Offbeat Mama | Offbeat op-eds

This is Offbeat Mama’s archive of Offbeat op-eds posts.

We have opinions. And we like to share them.

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At twenty-five, I'm entering into quite a few new phases of my life. For example, everything that I grew up being into is slowly creeping back into the mainstream, and bands that should have broken up long ago are getting together with OTHER bands that should have broken up long ago (um, New Kids on the Block and Boys II Men might be touring with the Backstreet Boys, you guys) for nostalgia tours. Another example? Friends of mine are not only beginning to get married — a few of them are already getting divorced.

Divorce has quite the social stigma in our society, and mostly for reasons that I don't quite understand. To me, if a house is devoid of joy and love, that trumps any kind of moral or religious reason why divorce is bad. If a marriage is truly broken, or, in some cases, never should have been entered into in the first place, I think it's better for all involved parties (spouses and children) that it end.

Teens and toddlers have more in common than meets the eye–particularly when it come to their cravings for independence.

Can we re-message and re-package what "princess" means and looks like in a way that makes princess life empowering and not merely about external appearance, wealth, and netting a hot young prince?

We want Avie to feel as unrestrained by gender as possible. We began by giving him a gender-neutral name and attempting to dress him in neutral colors and patterns. As he gets older, we validate and encourage his emotions, and intend to support him in whatever interests he develops. Our hope is that Avie remains as passionate and expressive as he is now.

Bernard Soulier is a genetic platelet condition, and occurs when both parents transmit the gene to their child. There are fifteen genetic mutations of BSS, and Jasper has, of course, one of the rarest ones–before him, there were only two documented cases of his mutation. Ever.

After the session, a kind old lady came up to me and said, “Now who does this little sweetheart belong to?”
“Oh…she’s mine,” I replied.
“Oh…”

In recent months, ever since I hit the big 2-5, my biological clock has started to tick a little bit louder. It is strange and frankly, it makes me feel a bit icky from time to time.

Taking a road trip with a baby was a great experience. In part because it felt like it set a good precedent for family adventures — and in part because at times I was terrified.