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Psychology says people raised in the 1960s and 70s developed a specific kind of mental toughness that modern childhoods have made nearly impossible to build—not because those childhoods were better, but because they required children to solve problems before anyone arrived to solve them first
4+ hour, 5+ min ago (990+ words) Marlene Martin / Feb 24, 2026 The generation that learned to navigate without GPS, entertain themselves without screens, and solve problems without Google developed a mental resilience that modern parenting'with all its good intentions'accidentally engineers out of childhood. Remember when skinned knees were…...
7 ways lower middle class parents showed love that cost absolutely nothing but their kids didn't fully understand until they were in their 40s trying to do the exact same thing
7+ hour, 5+ min ago (1193+ words) The moment you catch yourself doing exactly what your parents did'staying up late to help with homework, enforcing bedtimes, cooking the same meals on repeat'you finally understand that their "annoying" habits were actually profound acts of love disguised as everyday…...
If you grew up when kids played outside until the streetlights came on, you probably display these 9 traits that are disappearing from society
4+ day, 10+ hour ago (1319+ words) Marlene Martin / Feb 20, 2026 Those endless summer days shaped us in ways we're only now realizing as we watch these fundamental life skills quietly vanish from a generation that may never know the sweet exhaustion of racing the setting sun home....
I stopped asking my son when he's giving me grandchildren and started asking him what he's excited about — and that one swap turned our monthly obligation call into something we both actually look forward to
4+ day, 18+ hour ago (870+ words) Marlene Martin / Feb 19, 2026 Instead of dreading our stilted monthly obligation calls where I pestered him about grandchildren, my son now calls me excitedly between our scheduled conversations'and all it took was changing one simple question. "So, Mom, I actually have…...
The most painful thing an adult child can do isn't argue with their parents - it's go quiet
5+ day, 13+ hour ago (1026+ words) Avery White / Feb 18, 2026 When adult children stop sharing their real lives with their parents'editing every story, avoiding meaningful conversations, choosing polite distance over messy truth'they create a silence more devastating than any argument could ever be. That's when it hit…...
I raised three children while working full-time for 25 years—here's the one thing none of them will ever understand about that sacrifice
5+ day, 20+ hour ago (1138+ words) Marlene Martin / Feb 18, 2026 Despite her children's gratitude and success, they'll never comprehend the thousands of invisible micro-calculations she made daily'choosing between lunch breaks and science fairs, work clothes and summer camps, her own dreams and their immediate needs'or the profound…...
I turned down grad school for a relationship—here are 8 "what ifs" that still haunt me
1+ week, 1+ day ago (1181+ words) Avery White / Feb 15, 2026 Forty years later, I still wake up at 3 AM clutching phantom acceptance letters and wondering if choosing love over my dreams was the greatest mistake of my life'especially since the marriage only lasted six years. Sometimes I…...
6 things that surprised me about raising vegan kids in a non-vegan school
1+ week, 3+ day ago (898+ words) Avery White / Feb 14, 2026 The cafeteria conversations were the easy part; it was the unexpected kindness and the deeper questions that caught me off guard. I don't have children of my own, but for the past three years, I've been deeply…...
I skipped my son's baseball games to work late because I thought providing was the same as being present—he's 34 now and we barely talk
1+ week, 3+ day ago (408+ words) Marlene Martin / Feb 13, 2026 Twenty-seven years after choosing spreadsheets over Little League, I'm watching my grandchildren collect rocks while my own son'now 34'answers my calls with the politeness reserved for distant relatives. I told myself a story back then that made…...
People who maintain lifelong relationships with their adult children always practice these 9 habits
1+ week, 6+ day ago (1292+ words) Marlene Martin / Feb 11, 2026 While most parents struggle to stay close with their grown children, those who master this delicate relationship transformation share nine specific habits that create bonds strong enough to last a lifetime'without suffocating the very people they're trying…...