I’m having a good quarantine. Can I say that? By Lauren Apfel
parenting
Lately I tell myself that I’ll start to eat healthier. I won’t finish my children’s meals. I won’t pick off their plates, like a mother vulture. By Kelly Niebergall
Every night this family of five sits down together to watch a movie. Rotating who picks, no opting out. By Daisy Alpert Florin
This job is hard—physically, mentally, emotionally—it’s so damn hard. By Maureen Boesen
Let your children see you trying. Let them see you cry. By Kaci Curtis
He said, “I never knew you started dinner at 4pm every weekday.” By Teresa B. Duffy
How you went from the rigid enforcer to letting your kids to eat cake in their bedrooms. How you learned to wait. How you learned what mattered. By Michelle Riddell
My kids are used to my loud, Jewish-mom complaining—but not this unkindness. Not this anxiety-fueled rage. By Hannah Grieco
We want to hear from you. Motherwell is here to tell your stories.
When children feel pressured to perform well in the public realm, they have a hard time recognizing what really matters to them. By Dr. Madeline Levine
What brings this group of mothers together beyond the common thread of parenthood and our kids’ friendships? By Lauran Bell
I’d rather take the time to create something I want than to compromise. In a small, sugared way, I see it as a rebellion. By Shannon Williams
We’ve had a rough time lately in ways that go beyond the ordinary awkward de-nesting of middle school. By Annie O’Brien
On Friday nights, I would rush through my daughter’s bedtime books, slurring words and skipping full pages. By Shelley Mann Hite
We are a generation of parents who micromanage our children’s safety. And yet, despite the very real fear of death, we keep sending them to school. By Francie Arenson Dickman
If the secret to friendship is hours logged, mothers of school-age children have a distinct advantage. By Michelle Riddell
They all took turns as babies, then toddlers, riding in the stroller’s deep reclining seat, casually enjoying Cheerios or clutching a favorite toy as I bounced behind. By Cara McDonough
As parents of older kids, socializing with other moms was apparently no longer part of the job description. By Anne Helena
Ten of the best books out there that will help make the work of parenting easier, less worrisome, and more fun.
Did my son really need a backpack every time he left the house? By Sherri Sacconaghi
I said goodbye to two decades’ worth of resources and relationships. It seemed perfectly appropriate for my emotions to go haywire. By Nicole Melanson
“Ryan,” I say. “If you ever want to play with the girl dolls, we have them. In this house, you can play with whatever you want.” By Ann Wainwright
How exactly could I break this news to a kid who already went to bed every night scared of death to the point of tears? By Tanya Mozias Slavin
“No skinny pants” was a rule we could not and did not obey. Instead, we pulled our children out of the school. By Jennie Burke
Take a minute to shine the spotlight on your child and praise them for reporting the behavior. By Lori Orlinsky