Daddies Do It Differently
on Nov 7, 2009 in fathering mothering parental conflict appreciation Before I was a mother, I was a teacher (which gives one the illusion that one knows how to parent…and that one knows how others should parent). I taught young children with autism, and provided home programming for some students after school and o...

Schpilka Baby
on Oct 25, 2009 in Spanish immersion bilingualism Russell Barkley schpilkas ADHD activity level Every Saturday Sophia and I go to a Mommy and Me Spanish-immersion class. I would very much like to give Sophia the gift of a second language, but unable to speak one myself, I decided we’d tackle bilingualism together. The Spanish class is wonde...

Where Does She Get It From?
on Oct 19, 2009I think I’m a fairly tolerant person. I can handle waiting on lines, even with an antsy toddler. I can deal with getting up far earlier than my circadian rhythm dictates each morning. I can cope with Sophie’s daily I-don’t-want-to-wear-a-coat f...

Hard Habit to Break
on Oct 11, 2009 in weaning breastfeeding extended breastfeeding There are probably some thoughts that are better off never put into words, let alone on paper. Ones that are too intensely personal, not for public consumption. The kinds of thoughts that inspire judgment even before they have left your lips.And ye...

Read the Baby
on Oct 5, 2009 in intuition research taking cues from your child instincts Some people go with their gut. Others prefer to follow popular opinion. I research obsessively.When I was pregnant, hardly a day would go by that I wasn’t pouring over a book about what not to do, what the clump of cells in my womb was doing, or wh...

Time Out!
on Sep 27, 2009 in time out New York Times behavior modification rewards Alfie Kohn unconditional love proactive parenting punishments I’m so sick of there being a right way of doing everything. And that that right way changes on a week-to-week basis. Currently, there is a strong backlash against behaviorism, and I have to admit, it’s throwing me into a bit of a tizzy. Mostly, b...

Nothing to Be Ashamed Of
on Sep 20, 2009 in NYTimes Lisa Belkin quality of sleep sleep Motherlode separate bedrooms stigma marriage Sometimes, the only way to reduce a stigma is to bulldoze over it, flattening it with personal experience and truth, encouraging others to come out and share their truths.And so, I’m coming out of my personal bedroom tonight. My “personal bedroom...

The Girl Who Mistook Her TV for a Vacuum
on Sep 13, 2009 in limiting television watching brain development vacuum ADHD TV television Vacuum (n): 1. A space entirely devoid of matter.It’s not easy to avoid television in America. They're in our cars, our grocery stores, our hospitals, our airports, our restaurants, our shops, our homes. They have migrated from the living room to...

At the Maul
on Sep 7, 2009 in mall fight flight or freeze verbal abuse I am giddy with the purchase of Sophia’s first black pair of Mary Janes and in the mood to do more damage. I push her stroller into Gymboree, and park it next to racks and racks of expensive, adorable clothes—brown crinolines, striped leggings,...

Why I Will Let Sophia Watch ABDC*
on Aug 30, 2009 in sportsmanship America's Best Dance Crew collaboration pride models of behavior television ABDC