Growing up my Dad always made a point of telling us that none of us are adopted. When it comes to me and my Mom, he really could have saved his breath.  I look just like her.  We are very similar in other ways too. I know that I get my love of words and my passion for word-play from my Mom.  We like books and crossword puzzles and silly poems...

I was intrigued by an article from O, the Oprah Magazine today that talked about raising sons to be good husbands. The article talks about raising boys and the men they become and gets into quite a discussion about how we raise girls differently than boys. Before we launch into a massive debate on gender politics, I think we can all agree that...

"Alcoholism has an effect on everybody around the person suffering from it. This is especially true for a family." says William Belle in the Ole! Times. In his article, which recounts his own struggle with alcoholism and (for the moment) sobriety, he provides statistics about how pervasive the problem is: According to a 2002 survey conducted by...

Are kids more spoiled today than in years past? According to a Time/CNN poll, 80% of respondents felt that "kids today are more spoiled than kids of 10 or 15 years ago, and two-thirds of parents admit that their kids are spoiled." On the assumption that lovingly caring for your kids is good, but spoiling them is not so good, here are some highlights...

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An Ode to Dads

Courageous. Adventurous. Provider. Hero. Sage. Friend. All of these words could be used to describe the role of a father, and their central place in the life of their children. They won't always be perfect. They have faults and failures just as much as anyone. But as often as possible, especially this time of year, we want to celebrate dads everywhere...

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Helicopter Parent Syndrome

"The most important thing that parents can teach their children is how to get along without them." said Frank A. Clark. If he's right, then so-called "helicopter parents" (overprotective moms and dads who "swoop in" at a moments notice to protect their kids and prevent them from failing) are missing the mark. Why have we become afraid of failure?...

Not every girl gets to be Daddy's little girl. Many are missing the father-daughter relationship that is so essential for any child to have. The following excerpt is from H. Norman Wright's A Dad-Shaped Hole in My Heart. Dads, see for yourself and learn how to help heal that 'dad-shaped hole' in your daughter's heart. Daughters or even sons, consider...