When I became pregnant for the first time more than 15 years ago, a friend told me words that I have never forgotten: “Having children is like having your heart walking outside your body.” His words were sweet, but I still didn’t fully understand them. When my son was born, those words came to life,
Growing up, celebrations in my family were basically reserved for birthdays and Christmas. We don’t really celebrate academic achievements or traditional milestones. Those things were seen simply as expectations, not necessarily achievements worthy of recognition. Now that I’m a parent of teenagers, I’ve found myself intentionally doing the opposite: celebrating the small victories on the
I’m a summer Grinch. I do not thrive in hot climates. I don’t have money for an extravagant vacation. Perhaps my least favorite thing about summer is that my family’s sense of routine is disrupted. My two children, ages 10 and 12, spend several weeks of the summer at day camp, but we also have
This essay as they said it is based on a conversation with tony hawkin collaboration with Qunol. It has been edited for length and clarity.. My wife and I enjoy any opportunity to have our children around, now that they are mostly in their 20s and 30s. Our youngest son is going to college next
I sent four kids (my son and three stepchildren) to college, so I thought I’d experienced almost everything in this process: campus visits, moves, loans, roommate problems, and family weekends. As my youngest son prepares for college, I thought there wouldn’t be many new experiences for me, but I was wrong. My last child (who
Just when I turned 30, I moved to the Washington, DC area to look for a new job. I had just gotten out of a serious relationship and was finally moving out of the small town where I had grown up. I was ready to start a new chapter of my life and eager to