Parenting

It’s a beautiful fall afternoon: the sun is shining in an impossibly blue sky, the wind is whipping through the trees, and out on the field, six five-year-olds are chasing after a soccer ball. There’s my son, with the black “3” emblazoned on the back of his white jersey. You can tell which player he is, even without the number. He’s the one who follows the ball the full length of the (admittedly short) field, the one whose kicks always go in the direction of the right goal, the one who cares so hard about winning that he pushes himself through the whole game. His focus makes him stand-out in an age group where the players are as often seen twirling aimlessly at the wrong end of the field, stealing the ball from their own teammates, or climbing on the goal posts.

Men may not go on a hormonal rollercoaster with their pregnant partners, but once the baby shows up, their bodies biologically transition into "daddy mode," suggests a new study finding that levels of testosterone, the "macho" sex hormone, drop in new fathers. "Men are, to a certain degree, hardwired to take care of their kids," study researcher Lee Gettler, of Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois, told LiveScience. "This is important because traditional models of human evolution have portrayed women as the gatherers that take care of the kids and stay behind."

Parents, grandparents, siblings, teachers—at one time or other, we all worry about our teens behind the wheel of a car. Although licensed teens have attended driver’s education programs and passed the state examination to receive a driver’s license, we still worry about their lack of road experience.

Teens, we know, tend to have a mind of their own—and we love them for it. But how do you express your concerns about a dating partner without alienating your teen?

Do you ever have a loved one express their struggles to you? Do you wonder what you should say to help them? It is important to know how to respond. After all, this is someone you care about. You want what is best for them, and they are counting on you for help. The key to responding appropriately can be quite simple. However, many of the common responses we give to our struggling loved ones may do more damage than good.

I sighed long as I looked out the window of my plane cresting above the Dulles airport. My husband and I had been married five years – most of which were spent living and working in Washington DC. It had been a difficult year. Months of failed fertility attempts, and a tenuous situation that developed concerning my professional career. The company I worked for was dissolving, legal tensions had cropped up concerning a non-compete most employees had signed, and I was caught in the middle – trying to perform administrative responsibilities while also representing the needs of our staff. In short, the mental harangue over the whole predicament was a nightmare. I hadn’t slept well in weeks and I was beginning to lose weight I couldn’t afford to lose.