dinosaur dads played an active role in raising their young and often served as single parents, according to a study published Friday in the journal Science. The researchers examined bones belonging to eight different dinosaurs that were fossilized in "brooding postures" near clutches of eggs. None of them included medullary bone, a form of bone tissue found in female birds and some female dinosaurs that is mined for calcium when they lay eggs, the researchers reported... Dino daddies may have evolved as active... read more

• Last updated 4/1/13 by mamazee

From today's New York Times:   A series of research teams have repeatedly analyzed personality tests taken by men and women in more than 60 countries around the world. For evolutionary psychologists, the bad news is that the size of the gender gap in personality varies among cultures. For social-role psychologists, the bad news is that the variation is going in the wrong direction. It looks as if personality differences between men and women are smaller in traditional cultures like India’s or Zimbabwe’s than in the Netherlands or the United States. A husband and a... read more

• Last updated 4/1/13 by mamazee

Hope you had a nice Labor Day. Today's parenting links: Mom 101 has to work while her stay-at-home husband and two kids go on vacation: "I think of all the working dads who stay behind while their wives tote the kids to the grandparents for a week. That's just what you do when you're the family's primary earner and it's the right thing to do. The only thing is, I'm not a dad. I'm a mom." When Grandpa Steals the Baby. "I looked over at Spot's stroller, strangely empty, and then considered myself: unshaven, damp, increasingly middle-aged, and alone in a baby park... read more

• Last updated 3/5/13 by mamazee

"As men are taking on primary parenting roles, researchers are discovering that these dads do things a little differently — and sometimes a little better — than more traditional families," writes Laura Vanderkam in yesterday's USA Today. I was one of Vanderkam's sources; though I disagree with parts of it--based on my research, I'd say most stay-at-home dads try to be more diligent with housework than she supposes--it's well worth a read. read more

• Last updated 3/5/13 by mamazee

My esteemed colleague at the Greater Good Science Center, executive director Christine Carter, posted two very nice summaries of research into fatherhood over at her "happy kids" parenting blog, Half-Full. The first asks: Are Dads as Essential as Moms? The answer is, Of course! * Research shows that the love and care of fathers is equally important for the health and well-being of children as mother-love. Really. * Children are WAY better off when their relationship with their father is sensitive, secure, and supportive as well as close, nurturing, and... read more

• Last updated 3/1/13 by mamazee

It's true--fathers are rare in children's books, especially when it comes to images of them taking care of kids. And why not? Moms are still the ones most likely to be changing diapers and wiping noses, and there’s no point in nursing a sense of grievance over the invisibility of fathers in children’s books. But where does that leave families who don't fit the traditional mold? And how does that help parents who want to provide caring role models to their sons? There are books out there, few and far between, that depict dads as co-parents and primary caregivers.... read more

• Last updated 3/1/13 by mamazee

When I became a father four years ago, I knew nothing—absolutely nothing—about parenthood in America. I didn't know how to change a diaper, feed my baby, or give him a bath. I didn’t know anything about paternal leave. I didn’t know anything about the cost of childcare and preschool, or how economic forces would shape our caregiving arrangements. I hadn’t thought about how parenthood would affect our household division of labor or my relationship with my wife. I had no big ideas about what might make for a good father. And when I started to take care of my son... read more