We hear a lot about how hard the teen and tween years are — frankly, it scares me! Which is why I enjoyed this piece by Christina Crawford, about something great that’s happened as her kids have gotten a little older: “I feel like I have been knee-deep in parenting littles for a bazillion years. For so long, most days have worn me out so much that I barely think straight, let alone get some quality alone time with my spouse. But something miraculous and completely unexpected has happened recently: My grumpy, moody tweens can stay home alone (for short periods of time). It’s a milestone, and I didn’t expect just what a game changer it would be for my marriage.”

— Kelly Faircloth, Executive Editor

“Watching Challengers made me feel a lot of things, including wondering how the pressure of being a child athlete doesn't permanently affect someone for the rest of their life,” writes Brianne Hogan. “It's tough enough being a kid, but imagine being a kid who's really good at sports. What might that pressure actually feel like?” So she talked to an expert about how to know when you’re doing way too much as a sports parent.