Parenting/Family/Life
Hey there, Around here winter has reached that stage I'm calling the Great Softening. Finally, finally, finally, the temperature is getting above freezing every day and the drip of water and shrinking snow promises that spring is slowly creeping in. Once again, spring will win. This, plus good news about COVID numbers, means I'm feeling… Continue reading The Latest: My New Article + Bonus | Can I Help? ❤️| Tidbits
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.
Hey there, Over and over, I've wondered how parents of young kids are making it these days. Because I stayed home with my kids when they were small, doing that with a side of pandemic thrown in is where my mind goes first: The isolation of new motherhood without being able to go to a… Continue reading The Latest: How to Survive Parenthood | Quests | Something Delicious
Hey there, Anyone else have whiplash from this long, strange January? We started with so much hope, a fresh page. Then, worsening COVID numbers (including the illness of one of my loved ones, who has since recovered), violence at the Capitol, impeachment. Last week, I felt an unfamiliar sensation: hope. The week was rightly dominated… Continue reading The Latest: Art and Hope | “Crap” | Tiny Parties
Hey there, So much for our shiny, bright, new 2021. It's like we got a new pair of white sneakers and immediately stepped in a mud puddle. I have a lot to say, much of which I'm still working to articulate, but for now I will say this: 1) the pervasive lies about election fraud… Continue reading The Latest: Ruined Shoes | Loved Ones | Writing News
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
[Following is Sharon's newsletter. To subscribe in your inbox, sign up here.] Hey friends, We're almost there! It's not news that 2020 has been hard. The week before Christmas, I did a super-informal poll on Twitter asking how everyone was doing. About half selected "pretty good, considering," 37% said "just OK," and 11% are "really struggling." No… Continue reading The Latest: 🌟Goodbye 2020, Hello 2021🌟 | Organizational Goodies | Reader Tidbits
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
[Following is Sharon's newsletter. To subscribe, sign up here.] Hey there, One evening when my oldest was a toddler and I was pregnant with my second, my oldest got very sick. Scott was working late. Again and again, I changed his sheets. Or did the best I could, anyway, with my pregnant belly leaning like… Continue reading The Latest: Clarity | Comforts | Peppermint Patties
[Following is Sharon's email newsletter. To subscribe in your inbox, click here.] Hey there, It's SNOWING here in Ohio today. I have to admit I'm a delighted child when it comes to the first snow of the season or, really, snow in any part of December. So exciting! But after the novelty wears off, my seasonal… Continue reading The Latest: Good Clothes | Dinner Games | Little Gifts