Links for Friday, December 7: Perspectives, and more evidence that kids do what we do, not what we say
Dec 7th, 2007 by Jill
- Woulda Coulda Shoulda: What a long, strange trip it’s been - Mir revels in the connection she sees growing between her husband and her children (his new stepkids): “It makes me warm and fuzzy for the kids, because—despite what some other people related to them might think—there is not some sort of global allotment of love which might be used up if they dare to use some of their ration on a positive relationship with their stepdad, and in fact some might argue that an extra positive parental unit just makes good sense. Sort of like having a spare tire in your car.“ (more)
- The real world: Stepfamilies - Lori on what she’s learned from being first a single mom with a new stepmom in her kids’ life, and then becoming a stepmom herself.
- Humans appear hardwired to learn by ‘over-imitation’ - “Watching an adult doing something wrong can make it much harder for kids to do it right.” (What I thought of when I read this was that kids are likely to imitate the conflict-resolution approaches they see us using in our stepfamilies.)
- Child of Divorce/Child of God quotes a recent study on the negative impact of divorce on the environment, but Siel at Emerald City points out that kids moving out of their parents’ houses would have the same effect.
- Marianne Mansfield, Literary Mama: I Am A Stepmother - “I am a stepmother and I never know how to respond to the question ‘Do you have children?’ Neither ‘yes’ nor ‘no’ answers the question. Yes, because Beloved, my husband, has two adult daughters. No, because I have never given birth. Yes, I have grandchildren whom I count as my own flesh. No, I did not raise their mothers.” (more)
Hello, pretty ladies! Thank you for the link love (and the other great links, too). I swear, I find something more wonderful each time I come over here.