People/Places/Family/Life
I'm thrilled to share my latest article and my first for Preservation, the magazine of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. They do wonderful work preserving historically and culturally important places in the United States, and I'm so happy to be a small part of this mission. It was also a blast to research this… Continue reading Preservation: Gas Stations Revisited
I'm a bit late (OK, a lot late) in sharing my latest essay for Cleveland Magazine. Its real headline (the one you see here) is the one my editor gave it, but I just like to call it "The Oma Pan." It's a story of stuff and memories and clutter and grandmas—I hope you'll take… Continue reading Cleveland Magazine: How Revisiting Family Heirlooms Brings about New Meaning
Allowing kids to try to meet (and master) real-life challenges helps them build a healthy, protective sense of self-efficacy. Happy to share my latest for the New York Times. Emptying the Dishwasher Can Enrich Kids’ Mental Health Published online February 11, 2021, and in print on February 14, 2021.
If you haven't heard about Bean Dad, lucky you, I think? (I'll explain. And briefly, I promise.) But, really, it is possible to be kind and to raise capable, independent kids. Here's my latest for Washington Post. How to Raise Capable Kids Without Feeling Like a Jerk Published in Washington Post, January 5, 2021 (Photo… Continue reading How to Raise Capable Kids Without Feeling Like a Jerk
Who would have thought anyone could miss an 8-hour road trip. Well, in 2020, all things (and no things) are possible. My new essay: When There's No Holiday Road Trip Published December 22, 2020 in Your Teen
Yesterday, my youngest and I got our flu shots. It's our yearly routine to do this at Target, because Target gives each of us a $5 gift certificate, and some free money to spend immediately takes the sting out of a shot for most kids. (My elder two were a little put out that they… Continue reading 2020 Flu Shots: Our Interview with CDC Director Robert Redfield
Maybe it should be, but this is not an article about school. I definitely have no idea what to do about that. It's about parenting when you can't come up with the kind of knowledge and certainty that is, well, so quintessentially parental. And yet, we parent anyway, don't we? I Have No Idea What's… Continue reading I Have No Idea What’s Happening: 4 Ways I’m Parenting in Uncertainty
This is wild. But it's not all bad. 4 Lessons I Hope My Teens Learn from a Coronavirus Quarantine Published in Your Teen, March 2020
I'm so happy to share my latest, a feature article about intuitive eating for the January 2020 issue of Real Simple. My interest in intuitive eating began with both skepticism and curiosity (a personal story I may write about in the future) and transitioned into a reported article that took (off and on) most of… Continue reading Intuitive Eating Is a Happier and Healthier Way to Eat—Here’s How to Begin
I'm thrilled to be selected as one of the 10 moms gamely attempting to define motherhood in the Washington Post today: "She is a mother. She is vulnerable (just hurt her child, and you’ll see) and she is strong (just hurt her child, and you’ll see). She has been elevated (she is Mom) and she… Continue reading Washington Post: 10 Moms Define Motherhood