parenting

44 posts

Parenting Off The Grid: Goin’ Back to Nature

Do you have fantasies of sitting around a wood stove reading stories to your children? Do you fantasize about living in harmony with nature? Would you like to garden alongside your children and raise your food naturally? If so, Parenting Off the Grid may be for you.

“Off the grid” is an expression that may be unfamiliar to those who live in urban environments. It’s a movement that embraces a commitment to live as self-sufficiently as possible. Some people are committed enough to live without public utilities entirely. Others use a combination of solar power, farming and a minimalist lifestyle to make themselves more self-sufficient than most people. There is a certain type of western U.S. resident that aspires to this lifestyle which is more readily available in Montana, Wyoming and certain parts of Colorado. Continue reading →

How Your Crummy Childhood Can Work Out Okay

Reflecting on the pieces I’ve written here thus far, one might get the impression that NotSoDeepSouth is a trembling pile of human wreckage. Nothing could be further from the truth. I hardly tremble at all. But seriously, here’s a sample of stories I’ve contributed:

My analyst likes to tell me that any one of these events would be enough to keep us talking for a good while but all of them together makes it seem like a minor miracle that I’m still alive. I recall staring at her blankly when she said this. What does one say to that? Continue reading →

Daddy’s Little Hell on Wheels

I wouldn’t consider myself a chauvinist but I admit that I was a tad disappointed when I first learned my wife and I were going to have a girl. Honestly, the prospect frightened me a little. I imagined a room decorated in pink, swathed in rainbows and flowers. Everything would be soft and perhaps frilly with bits of lace.

Even more worrying to my male brain was the prospect that I wouldn’t be able to do the things I’d hoped to do with a son. Games of catch would be replaced with tea parties, Hot Wheels with baby dolls and she’d rather watch My Little Pony over Transformers.  Continue reading →

The Lotus Birth

I am going to write about crazy people who aren’t directly involved in parenting but first, I have to do this one particular topic. Anyone who read my recent article on mothering.com might have seen a brief discussion of Lotus Birth in the comments section. This article will expand on this practice that taught MattMcBoy an important lesson: Never play the “I dare you to Google this” game with BBQ. My own husband won’t play that game with me. Warning: If you Google Lotus Birth images, you have only yourself to blame. There is a reason there are no images in this article. Continue reading →

Banning Children From Public Places Is A Thing. A Good Thing.

A perfect story for our young and childless Crasstalkers.

There is a new wave of DINK – double income, no kids.  And with this wave comes restrictions on when or even an outright banning on children allowed at restaurants, grocery stores, and first-class seats in airlines. You may be surprised to hear this, but I am all for it.

I remember going to Jean Georges about seven years ago and shocked that two parents thought it was a good idea to bring their 6 year old to eat with them there. They gave their daughter some sort of hand-held game to keep her occupied and quiet, an elementary school pacifier. That child had no more reason to be there than a kitten. Not appropriate. Continue reading →