I had a great Mother’s Day and hope you all did, too. My family was on vacation and that in itself made it a super day, but in addition to that, my daughter was loving and sweet in delightful ways and made me feel special.
Last month we ran an interesting article about parenting grown children, and I personally found it had substance I could relate to. Just because they’re taller than you doesn’t really change the parental responsibility, it just makes the responsibilities different. It means that new issues will emerge, like dealing with boyfriends or girlfriends or in-laws. It means that although they will be independent beings, somehow they will always be linked. Maybe some of the roles will have reversed a bit and now they may be helping you in ways you used to help them.
June is a month that presents parents of kids of all ages with a myriad of celebrations and milestones; everything from graduations to weddings, the beginning of camp to the beginning of summer school. It’s also the month when we celebrate fathers, and this issue has it’s share of articles relating to Dad. With increasing numbers of fathers opting to be primary caregivers rather than working outside the home, the role of Dad has altered and has become inclusive. When I was a kid, many of my friends hardly saw their dads. They were always working and were seldom home. Sad, but true.
The reality of extended families has also changed the picture and we now have step-dad and mom realities as well. Families are complex and no longer hidden behind the curtains and kept in the shadows. When I was nine years old my dad remarried my girlfriend’s mother and we became an instant new family. There were loads of issues associated with this that went unaddressed for years. In those days, people were very insular. They didn’t talk about things and they certainly didn’t entertain things like counseling. Nowadays, it’s a rare family who would respond with such denial to the complexities of life’s choices.
We’re so much wiser and more open and just having these parenting resources available helps in ways that went unaddressed in years past. We all know that not everything comes naturally and that there is information we need to help us do a better job.
We hope you find this issue informative and entertaining too! Our calendar is loaded with great things for every family to do around New York in this glorious month of June, which also happens to be my birthday month. No wonder I love it. Have fun! Happy summer.
Thanks for reading!
