THE AWKWARD MOM

because uncomfortable conversations are the ones worth having

Category: Culture (page 1 of 8)

Why Your Marriage Needs Sex (& other recent articles)

Reading Time: 2 minutes

needs sex

When my four kids were little and life resembled a 24-hour Bounty commercial, I read a statistic in Parents magazine that something like 78% of new moms, when choosing between sex and sleep, chose sleep.

Um. Duh. read more

“I just don’t understand”: What it says about me

Reading Time: 4 minutes

I just don't understand

“I just don’t understand how…”

I heard it again this week from someone else. This is after hearing it more times than I could count with someone else’s conflict. read more

The Events of January 6: 5 Ways to Talk and Deal as a Family

Reading Time: 4 minutes

January 6

My eleven-year-old put into words what likely more than one American has been thinking about the tragic and troubling events of January 6. “2021 was supposed to be better than 2020! We’re only six days in!”

And then there was my 16-year-old’s assessment. “If we were describing the U.S. in terms of health, I’d say we’re spiking a fever.” read more

Navigating Political Polarization in Your Family

Reading Time: 2 minutes

political polarization

My 16-year-old was recently awarded his driver’s permit–okay, yikes–and with it, was pre-registered to vote. We don’t fall down the line politically, which I’m generally okay with. (You may remember we’re a lot different: see When Your Child is Different from What You Expected.)

As my kids grow older…so do their opinions. Sometimes I’m unprepared for the ways my boys and I don’t see eye-to-eye. read more

“I want to write. Got tips?” Part 2

Reading Time: 6 minutes

writing

Missed Part 1 on writing? Grab it here.

The English teacher of my junior year could have, at varying points in the year, landed squarely in both “Wisest Writing Mentor” and “She Needs a Pat on the Back…Off a Cliff” categories.

She scrawled Blah over my paper titles. Castigated my writing publicly. Scoffed at my conclusions. read more

“Am I addicted to my phone?” Breaking your screen habits

Reading Time: 2 minutes

addicted to my phone

I heard a few months ago Google was experiencing a surge in the terms “beach vacation”. (This was three or so months into the Year that Will Live in Infamy for its Terribleness.) I still have one friend living on the same tank of gas when her state locked down (five months to the tank = problem). So if your phone has been providing a bit of an imaginary getaway lately: I get it.  But maybe you’re worrying, “Am I addicted to my phone?”

Even simple excessive screen time reshapes the brain’s structure and function. It inhibits our emotional processes, executive attention, decision making, and cognitive control.[i] read more

End Racial Discrimination. Start at Home, with These Ideas

Reading Time: 3 minutes

end racial discriminationI know I wasn’t the only mom whose gut sunk like a stone when I heard of the death (“passing” seems a misnomer) of George Floyd. Just weeks after our family discussion about Ahmaud Arbery, we sat down in lieu of online church to talk again about racial discrimination.

Truth: Sometimes I wish I didn’t tell you I’d help with “uncomfortable conversations…worth having.”

But here’s another truth: Those of you readers of color probably didn’t have an option for this uncomfortable conversation with your kids. read more

Coronavirus: Tips to Talk to Kids

Reading Time: 5 minutes

kids coronavirus family

So maybe like me, you got the automated notice from the school yesterday that your kids–surprise!–have an extra week of spring break next week, because #coronavirus.

And maybe like me, a member of your family braved Costco this week. Or maybe you now possess a weird amount of toilet paper–which according to a meme I saw yesterday, is now the bottom rung of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. read more

Fiction Book List: What I’d Recommend from My Last Couple of Years

Reading Time: 5 minutes

fiction

Before I was ever a writer, I was a reader.

But it’s fair to say that being a writer strongly influences how I want to read–and vice versa. read more

A Parent’s Attention is Like a Flattened Squirrel

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Seen this meme? For innocents like me, it’s a little too eerily true to be funny, folks. No laughing!

This is occasionally how I feel about life. So. Many. Things compete for my attention.  read more

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