Category Archives: extended family

Summer Family Staycations

With the effects of the recession hitting government agencies as well as individual families, are you wondering where to turn for help entertaining your kids this summer? In California, the situation is especially difficult. Summer school has been cancelled throughout most of the state and various state parks are also closing. City and county governments are cutting down on the hours certain services are provided, as are municipal governments. So if you need to engage your children this summer, here are some tips for you: Make good use of your … Continue reading

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Men at Work – More than Just a Sign

Linguist Deborah Tannen has written numerous books about the conversational styles of women and men, in families and at work. According to Tannen, problems can occur, especially in a job setting where the members are not as knowledgeable about each other, when men and women don’t understand the rituals that define each other’s approach. Women, even in a work setting, generally use conversational strategies that are considerate and sensitive to the other person’s feelings, even when giving negative feedback. Demonstrating an emphasis on getting the job done without “flexing their … Continue reading

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Competition and Cooperation

Yesterday, in honor of Father’s Day, we started a blog series about how to better understand the men in our lives. We looked at how their conversations often revolve around how to fix things, solve a problem, accomplish a goal – that is, when they’re not about the score of the latest, or a classic old, game. Visiting this week with our three young grandsons, it is easy to see how this focus develops early. As we watch them play together, and play with them, it is striking how many … Continue reading

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"Ask Amy" Talks with Sandwiched Boomers

Today we are delighted to welcome advice columnist Amy Dickinson to our blog for sandwiched boomers. Amy is the author of “The Mighty Queens of Freeville: A Mother, a Daughter and the Town that Raised Them.” In her book, according to washingtonpost.com, Amy “comes across very much as you’d expect an advice columnist to: smart, humorous, common-sensical, not prone to deep self-analysis and – despite having lived in London and Chicago and worked in New York as a television producer – a passionate proponent of small-town American values.” Now see … Continue reading

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