Family Relationships

The author has struggled for decades with the enmeshment between her mom and her troubled adult brother. This unhealthy bond has often left her and her other siblings feeling abandoned. She has four pieces of key advice for others who face this situation so they don't become frustrated and defeated.

Is kissing your child on the lips acceptable? This is an ongoing debate among parents and professionals. Each side provides interesting arguments. What about you, do you kiss your child on the lips? Tell us why or why not.

Take your genealogy research a step further and turn it into family stories. Profile a person or a family in a compelling story to share with family or put in a blog.

Revealing study results show toxic mothers blame everyone else when a child cuts ties with them. However, the child disagrees completely.

Are you feeling distant and maybe even scared that you and your partner aren't in love anymore? As with everything else after a baby, adjusting your relationship to your new life takes time. Here's some tips on how to get there.

Is your kids' grandmother narcissistic or just self-centered? Here, you will find a checklist of telltale signs of a toxic grandma and a list of ideas for how to deal with it if she is.

This is a collection of the sweetest, nicest, and most heartwarming things you can say to your dad to make him feel cherished and appreciated.

This is a collection of the sweetest, nicest, and most heartwarming things you can say to your mom to make her feel appreciated and cherished.

As I child, I was an introvert. I can help you understand your quiet child.

Bonding with stepchildren isn't easy. They have different personality traits, you haven't always known them, and they have different opinions than you. Here, I discuss how I worked at bonding with each of my fiance's kids through the last few years.

I share how I made my family history research more productive, more educational, and more fun by using commonly available GPS tools.

Strained family relationships have been shown to cause an increased number of chronic health conditions, particularly in the older family members. In this article, negative and positive family relationships are reviewed along with their outcomes.

My father is homeless, and we have no relationship. I wanted to share five things I want others to know about what it's like.

Make the magic of Facebook groups work for you. You can find lots of help from other genealogists, create your own family groups, get photos restored or colorized by volunteers, research in history groups, and contact museums and libraries through this social media platform.

Mothers with BPD frequently oscillate between over- and under-involvement in their parenting style.

Unidentified photos of mystery ancestors are tempting to toss. Don't do it! Here are suggestions for what to do with those.

Your sisters are your first friends, but after you grow up and move away, how do you stay close? Here are a few ideas to help you keep your sisterly ties strong as you juggle life.

Sinkholes are where the ground sinks under you without warning. My husband and I fell into so many of our own sinkholes, I felt it necessary to share a warning with other blended families in hopes of helping people avoid these.

Visiting your family or friends who have a new baby? Wondering what to expect? Here are guidelines for visiting new parents with their baby in the first few weeks. Don't turn up unannounced, don't create extra work, be helpful, and admire the baby.

Parents often have a favorite child, no matter how much they deny it. Favoritism impacts how parents think, feel, and act towards their offspring. It also affects the kids. Here are signs that Mom and Dad are playing favorites.

Have a friend that is estranged from one or both of their parents? Here are a few things you should avoid saying to them, as well as three things they need to hear.

Newspapers.com is a wonderful resource for researchers. Genealogists love it! Here are tips from a librarian for getting the best results from your searches.

How do you use ThruLines and other new tools on Ancestry? Here's what I've figured out about these new features added by Ancestry in beta form in March 2019.

Independence... or assisted living? It's a very hard decision to make. These are the things to look for if you're wondering if your parent is getting too old to take care of themself.

Congratulations on becoming a grandfather. Here are 100+ alternative names for grandpa to choose from, including some from languages other than English that are sure to stick for a lifetime.

Congratulations on becoming a grandmother. You are looking for a fun name to go by other than the traditional name of "grandma." Here are 100+ names to choose from.

More and more parents are being cut out of their adult children's lives. This is a difficult phenomenon and completely heartbreaking. It's hard to find comfort, no matter which side you're on. My intention with this article is to provide some comfort for parents and adult children alike.

Learn how to research for gateway ancestors through the old Magna Carta Surety Barons whose descendants are the missing links to royal ancestry.

Many parents struggling with the financial woes of modern times are already under pressure and are susceptible to feeling like they’re not doing a good enough job. Many grandparents feel it’s in their right to pass judgment on the way their grandchildren are raised.

Every day, hundreds of ties are severed in families due to a misunderstanding and poor communication. How do we cope with losing a parent who's still alive? Keep reading to learn my take on this phenomenon and the coping strategies used to emotionally navigate these complicated waters.

What's the best thing about asking children funny questions? Their answers can be funnier than the questions themselves! So, to get you started, here's a list of funny questions that you can ask kids right away.

Will a subscription to Newspapers.com give you valuable information for your family history research? Here are examples of how it helped me, and why I recommend it.

Most people have a lot to say. And believe it or not, children are no exception! In fact, kids have an immeasurable amount of interesting things to share. It’s all just a matter of talking with them. Luckily, this list provides 120+ conversation starters for kids that are ready for use!

Did you know that the main issue in most Christian families is the neglect of Bible-based principles? This article encourages Christians to alleviate problems and improve happiness in four basic areas, including awareness.

In a day and age when mother and daughters-in-law seem to always be at odds, hope towards peace and reconciliation can still be found, as long as both parties seek compassion, kindness, and understanding. If you are a MIL, consider changing your tactics, as well as remembering how you felt as a DIL.

Daughters who grew up with absent fathers can fall into the trap of ignoring their anger, acting invulnerable, and blaming themselves, resulting in being stuck in a state of victimhood, closed off from giving and receiving love.

Here's how to connect your DNA to your family tree on Ancestry.com so you can learn how you're related to your DNA relatives and unlock more about your heritage.

Whether her dad was physically or emotionally absent, a girl can get stuck in grief and self-pity because of it. As an adult, she doesn't want his rejection to diminish her joy or limit her potential. The author gives 5 pieces of advice so fatherless daughters can move on and enjoy purposeful lives.

Since August 2016, I have been building a family tree and trying to identify my ancestors who originated in Europe. Based on successes and failures, I suggest a number of tips for doing genealogy research.

In this article, learn how you can download your raw DNA data from My Heritage, which you can then upload to various websites so you can compare results.

What do parents do when their child goes through a divorce? What about the grandchildren, if there are any? What is the role of the parent or grandparent in the changing family landscape?

Have you found yourself struggling to maintain a healthy relationship with your mother-in-law? Worry not; this can be a common problem for many. Read this article to start mending your relationship with your mother-in-law.

Does your mother-in-law suck the joy out of your life and make you feel powerless? Then it's time to take your power back.

Did you grow up in a broken home like me? I wanted to share with readers that even though growing up in a toxic home can be difficult, there are also lessons to be learned from it that can be applied to your everyday life.

Now that you've welcomed your baby home, you've also welcomed a whole new version of your in-laws: grandma and grandpa. With new grandparents comes uncharted territory for all involved. Let's figure out how we can get through it together.

Grandma, granny, nana, or mimi; there are many names that can be applied to the family matriarch. Sometimes the title is chosen because of language or cultural norm, or it is a selection made by a grandchild who is not yet able to voice the traditional title so the name is shortened.

We had no control over our birth order, but scientists say the order in which we were born has a great deal to do with how successful we will become. Is that really true? Let's discuss birth order psychology research.

Puzzled about how to get the most out of your Ancestry DNA test? Here are some tips from an experienced genealogist.

The author, a longtime teacher, wants to empower grandparents to impact the lives of their grandkids. She worries about families today, consumed by their devices. She sees kids battle depression and anxiety and knows a grandparent's unconditional love and involvement could make all the difference.

If you switched roles with your mom or dad as a kid, becoming their emotional support system or physical caretaker, you were parentified. Having missed out on a carefree childhood, you may be depressed, isolated, and angry now as an adult. By grieving what you lost, though, you can begin to heal.