The Captivity of Motherhood
My essay The Captivity of Motherhood was recently one of the most popular articles on The Atlantic. Hope you will have a read and leave a comment.
Poor Little Rich Women
When our family moved from the West Village to the Upper East Side in 2004, seeking proximity to Central Park, my in-laws and a good public school, I thought it unlikely that the neighborhood would hold any big surprises. For many years I had immersed myself — through interviews, reviews of the anthropological literature and participant-observation — in the lives of women from the Amazon basin to sororities at a Big Ten school. I thought I knew from foreign.
Everything You Think About Mothers and Childhood Is Wrong
Developmentalist Jean Piaget famously observed that "play is the work of children." But in some places, work is the work of children. And that's not a bad thing.
Fieldnotes: Baby CZ Opening and Childhood on the Upper East Side
The Manhattan tribe I study lives in a state of ecological release. Basically, that means life is good. As is the case for the fortunate of the industrialized world, subsistence is a given — my tribe are not struggling to get enough calories for themselves and their kids to avoid starvation, not by a long shot. They are not at war (even when their country is). There is little competition for abundant resources. And they face no predators (now that Bernie Madoff is in jail).
The World's Best Dads....
If you look to the Aka people, foragers of Central Congo, the bar is pretty high on Father's Day. The Aka are known among anthropologists as "the best fathers in the world." During his fieldwork among the Aka, anthropologist Barry Hewlett learned that Aka dads are highly involved with their children:
Dad's getting wed? How to cope as an adult stepchild
When Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles married eight years ago, these royals did something utterly common. They formed a stepfamily of a particular sort - one uniquely modern, every day more widespread yet significantly “under the radar.” Each had adult offspring - the now-Duchess’s son was 31 and her daughter 27, while Princes William and Harry were 22 and 20, respectively.
April Issue of StepMom Magazine!
The new issue of StepMom magazine is now available. In it, you will find sound advice, compassion and the information you need to keep yourself and your partnership strong. Hope you will have a look at my piece of Disengaging. What are the benefits of doing less in your remarriage with children? Is disengaging for you?
What Are Happily Married People Doing All the Time?
If you are married to or partnered with a man with an ex and kids, you need every leg up you can get to keep yourself sane — and keep your partnership alive. Hope you will read my latest on psychologytoday.com. Then tell your husband or partner what happily married people are doing all the time...and leave a comment!
What do Divorced and Repartnered Dads Really Want for Father's Day?
If you're not a subscriber to StepMom Magazine, here is a chance to read a couple of sample articles from the most recent issue. In one, I discuss the dilemmas of divorced dads on Father's Day — and the gift your partner with kids will appreciate most of all. Hope you will have a look!
Matzoh and Jellybeans: What interfaith couples can learn from Stepfamilies
Do you do a seder, Easter Sunday, neither, both? Hope you will have a look at my latest post for psychologytoday.com. As it turns out, interfaith couples can learn a lot from stepfamilies...