Relationships need a dose of the real world
Fantasy relationships are bound to end badly because they start badly. Nobody gets an accurate picture of a potential partner by luxury dates on tropical islands, wandering through castles where wine and cheese magically appear and a hair and make-up crew darts out of the bushes every five minutes to do a touch-up.
Previous Stories
- Like a good neighbor, Facebook is there
- Why you have been eating Cocoa Pebbles incorrectly for decades
- Life in the country doesn’t have to be boring
- Don’t get between fiance and child care agreements with his ex
- Should I tell my ex’s wife the truth about his drinking?
- Women should lighten up on motherhood
- Do we treat visiting stepdaughter same as other kids?
- Unleashing the myth of the leash
- Snuggies: Love ‘em? Hate ‘em?
- Stepkids still are family, even after divorce
- Stop tantrums in their tracks
- Who gets to host the birthday parties?
- ‘Watch me’ phase drives mom nuts
- If boyfriend wants to watch son’s dog, that’s his choice
- Curbing a child’s constant appetite
- How to catch a cougar
- Parenting can be a laughing matter at times
- Ask Mr. Dad: How much TV is too much
- Cell phones have no place in school
- Saving on books, family fun
- Standing up to a bully
- How do we change birthday traditions?
- Don’t let labels get in the way of being a friend
- Lessons in parenthood
- Please prevent your children from boarding ‘The Polar Express’
- Don't like your teacher – get over it
- Don't bash the miserable ex
- Why would a grown man act like a teen?
- The uncomfortable truth about video games
- Getting along as co-parents is your job
- How to discipline your stepchildren
- Parents tired of child refusing to nap
- Why should I be nice to the mother who abandoned our daughter?
- A kiss isn't just a kiss when she's 12
- Parents wonder: Is Rosemond wrong?
- So, what's your excuse?
- Teenage boys and girls in sleeping bags
- Advice for a 'most outrageous' award contender
- Base family rules on each child's needs
- Living in the Stone Age – and loving it
- How do you 'affair-proof' a marriage?
- Making a home toddler-proof
- When you've taken away everything but air
- School reform begins at home
- Slow down, you're going too fast
- Husband's desire wanes as wife's pregnancy advances
- 9 steps to potty training
- You confess, we watch
- For dads, it's not easy raising girls
- Is a Happy Mother's Day call from ex appropriate?
- Making time for your spouse
- The secret to potty training
- He's their dad in every way
- Giving credit a run for the money
- Home, sweet — but smaller — home
- Who you calling Grandma?
- Move out of mother-in-law's house — whether alone or with husband
- Never make your children choose sides
- Text messaging: Like mother, like daughter
- Let teen express his discomfort
- Ask Mr. Dad: Suspecting abuse
- Son has difficulty making friends
- If Big Bird is yellow and Elmo is red, what's the color of money, Mommy?
- Violence never solves anything, unless you're 5, when it totally does
- Ask Mr. Dad: Pregnancy rollercoaster
- Free love parenting needs to end
- Support spouse when his ex's support falls short
- Class envy has a price
- Traveling with children
- Facebook: Adults invade the land of cool
- Mom worries about girl's stage fright
- Who's this female bathing my boy?
- The economy as birth control?
- Safe sexting? There's no such thing
- Parents' guilt is often misplaced
- Teenager wants to get a job; dad says no
- 'Mean' parents produce happy kids
- Every family needs a baby swing, but are all the gizmos necessary?
- Getting an ex to let go, move on
- Ask Mr. Dad: Can you hear me now?
- 'The Doctor' cures separation anxiety
- Don't pick a fight in which you have no standing
- Being an involved grandfather
- Relationship or leadership
- When kids leave, so do the movies
- Don't proclaim love for your ex
- Being an involved dad
- 'No' is the final answer to this question
- The first ladies of cookies – NOT
- Banning dad won't help matters
- New baby means less time for friends
- First Kids deliver change to the White House
- 'The Doctor' saves the day — again
- Therapy when you can't afford it
- Obama is no Thunder Mountain, but he's still pretty cool
- Steering your kids away from bigotry
- Gain daughter's affection with 'reverse psychology'
- If you need to get anywhere by monorail today, I can help
- Get custody agreement in place
- Panic sets in for unemployed expectant parents
- Are play dates worth the hassle?
- In the end, I couldn't give up Christmas
- Should kissin' cousin be at wedding?
- The favored parent
- For happier children, give them fewer choices
- Christmas' meaning is found in the anticipation
- Dad won't say, 'I love you'
- Mom + stepmom = Classroom conflict
- A little humiliation might not be a bad thing
- Mom, Mommy, Joyce — what's in a name?
- Friend overstays her welcome
- The adventure of the wandering pajama-clad toddler
- How to grow a strong, happy child
- Ask Mr. Dad: Allowance and household chores
- Throw out the throw . . . and the catalog it came in
- Ex-etiquette: Be on the same page for kids' sake
- Rosemond: Learn the good-parenting basics
- Boy who plays dirty shouldn’t play soccer
- Cellphones disrupt parental intelligence gathering
- Child should feel free to discuss things with both parents
- Risks and benefits of co-sleeping
- Rosemond: Kids need parent-free time
- Bringing a whole new meaning to the word 'redneck'
- Ask Mr. Dad: Encouraging generosity
- Ex-Etiquette: Planning maintains comfort level
- Rosemond: Don’t overload on being a mommy
- No treats, just a scary 401(k)
- Ex-Etiquette: Remove ex from the equation
- Ask Mr. Dad: Keeping memories alive
- Best to be co-dependent no more
- Childhood obesity
- The leaky, gloppy world of giant pumpkin growers
- Give your kid a taste of freedom
- Don't get all bento out of shape
- Fantasyland is a place called online
- Sibling jealousy
- Be interested, not overly involved in children's lives
- Onward, student capitalist soldiers
- Costume issue is a Halloween nightmare
- Building kids' confidence
- Simple steps for potty training
- Gwyneth Paltrow needs big ol' reality check
- At school reunions, relive memories; avoid misery
- Most bedwetting is nothing to worry about
- Families need traditional boundaries
- An elegant weapon for a more civilized 4-year-old
- Waiting doesn't make divorce easier
- Helping teens overcome self-injury
- Creative parenting changes kids’ behavior
- Long drive from dad's house is a burden on kindergartner
- Biting the hand — and everything else
- Halloween fun won’t haunt kids
- Editor's pick | Don't just say no, say ‘splatter guts'
- Ex-etiquette | The time for a game plan is now
- Ask Mr. Dad | Fighting in front of the kids
- Traditional parenting | Kids don’t need micromanaging
- Ask Mr. Dad | Homework is for kids — not parents
- Ex-etiquette | A case of red flags and green eyes
- Editor's pick | Video games didn't make my kid angry, but they helped
- Traditional parenting | Young kids don’t belong at church
- Editor's pick | Forget the multiple multiples; it's the parents she tunes in to see
- Ex-etiquette | Don't keep plans for kids a secret
- Ask Mr. Dad | Cell phone for a 10-year-old?
- Traditional parenting | Steps to stop the tantrums
- Editor's pick | Put down the phone and no one gets hurt
- Ex-etiquette | Invite reads a bit like manipulation
- Ask Mr. Dad | Battling bullying
- Traditional parenting | How to tell kids Daddy’s going to war
- Editor's pick | Shoe customer, shoo
- Ex-etiquette | Attempt at consistency is no crime
- Editor's pick | Ah, the joys of snoop-away camp
- Editor's pick | Honk, if you want trouble
- Ex-etiquette | Rework recipe for resentment
- Ex-etiquette | A wake-up call regarding sleeping
- Ex-etiquette | Time to end self-recrimination
- Editor's pick | What's sarong with this vacation picture?
- Ex-etiquette | Child support is not the way to stick it to your ex
- Editor's pick | Pants sagging with the stock market? Please!
- Editor's pick | Shout the message about families
- Ex-etiquette | Sweet dreams aren't of her hubby
- Ex-etiquette | Let event be about son, not exes
- Editor's pick | As Americans, more unites us than divides us
- Ex-etiquette | Don't perpetuate petty behavior
- Editor's pick | Things come to a dead end with customer service reps
- Ex-etiquette | Are relationship red flags waving?
- Ex-etiquette | Send a Father's Day card to an ex?
- Ex-etiquette | She really seems to have moved on
- Ex-etiquette | Be honest — about the right things
- Ex etiquette | Guests, not gifts, get short shrift
- Editor's pick | Memories of the (exact) way we were
- Editor's pick | Kitchen towels tell a tale or two
- Ex-etiquette | When teen resentment rears its head
- Ex-etiquette | Child may be trying to shield mother
- Editor's pick | Boys, toy guns, 'Star Wars' and DNA
- Ex-etiquette | Could it be depression in disguise?
- Ex-etiquette | Is flirtatious dancer stepping on feelings?
- Editor's pick | Toddlers, parents apparently fight every now and again
- Ex-etiquette | Give divorce news to kids as a unit
- Ex-etiquette | Meeting with partner shouldn't be put off
- Ex-etiquette | Father's put between a rock and a hard place
- Ex-etiquette | Spend some time and get to know his kids
- Living with children | No eating in peace with toddler at restaurant