Parenting
Dispatch From the Front Line of the “You Are Not a Princess” Wars
On Wednesday, the Huffington Post published this story about a “pro-women” advertising campaign from a Kentucky-based all-girls prep school. Mercy Academy’s “You Are Not a […]
Your Cell Phone Is Stealing Your Soul
“Do you remember,” my husband said in the middle of yesterday’s Eagles game, apropos of nothing, “how when you used to call a friend’s house, […]
Study: Day Care Could Cost You As Much as College
CBS Philly reports on a new study suggesting day care costs rival college in the tally of lifetime child-rearing expenses. The station talks to Shawn Towey, […]
Would You Let Apple Babysit Your Child?
In India, a 17-year-old girl committed suicide after her parents restricted her use of Facebook and her cell phone use. And though it sounds extreme […]
A Tale of Two School Lunches: Excess in America, Insecticide in India
It was the juxtaposition, I think, that got to me. The first story in the Wall Street Journal told how the headmistress of that school […]
Dad Files: 6 Things Every New Dad Should Know
A few weeks ago, I gave a talk for expectant parents at the Please Touch Museum. I can’t be sure what it meant to the […]
Wharton Researcher Says Young People Uninterested in Parenthood
Wharton prof Stewart Friedman has a new book out, Baby Bust, New Choices for Men and Women in Work and Family, in which he examines how fewer young […]
How Having a Baby Later in Life Affects Your Breast-Cancer Screenings
I’m almost 40, and I’m about to have my second baby. It’s comforting at least to know that I’m not alone: A recent Los Angeles […]
Philly Researcher Helps Prove New Baby Smell is Real
The New York Times reports on research proving that “new baby smell” is a real thing—nature’s way of making moms even more attached to (and […]
A New Study on Breastfeeding Proves… We Read Too Many Studies
A new study tells us that many moms quit nursing because they’re nervous about nursing. Finally!!! A study that proves we read too many studies! […]
You Can Save This Penguin. Or You Can Turn the Page.
I read in the news last week that the Detroit Zoological Society is building the largest center in the United States devoted to penguins. Construction […]
Does Your Company Have a Bring Your Parent to Work Day?
Lest you think that “helicopter parenting” is an American thing, know this: a French woman was just charged with fraud for taking the Baccalaureate test […]
God Goes to College
In four years of college, I had, among others, the following roommates and suitemates: • An Ohioan prima donna who pledged a sorority as soon […]
38 Reasons the Cost of College Is Worth Every. Single. Penny.
The high cost of education has been very much in the news of late, particularly after the President’s recent speech about his plan to bring […]
10 Reasons I’m Glad Summer Is Over
As an academic and a mother, I think of the year as running from September to June, even though the number changes in January. I’ve […]