I hoped and wished this day would never come. But it did. And it brought with it another phase of parenting. It’s the phase where one of my kids is no longer naïve. It’s the phase where their childhood innocence is a thing of the past. It’s the phase just before the sex talk phase.

I wish that my nephew had a visible disability.

If you want your child to think you are the hippest parent around, you'd better jump on the app bandwagon now! Apps are available for all kinds of mobile devices and will keep the kiddos entertained when you are busy, or give you something fun to play along with them.

The winner of this round is yet to be undecided.

Thankfully, this particular battle has nothing to do with working mom guilt. No, this is the war between who I am when I act in accordance to my upbringing and who I am when I make a conscious effort to break free of my upbringing.

I’m talking in riddles. I apologize.

I really look forward to my Friday nights. It’s when I can curl up on the sofa with a nice glass of wine and my hubby snuggled close, watching a movie we rented. Sometimes we even make it into a family night, where the kids join us with a fun snack. It’s the one night out of the week that I actually can relax. It’s the one night where my mind can be taken away from all the stresses of the week.

I'm a big supporter of teachers and public schools. Having worked as a guidance counselor for many years, I know how difficult it is to teach kids with a variety of educational challenges when there are few resources and often less support. At the same time, I've had to do some advocating for my children to get the classes they need. My son was recommended for honors Biology, but wasn't put in the class. I was told there was no room, which I found unacceptable. I offered to bring a desk and a chair, but was still told no.

I’ve been reading this book called Promoting Executive Function in the Classroom by Lynn Meltzer. It’s not a fun read, but it does have some pretty good tips. Especially on how to boost your child’s memory recall. As a parent of three elementary age kids, I’m always open to trying new things to make studying easier and faster. And with an end result of A and B grades.

“I’ve decided not to go to college.”
For those of you with high school age children, how do you respond to that? What goes through your mind?

When I heard it from my daughter last week, I felt…anxious. What do you mean you don’t want to go to college?? We have told her for many years now-as do most parents-that we will support her and be proud of any career she chooses as long as she is passionate about it and as long as she is willing to work tremendously hard to do it well. Whatever “it” was.

“Family managers are accustomed to being surrounded mostly by people who are clearly dependent, unable to function fully on their own."

"Spending quality time with people with limited vocabularies doesn't hone complex strategic thinking."