Category Archive

big kids

Why I let my tween listen to whatever music he wants

Language isn’t that big a deal to me, nor is the violence. It’s the drug use and the sexually suggestive material. But the music doesn’t concern me. Is that bad?

I talked about sex with my kids… and possibly scarred them for life

I always thought I’d rock having THE talk with my kids, but I think I might not have. Using the appropriate words was a cinch, but getting down to the mechanics of IT was a challenge.

My six-year-old wants her ears pierced: where can we go?

If your child wants his or her ears pierced and YOU don’t want it to be by a piercing gun… what are your options? Is taking your child to a piercing studio an option?

Should I make my kid take lessons even if he hates it?

Last summer, I signed my eight-year-old son up for art classes. At first he really seemed to love them, but now he says they’re “boring” and wants to quit. I don’t want to force him to do something he’s not enjoying … but I also really want to cultivate his creativity and appreciation of the arts! Should I let him bail, or keep encouraging him?

A rustic kid’s play house built with flea market finds and scratch

Claudia created this wooden play house for her daughter from corrugated plastic and items from a local flea market — AND it has a pool!

I took my five-year-old on a trip to Paris

Planning a trip like this with Ruby was a little daunting. I was excited to take her away to a foreign culture and experience it through her eyes. The Eiffel Tower! Walks along the Seine! Stepping into a tiny shop, sampling the wares, exploring the bits and pieces of life that make that somewhere else so exciting… but I was also nervous: how would she handle the two long plane rides there and back? Would we find a way to meet in the middle of how a child experiences a foreign place and how an adult does?

Do you cuss around your kids?

Emi doesn’t want to censor herself or her future kids, but also doesn’t want to just piss people off — how do you talk about cussing with your kids?

How are you going to talk about drugs with your kids?

Here’s how I think about a drug like marijuana: it can be fun, but it’s by no means a path to greater enlightenment.