The Liberated Parent
The Most Terrifying Sentence in the English Language: "I'm Bored"
It has more power to derail a peaceful afternoon, to induce parental panic, and to trigger a shame spiral than almost any other phrase. It is a four-word indictment of your entire parenting strategy. And in the split second after...
When "Mommy Juice" Stops Being a Joke
The clock hits 5:01 PM. A shift occurs in the atmospheric pressure of your home. The air thickens. The ambient noise of children playing curdles into a high-pitched whine of escalating demands. This is the witching hour. The beginning of...
Honesty is the only price of admission here. Clicking "I'm not ready" is the most truthful thing you might have done all day. You’ve rejected the pledge to challenge your beliefs, to open your mind to radical possibilities, to face things that feel dangerous.
Why You Want to Crawl Out of Your Skin
Your skin crawls. It starts as a faint hum in the late afternoon, a low-frequency vibration of irritation. A child hangs on your leg while you try to make dinner. Another one pulls on your shirt, whining for a snack....
A Mom's Guide to Taming the Primal Scream of "Mom Rage"
You’re a good mom. Let’s start there. Let’s tattoo that truth onto the inside of your skull before we go any further. You love your children with a fierce, world-breaking, primal intensity. You would throw yourself in front of a...
How Clean Homes Starve Your Child’s Brain
A neuroscientist and a toddler walk into a bar. You know what? Let's make it your kitchen instead. A neuroscientist and a toddler walk into your kitchen. The neuroscientist sees a laboratory of infinite possibility. A gleaming wonderland of volumetric...
He stands before you, a tiny, four-foot monument to defiance. His arms are crossed. His chin is jutting out with a solidity that could defy plate tectonics. You’ve just made a simple, reasonable request, "It's time to put the iPad...
"Helpful" Parenting Is Self-Esteem Theft
It happens twelve times before breakfast. Your child, a small human grappling with the brutal physics of a jacket zipper, lets out a grunt of frustration. His fingers fumble. The mechanism jams. A tiny storm of rage gathers in his...
Why “Good Job!” Is Ruining Your Kid
You know the scene. It’s practically baked into the DNA of modern parenting. Your child, face flushed with a mixture of pride and trepidation, holds up a piece of paper. On it is a chaotic, beautiful scribble of a purple...