It’s an ingrained response in most of us: when we do something wrong or hurtful, we say, “Sorry.” It’s basic good manners, and we want our kids to learn that courtesy, too – society expects it of them and will 

I’ve already missed the deadline on this article, twice. I had to be coaxed into writing it, even though the idea was mine. My day job has suffered, too; suddenly my reputation for attention-to-detail, respect for deadlines and fast turnaround 

I have to admit there are days when I wish I had more mother-daughter conflict at home, if only for the purpose of this column. I’d be well prepared for it: When I was 12 years old my aunt gave my 

When Tristan was three, he started Pivotal Response Training. At the time, he hardly spoke. So, like any good parent, while we waited for him to take this first verbal step, we took care of all the others that would 

As my older daughter makes her way toward the 10 and 12 years, I think more about parenting a tween. I can sense the inevitable drift happening. She loves to borrow her mom’s phone to text her friends. She has 

Inspired by the Japanese organizing consultant, Marie Kondo, I am a recently converted minimalist and a zealous de-clutterer. I am in total awe of this woman, a modern prophet who has earned millions showing people around the world how to 

As the air begins to smell of autumn, I feel a slight blip in my blood pressure indicative of two things: the excitement of the festive season and dread of its special balancing act. For the past few years, I 

“No!” My son cries adamantly looking at a picture of my husband and me. “This is didi and bhaiya!” He refuses to believe that the picture, taken only a few years back (three, to be exact), is of his amma and 

I’ve recently been giving more thought to the father daughter relationship, specifically to what role fathers play as supporters of feminist ideals. Having two daughters, I want them to be confident, secure and willing to try anything at all (except 

“What does it mean to do something like a girl?” this commercial asks. I know the answer to that one. I’ve been told, “You’re not, like, super-girly like other girls,” and I’ve taken it as a compliment. But as a child, 

I was one of those lucky teenagers who had no real problem with acne. I sailed through adolescence with only two or three pimples – so few I can’t even remember them. I do remember, however, friends for whom those 

It was raining outside. I had a runny nose and was shivering and gargling on and off the entire day. My son was playing on the floor beside me, and my mother was humming a song to him while cutting 

Running into an old classmate from college, my first question to her was, “Do you still dance?” “Mom, dance?! No way!” The tween boy beside her stared at me like I was crazy. Yet I remembered her to be a 

“Just finish this last one thing,” a part of me urges, as the other part of me counts down to 6 pm — the time, that each and every day, invariably and definitely, I am hit by an avalanche of 

With the heat descending upon us in July and August, we headed to the hills with family. We would be able to relax and get out of the usual routine.  Good goals at the end of a summer, before school 

Peals of laughter from my son usually make me laugh, too. This is true for all mothers, I imagine. But last month, for the first time, I found myself frowning at my son’s laughter. I found him laughing at someone 

“She seems very good, but…” There was always a ‘but’ when someone asked me how things were going with my new nanny. I was six months into motherhood when I finally caved and hired her, and while my days were 

“Come home and bring your son as well,” my friend invited. “We can hang out, and our kids can be entertained by my son’s nanny — the TV!” My friend is funny, so I laughed. But I realized she was