Today, Judy (also of Talking Thirty) shares 8 tips for making mom friends: As a new working mom, one thing I struggled with was meeting other local moms with kids my son's age. I either had local friends who weren't moms or mom friends who weren't local. I felt it was important that my little guy form childhood friendships and that I connect with local moms who shared similar interests. Unfortunately, my work schedule made it impossible for me to participate in weekday, daytime mommy & me classes and local playgroups. Over time, I found ways to forge friendships; here are 8 ways to make mom friends:

Today, Debbie (also of Two Adopt Two) shares five tips for coping when your partner works long hours: I'm not a single parent, but I often feel like one because I'm married to a hospital physician. My spouse works long, irregular weekday hours + one weekend a month, and he's seldom able to predict when he's coming home. Like any new parent, when we first adopted our kids I had trouble adapting to this challenging schedule. However, we recently celebrated our six-year adoption anniversary, and I realized I've learned to cope, even thrive. Here's some advice I wish I'd had starting out as a sometimes-single parent:

Today, Jane (also of see jane blog) shares 10 tips for talking to kids about difficult topics: This past fall I had to tell my kids that I had thyroid cancer. We've had grandparents pass in the past few years. Sad events have taken place in the U.S. In short, I have had many opportunities to figure out how to talk to my kids about difficult topics. Today, I wanted to share 10 recommendations for having these conversations with your kids:

Today, Jennifer shares six things to consider when deciding whether or not to keep twins (or triplets, or more!) together in school: As a parent of multiples there comes a time when you are faced with the difficult decision of classroom placement. Should you separate or keep your kids together? We were faced with this dilemma last spring as our twins neared the end of kindergarten. We had always believed in keeping them together and had done so for pre-K and kindergarten. However, as we watched our twins develop during kindergarten we decided to place them in different classes for first grade. Today I wanted to share recommendations on how to negotiate this process:

Today, Jennifer shares six tips to help kids overcome fear of dogs: My son Liam is intensely afraid of dogs, despite never having had a bad experience with a dog. And of course it seems as if dogs are everywhere we go! My husband believes that Liam will eventually outgrow this fear in time, and while I've been trying to patiently wait this out (we are going on six and a half years now!), I've been collecting ideas on what we can do to help him overcome his fear. Here are six strategies we've been working on:

Today, Lindsey (also of A Design So Vast) shares four astute tips for parenting tweens: My daughter turned 10 a few months ago, and while the tween years are technically between the ages of 9 to 12, this particular birthday felt important, auspicious. We are tiptoeing over a line, she and I. As I move through this next season of motherhood, more than anything I want my daughter to keep talking to me. This priority informs all of my actions these days. At least for me, the difference between relating to a 10-year-old and to an 8-year-old is far wider than the two year gap would suggest. I have a few recommendations to share on communicating with tweens:

Today, Judy (also of Talking Thirty) shares 8 tips for encouraging shared responsibility at home: It's common for couples to experience an imbalance in child-rearing and household responsibilities -- and for the person shouldering the load to feel immense frustration. But it doesn't have to be this way, and it's worth taking the time to reverse the trend. Couples who assume joint responsibility for childcare and household management can benefit from reduced stress levels, better emotional well-being, and a stronger bond. Research also suggests that when both parents are actively involved in their children's lives, kids experience fewer behavior problems, greater academic success, and other psychological benefits. Here are 8 tips for encouraging shared responsibility at home: