This month is when colleges around the country invite parents to visit for Parents’ Weekend. By now, the new students have had enough time to settle in and get comfortable with their surroundings and classes and hopefully are ready to see Mom and Dad without hiding in their luggage on the return trip. On that day back in August or […]
A recent Talker Research poll indicates that more than half of parents of young adults (age 18 to 28) who have moved away from home, expect a daily text from their kids and almost half expect a daily phone call. While the sample size is relatively small (1000 parents, mostly Gen X moms). I found these results surprising. When I […]
The second-year college drop off hits just a bit different. I’m not sure it’s accurate to say it’s easy, but it’s mostly likely not as hard as year one. It may be the change in your child’s attitude. In many cases, they are returning “home,” and while their use of that word for a place away from us is a […]
Last week I hit a new milestone – I realized I’m entering my 20th year as a marching band parent and have been to almost as many Parent Previews. For the uninitiated, a Parent Preview is the first time the marching band performs for an audience, generally at the end of Band Camp (an intense period of learning to march […]
Some parents complain about how their children don’t talk to them. They refuse to connect with parents on social media, or even have them blocked. Some parents declare that they would not allow such behavior, since they pay for the phone, internet, etc. Personally, I can’t really relate to these comments. Honestly, it’s possible that my kids may be blocking […]
Anyone who knows me well knows that I am a glass-half-full person. (My mom has referred to me – affectionately – as a “Pollyanna” on more than one occasion.) The way I see it, the teen years move at a frenetic pace. We always seem to be looking at the next event, the next deadline. Before we know it, we […]
The teen years are when we most often hear about what everyone else’s parents do. Everyone else’s parents let them stay out until 2 am. Everyone else’s parents are letting them spend an unsupervised weekend at the shore. Everyone else’s parents let them do whatever they want! Guess what? Everyone else’s parents are hearing the same thing. Is your teen […]
Less than three years into her first post-college full time job, my oldest child bought a house. There was no trust fund, lavish gifts, lottery win or other windfall. She did this fully on her own, with an average salary, through good money management. As a result, several people have asked for my secret: How did I teach these skills? […]
Being a mom taught me that when you love someone, simply observing and acknowledging their passions can be as meaningful (or even more so), than doing these things yourself. You don’t need to share that passion to take joy from the activity. My four children are four very different individuals, and though they do share some interests, each has specific […]
We work hard all year and look forward to taking time off. We may have vision boards with sandy beaches or mountain retreats, with families sitting around fire pits or playing games around a large table. We count down the days to cozy family time, where everyone is smiling through long hikes, enjoying new foods and settling into strange beds […]
