February 1, 2012The States of Our Unions report, by the National Marriage Project, delves into the health of marriage in America. The Executive Summary includes remarks on being a parent and navigating the marital relationship (excerpt):
In this report, we find that married parents are more likely than their childless peers to feel their lives have a [...]
Posted in Divorce Grand Rapids, Families/Children, Relationships 
No Comments »
January 11, 2012USA Today’s Ask Stacy reminds us of the three elements of a true apology: “sorry,” responsibility for the choice taken, and promise for the future.
Stacy Kaiser writes (excerpt):
A true apology should consist of three elements: taking responsibility for your mistake, saying you’re sorry and a commitment to never do what hurt that person again. . [...]
Posted in Families/Children, General, Relationships No Comments »
October 19, 2011The Wall Street Journal explains the challenges in finding the right patient therapist fit and how those challenges can be overcome by asking three questions: How would you propose treating me? How long do you think it would take? How do you know what you do works?
Melinda Beck writes (excerpt):
One issue for prospective patients is [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Gentler Divorce, Relationships No Comments »
October 4, 2011USA Today and Health Day reveal the secret to getting through a divorce and coming out okay: self-compassion.
Robert Preidt writes (excerpt):
They [the University of Arizona researchers] explained that self-compassion — a combination of kindness toward oneself, recognition of common humanity, and the ability to let painful emotions pass — “can promote resilience and positive outcomes [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Gentler Divorce, Relationships, Something Different No Comments »
May 22, 2011CNN provides a number of insights into infidelity (of course in the wake of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver), and what comes next. There also are 3 tips for when you discover an affair.
Amy Wilson writes (excerpt):
[Dr. Steve Solomon] gave this advice:
1) Don’t rush to make any big decisions, especially irreversible ones.
2) Don’t tell [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Relationships No Comments »
December 2, 2010Love and Logic News challenges us with measuring the energy we exert in trying to find the perfect gift for our children compared to the energy we exert showing our children what a gift they are to us.
Dr. Charles Fay writes (excerpt):
During this Christmas season, my hope is that you’ll…
* spend more time playing with [...]
Posted in Families/Children No Comments »
October 12, 2010Grand Rapids Collaborative Divorce shows us how the collaborative divorce process can move through perceptions by promoting fairness in ways the court system simply cannot (excerpt):
In a collaborative divorce, you are accorded dignity and respect. The commitment from the very start is not about the past, fighting or blame. The professionals move the [...]
Posted in Collaborative Divorce, Families/Children, Gentler Divorce No Comments »
October 1, 2010USA Todayshows us that women apologize more than men (and want more apologies from men) because they have a different standard for offensive behavior.
Sharon Jayson writes (excerpt):
New research on apologies from Canadian psychologists finds that men have a “higher threshold” for bad behavior, meaning they just don’t see “wrong” the same way women do, according [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Relationships No Comments »
September 30, 2010USA Today reminds us that imperfections can “bring life together perfectly.”
Craig Wilson writes (excerpt):
But what I was most pleased to learn is that wabi sabi pertains to people, too — that you accept each other, even when they are “imperfect, unfinished and mortal.” It says so right here in the article.
I like the word “unfinished.” [...]
Posted in Families/Children, General, Relationships, Something Different No Comments »
September 3, 2010The Associated Press reported on Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg speech at a Colorado judicial conference. She commented on parenting a spirited child.
Kristen Wyatt writes (excerpt):
Ginsburg told a humorous story about having a young son while teaching law school at Columbia University in New York. When her rambunctious boy acted up in class, [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Something Different No Comments »
August 18, 2010USA Today highlights the problems displaced workers are encountering when their COBRA subsidy ends or they do not qualify.
Note: At the time of a divorce, an employee’s former spouse is eligible for COBRA coverage for 36 months, but someone needs to pay the full premium plus the 2% administrative fee. In contrast, [...]
Posted in Divorce Grand Rapids, Families/Children, Finances/Tax No Comments »
August 2, 2010The New York Times highlights the “Un-Divorced” who choose to stay separated.
Pamela Paul writes (excerpt):
“Many people I’ve worked with over time enjoy the benefits of being married: the financial perks, the tax breaks, the health care coverage,” said Toni Coleman, a couples therapist in McLean, Va. “They maintain a friendship, they co-parent their kids, they [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Finances/Tax, Relationships No Comments »
July 21, 2010USA Today highlights the rise in people–especially teens but also adults–who send text messages with sexual content or nude pictures of themselves.
Stephanie Steinberg writes (excerpt):
To combat the problem, Sophy says, schools should incorporate lessons about appropriate texting in sex education classes. LG Mobile Phones also launched an initiative called LG Text Ed in which parents [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Relationships No Comments »
June 16, 2010USA Today shows how “non-resident” dads who don’t live with their children are staying involved with them. Half of all children will spend part of their lives living apart from their fathers.
Sharon Jayson writes (excerpt):
“The point isn’t what fathers do; it’s whether the kid thinks or believes the father cares about them,” says Philip Cowan, [...]
Posted in Families/Children, General, Relationships No Comments »
June 11, 2010The Love and Logic Institute issued its weekly email newsletter with help for stepparents feeling the need to discipline stepchildren. The four tips flow from the Love and Logic consultant style of parenting (fully documented in the many resources available at and through the website).
Dr. Charles Fay writes (excerpt) that consultant parents and [...]
Posted in Families/Children, General No Comments »
March 3, 2010Common Ground sheds light on four myths about marriage.
Claire Maisonneuve writes (excerpt):
Myth #1: Resolving your conflicts is the key to a happy marriage.
[The key is that partners need to feel like they are accepted for who they are and have a fundamental sense of fondness and admiration for each other.]
Myth #2: Problems of sexual desire [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Relationships 1 Comment »
November 8, 2009The New York Times shows how children of same-sex couples are doing just fine, highlighting research by Abbie E. Goldberg, an assistant professor in the department of psychology at Clark University and author of “Lesbian and Gay Parents and Their Children.”
Lisa Belkin writes (excerpt):
More enlightening than the similarities, however, are the differences, the most striking [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Relationships, Something Different 1 Comment »
November 4, 2009The New York Timesdiscusses a study about involving fathers, as well as the benefits of co-parenting or parallel parenting.
Laurie Tarkan writes (excerpt):
. . . [T]he critical difference was not greater involvement by the fathers in child-rearing but greater emotional support between couples.
“The study emphasizes the importance of couples’ figuring parenting out together and accepting [...]
Posted in Divorce Grand Rapids, Families/Children 1 Comment »
October 22, 2009USAToday shares some of Uma Thurman’s reflection on motherhood and “Motherhood,” including struggling to balance home and work lives, and being caught outside in her nightgown.
Olivia Barker writes (excerpt):
So, then, what does motherhood mean to her?
“It’s an invitation to love. It’s the most expansive, loving experience I have ever had … humbling, beautiful” — nightgown-as-streetwear [...]
Posted in Families/Children, Relationships, Something Different No Comments »
October 9, 2009I am alarmed that we’ve heard very little outrage at the normalization of an adult woman having sex with an adolescent boy as seen in the academy award winning movie The Reader. This lack of anger speaks to the gender constructed sexuality in our culture. For adolescent boys, it is considered titillating and complimentary to [...]
Posted in Families/Children 1 Comment »
