Forever the mother of Charlie and Oliver, Rebecca Clews knows about the devastation of having your babies too early. Here she bravely shares her story in the hopes that other parents might understand – and those who know feel comfort that they’re not alone. Content warning: This story may be upsetting to parents who have … Read more
Women who are childless or child-free face a lot of judgement. But little is said about just how much joy and wonder can be found in being an aunty. Neesha Bremner shares her views on her role as a self-described Spinster Aunt and the happiness it brings her. I’ve survived being knee deep in glitter I tell you. … Read more
Without the lived experience of having a child with health complications you can never truly know what it’s like. One who knows is Tessa Prebble, who shares how it feels to hear the words ‘as long as it’s healthy’ now. At baby showers all over the world you’ll hear the same five words: “As long … Read more
For many parents, the new school term marks the beginning of a new era in the life of their child. Mum and kindergarten teacher Donna Eden has some words of encouragement for parents whose children are starting school. Starting school is a big milestone in the life of our littlies and us as parents. Often … Read more
Just like adults, kids have the right to voice their anger, fears and hopes for the future. Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes explains why her children accompany her to protest marches and hikoi. As it is after most news-making protests, in the last couple of days I’ve seen the usual online arguments about whether children should … Read more
Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes has not slept for a long time, but suddenly her son who hates sleep has started to sleep through the night. She explains how it happened. For the last almost two years my son has been exceptionally committed to never sleeping. It wasn’t just that he woke many, many times … Read more
One of the most controversial topics in parenting is surprisingly food – from their first foods, bottle or breast or both, to their first solids, to their diet as they grow there are opinions ahoy! Here’s Leah Hamilton’s story about how she decided what to feed her daughter. During my pregnancy with my first child, … Read more
In this, the third post in a special series for The Spinoff Parents, Alicia Young writes about her journey towards motherhood after having IVF and finding out she is pregnant. Read Alicia’s first and second posts in this series. Content warning: Alicia Young talks about her experience of miscarriage in this post. If you have recently suffered … Read more
Many parents struggle to work out how to talk to their children about their bodies. They want them to have confidence in how they look, but also make it clear that the way their appearance is far from the most important thing about them. Trudy Kessels writes about her hopes for her daughter’s experience with … Read more
Birth trauma is a very real issue in New Zealand. Francesca Jones shares the story of her daughter’s birth and insists we realise we must approach this issue differently to protect vulnerable mothers. Content warning: This post is an account of birth trauma and contains a graphic depiction of a near-fatal birth. We share these stories on … Read more
The second post in a special series for The Spinoff Parents in which Alicia Young writes about her journey to motherhood after having IVF. Read Alicia’s first post in this series here. Shortly after the embryo is implanted deadly quakes rock the country and a degenerate billionaire is elected leader of the free world. Given the … Read more
If you view the comments on almost any story on abortion in New Zealand you’ll see assumptions being made about the process by people who haven’t accessed the procedure. Sarah Batkin spoke to four women about their terminations to show the varied experiences people go through in our country. I went to a symposium last … Read more
Pete Douglas tries to stage an intervention for poor old Daddy Pig, the bumbling patriarch of the ever popular kids show Peppa Pig. Before we had our first son four years ago I was blissfully unaware of the existence of Peppa Pig, much less the intricacies of the show’s plot and character development. This seems … Read more
How is it that the days feel so long, but the years so short? Thomasin Sleigh writes about the parenting journey – the minutes, weeks, years and the “non-time”. Minutes A pregnancy test. Wait. You have to wait two minutes before you look at the slender lines. Lines which signify a new human being. Inside … Read more
In a quest to recreate the Christmas magic her grandmother always made, Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes ends up covered in vomit and balls. After my grandmother died Christmas became quite bleak. I couldn’t reconcile how Christmas happened without her. She always started the family water fight that we had after lunch. She would walk … Read more
What is it like to face infertility when you’re ambivalent about becoming a parent? From hoping to conceive ‘accidentally’ to starting IVF, Alicia Young writes about her long journey towards motherhood in a series for The Spinoff Parents. At age 28 you break up with the long-term boyfriend who never proposed to you, and who … Read more
New Zealand still sits below the OECD average for Paid Parental Leave. Francesca Jones knows what it’s like to live in a place with better entitlements for parents – she asks if we are making the right choices here. Having a newborn baby is one of those life events you can never really prepare for, … Read more
It seems many mothers get smacked with a label no matter how hard they try to avoid them. Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes talks about some of the labels she’s been given and how much she hates them. The first time I was called a Slummy Mummy I had to look up the term. I figured … Read more
Chris Ingam is not the only parent who has the shits with Pixar after seeing the trailer for Cars 3. The graphic car crash that comprises the trailer suggests hero to many children Lightening McQueen has carked it. Chris asks the hard questions – can cars die and why the Hell do they need to … Read more
Miscarriage is a heartbreaking reality for so many families, Liv van Leeuwen writes of her devastation at losing three babies in one year. Content warning: Liv van Leeuwen talks about her experience of miscarriage in this post. If you have recently suffered a miscarriage this post may be upsetting for you. If you need support please … Read more
Member of the Forever Hopeful Club, and author of a column on The Spinoff Parents about her journey trying to conceive, Kat McKenzie shares her tips for supporting friends facing infertility. Firstly, let me say that I know that navigating these issues with those you care about can seem like a minefield. It’s terrifying when someone … Read more
Disney’s Moana has had sold-out screenings across New Zealand since its Boxing Day release. Emmaline Matagi writes about what it was like to watch the film as the mother of a child of the Pacific. I am a woman born in the Pacific Islands, raised in the Pacific Islands, a migrant to Aotearoa and a … Read more
Is Christmas Day the best or worst day of the year? Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes has crowd-sourced a list of the characters you’ll break bread with this Christmas. Tis the night before Christmas, and your house is a mess. The kids have gone feral, and you’re not feeling #blessed. You’re starting to sweat about lunch the … Read more
Every family celebrates Christmas in their own way. This week we’re hearing from families around New Zealand explaining what they celebrate and why they do. Here Eliza Jane talks about letting go of Christmas after converting to Judaism. Christmas was not a religious holiday in our family. More than anything, it marked the start of the … Read more
Thalia Kehoe Rowden, a former Baptist minister, and a mother of two writes about why God is part of her Christmas. Last Christmas we were in Thailand, where it’s not a public holiday. Santa is in every mall, but Jesus? Not so much. It didn’t make too much difference to us. The meaningful parts of … Read more
For many families Christmas isn’t about the birth of Jesus. Angela Cuming explains why she chooses to have a life, and Christmas, without religion. I was five years old when the Catholic Church told me I’d never get into heaven. An unbaptised child of two Roman Catholic parents, it had been a great aunt’s dying … Read more
One good reason for keeping the belief in Santa alive as long as possible? The awesome power of The Threat of Santa. Simon Sweetman explains how, when it comes to kids at Christmas, a little psychological manipulation can go a long way. A Facebook friend posts that she’s angry and upset – some punk-ass little … Read more
Christmas is a time for togetherness and giving, with one golden rule: don’t be a dickhead. Emily Writes shares her guide to not being a dickhead, making Christmas Day fun for kids, and being kind at Christmas time. Whether you have wee ones or not, Christmas can be a stressful time. Or a magical time. … Read more
Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes exchanges emails with a paediatrician and asks all of your hard questions – and some inappropriate ones. Being a paediatrician is serious business. And as such they’re not really interested in answering questions a hypothetical editor of a hypothetical parenting section might ask about Hot Paediatricians being lusted after by thirsty mums. … Read more