Wire Family

Like many modern women, my identity all too often over the years has been wrapped up in how much I weigh, what size jeans I wear, and how big my derriere looks walking away.

If you've missed "The Bible," airing on the History Channel, you've missed something worth watching. The miniseries, co-produced by Mark Burnett and Roma Downey, is well done. The premiere episode drew a record audience of 13.1 million viewers.

American parents have been listening to professional psycho-babblers tell them how to raise children since the late 1960s. I was in graduate school at the time, and my professors thought the babblers were geniuses, sent by some New Age divinity to correct all the egregious wrongs parents had done to children since time immemorial. Children were about to enter a Golden Age in which their opinions would not only be listened to but also taken into consideration, and from an early age. And they would be allowed to express their feelings freely! And parents and teachers were going to tell them how wonderful they were and how everything they did was wonderful and so children would do more and more wonderful things and the Age of Aquarius would dawn and peace and love would fill the universe!

Q: The couple my husband and I spend most of our time with is now divorcing. Truth is, he's been a player for years - we knew but they had two little kids and we felt telling her would contribute to breaking up their family, so we kept quiet. She found out anyway and has left him, and my husband wants to remain friends with him. I don't. I've seen what his actions have done to his family and I want nothing to do with him. How do I get my husband to stay away from him?

In the late 1970s and '80s, Melissa Francis was all over TV. She appeared in almost 100 commercials and spent two years in the cast of "Little House on the Prairie."

The Easter holidays often brings visitors and guests into the home environment which can cause children to react in odd ways. Parents often find ourselves dealing with regressive or extreme behavior and may be unsure of how to calm their children down. By thinking of your child's dominant sense you will be able to preempt bad behavior so that everyone can have a more peaceful experience this Easter.

When I was about 10 years old, I decided it would be really cool to make my parents cocktails. As the child of a different era, my dad was all for the idea of training me to be his tiny bartender. My mom was skeptical, but as with many things that involved my father and me, mom threw up her hands and let it happen.

There's nothing that can improve quality of life in a family as much as the right pair of socks. Just ask my 4-year-old, who typically doesn't make it through the day without complaining about hers and taking them off.

Wherever Erick Jansen and Nathan Jones go, people stop and stare.

Celebrate the first full week of spring! Leftover ham from Easter celebrations pairs especially well with springtime favorites like peas and carrots. Enjoy the change of seasons this week with healthy, balanced recipes that capture these flavor combinations.

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar have 19 kids and two - soon to be three - grandkids. On their TLC reality show "19 Kids and Counting," we get to see how Jim Bob and Michelle manage their big family. Even if you don't have a double-digit number of kids in your house, there's still a lot to learn from one of America's most famous families.

There was a time when, if you asked a young person what they wanted to be when they grew up, the answers were almost always the same. "I want to be a..." firefighter, police officer, doctor, lawyer, baseball player, actor; rarely was it an entrepreneur or business owner.

A psychologist once asked me if our family sits down for dinner together every night.

Our family's Easter celebrations have ranged from the traditional to the creative, but as long as the family is together we always have fun. Here are my suggestions to make your Easter extra special.

Are you my forever mom?

Just as the billows of white smoke emanating from the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City signal the election of a new pope, so does the name he chooses for himself signal his aspirations for his papacy. Pope Francis broke precedent by picking one that had never been used before, but which has deep meaning for him and projects a strong symbolic resonance to the outside world.

Seven-time Olympic medalist Amanda Beard is set to welcome her second child this summer with husband Sacha Brown. The swimming champion, who is currently sponsored by Aqua Sphere, is already mom to 3-year-old son Blaise.

Whether spring break has come and gone for you or just starting, it's always good to have a few resources to keep the kiddos busy when they're home from school.

Has your definition of romance changed now that you have kids? You're not the only one.

Eleven-year-old Tyler Parker-Rollins says being vegan isn't always easy. But he says it's also "fun" and that he plans to be one "forever."