parenting

I think we can all agree that there is some messed up stuff happening right now.

Most of us grow up envisioning the “perfect” family that we will have one day. One boy, one girl – 3 years apart. Right?

This is a public school, and every bloody week, there is at least one of these coming home. And before I go on, I know that our public schools are underfunded, and I know they need to get money somehow, but it’s getting ridiculous. At the moment, we are lucky enough that we can pay these fees. We can pay $20 for a picture our own child drew even though we get 20 of the same drawings every day for free. But not every public school family can. So many families are struggling to give their children the basics, to send them to school with breakfast in their tummies and lunch in their bags, without worrying about how they’re going to send their kid to the disco all their friends are going to, or how they’ll buy milk after sacrificing their last fiver for a Mother’s Day gift.

The teen years are difficult for everyone involved, and rehashing the same fights time and again is exhausting. You may be losing hope that you will have a healthy relationship with your kid before they turn 25. Don’t worry, it isn’t an impossible feat. You can learn to ease yourself through these arguments more effectively with your teen, while building a solid foundation of trust between you.

“Is she Black or white?” I asked another mom who was describing a little girl in her son’s class that she thought my family might know.

I’m now a mom of two, and very rarely do I have a moment to myself. Just now, I had a shower and I put my baby son in the bathroom with me, because he cries if he can’t see his mom. My three-year-old daughter sleeps in my bed, and always wants to sit on my lap. I’m with at least one other person 24 hours a day.And I hate to admit it, but it’s draining. I love my children more than anything. They are my favourite humans in the world, along with my husband. The reason why I am drained is because, as an introvert, constantly being around people saps my energy.

This article originally appeared on The Good Men Project and has been republi

I’m a person who needs to know the facts. I bring a notebook with me to every doctor’s appointment. I record important meetings. The research list for my memoir is pages long. Why should pregnancy be any different? And so the research began.