I don't know where I came up with it, but when I had my first child about 10 years ago I wanted to try not to use the word "no" with him. Maybe I thought that if I didn't tell him "no" then he wouldn't shout it at me. Maybe I had some misguided view about the evil nature of no that I had somehow...

When my children were very young, I began trying to plan out their education: where they would learn, how they would learn it, and what we would do for them to get it. I recognize that a strong education can help secure a better future. In our society, reading, writing, math and sciences matter...

A few years ago, when my now 7-year-old was a toddler, I was interviewed for a local magazine about Attachment Parenting [AP]. I described the basic principles of AP, explained how it helped me when I was a single parent, and discussed the science behind Attachment Theory. I thought I had...

Boys can't wear pink? All girls want to be princesses? Don't let others define what's "right" for different genders. Here are 20 kids' books that redefine what's 'normal' for genders. From an early age kids are bombarded with messages that rigidly define gender: Boys like pirates and sports and...

Responsible for the discontent, disillusionment and disconnect plaguing moms of every demographic, these myths can make motherhood miserable. I was seventeen when my eldest daughter was born. This fact, along with the fact that I am now thirty-eight, combined with the fact that my youngest...

It seems like nine months should be long enough to prepare for birth, but it's not. In fact, even though there are days you think your pregnancy may never end, the time comes where you can't even believe you got there that quickly. And don't be surprised if you think you have it all planned out...

From a strictly biological perspective, breastfeeding is the same around the world. The primitive reflexes of rooting and sucking that are innate to all infants allow for newborns to quickly learn how to sustain themselves nutritionally from the breast. From the beginning of time, a mother's...

Dads fall in love with their babies and their whole outlook on life changes the first time they meet their little. And while there's an immediate bond for mamas and babies if for no other reason but that Mom was baby's home for ten months, dads don't always connect as quickly or as easily. Not...

Before I became a mother I constantly said, "My kids will never (fill in the blank)." My husband and I agreed our babies wouldn't take over our lives. We would still go out with friends, have date nights, follow a strict routine, and keep our bed to ourselves. Attachment parenting to me sounded...

Even as little as a generation ago, the expectation was that all babies sleep through the night. Parents assumed they must teach them to do so through "sleep-training," often involving cry-it-out methods. Many grandmothers and great-grandmothers continue to perpetuate this erroneous standard...

After becoming inspired by the deep connection she felt breastfeeding her own two daughters, artist Leanne Pearce created and recently featured her first exhibition titled "Breastfeed" at the University of Sunderland's Design Center in England. Through her series of paintings depicting a diverse...

For kids, summer wouldn't be complete without a healthy dose of swimming and splashing at the pool or beach. But, let's face it, where kids see a chance at some wet and wild fun, we see...well...potential dangers. And rightly so. According to the Centers for Disease Control, drowning is the...

Choosing a sunscreen that's both safe and effective can be a real challenge. From misleading claims to questionable ingredients, it's tough to even know where to start. Here's a few key tips will get you out of the store and into the sun in no time: Avoid chemical additives. The top brands of...

A new study from The University of Texas at Austin is not the first of its kind to warn of the lasting harm of spanking children, but it is one of the most comprehensive to date. The study analyzes fifty years of research involving 160,000 children and focuses specifically on spanking- not other...

The Environmental Working Group has released their popular Dirty Dozen™ and Clean Fifteen™ lists for 2016. These annual lists showcase fruits and vegetables with the most, and least, amounts of pesticides to help shoppers avoid high risk foods. These lists are especially valuable for those who...

My dear friend Jen is battling cancer with grace and with an open heart. Over the past eight months she has undergone a double mastectomy and chemotherapy. Soon she will be receiving radiation treatment. She is a true inspiration. She is brave, courageous and grounded with the love of her...

My body is not going to have any more babies. At this point in my life, I can confidently affirm this bold statement without any hesitation or regret. But this was not always the case. After the birth of my first child, I experienced love in a way I have never experienced before. I not...

Exceptional. Atypical. Childhood with a twist. However you choose to look at it, some children face additional challenges. And as such, their families don't tend to walk the well-beaten, more typical parenting path. (You know, the path we imagined in our heads when we first decided to become...

For many of us, the word "consent" is heavily intertwined with the word "sex," making the concept something we would only broach with an older child. But while consent does play a major role in healthy sexual relationships, it also permeates into many other parts of our lives, at all ages and...

As I briefly touched on in a post about trying to set good examples for my kids, I used to be a little judgmental when it came to the way other people raise their children. OK, maybe more than a little bit. OK, fine. A lot more than a little bit. I judged mothers for how they fed their...