The prime minister Jacinda Ardern and her partner Clarke Gayford have just announced the safe arrival of their baby girl. She arrived at 4.45pm, weighing 3.31kg (7.3lb). Our parents editor sends her congratulations to the new parents. Dear Jacinda and Clarke, I know open letters are naff but here we are. As we are a … Read more
Is it Normal is the Spinoff Parents advice column. Today we’re looking at poo and we have expert help from toilet training expert Laura Morley. Is it Normal? is The Spinoff Parents’ advice column, a place for parents to ask experts the questions they Google at 2am. Start here if you’ve never read the column before. We’re … Read more
Deep breaths, in and out: Emily Writes has you. There’s so much advice out there about how to have the perfect birth. There are thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of books; many, many blogs by experts whose qualifications are “gave birth once” or “haven’t given birth but have lots of opinions” or my personal … Read more
Since becoming an at-home father, Adam Mamo has been on a desperate search for his masculinity – after all, he keeps being told it’s gone missing. You needn’t look far back in time to when being a stay-at-home dad wasn’t really a thing. Early practitioners of this dark art were seen merely as fathers without … Read more
Ash Peters is passing on her love of mountain biking to hundreds of families around the Wellington region. She spoke to Thalia Kehoe Rowden about what draws her to the hills, and how her charity is reaching all sorts of families who haven’t been on the trails before. The WORD youth mountain biking holiday programmes … Read more
Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes hates almost all children’s TV – and the stuff she likes, her kids hate. But the most horrible shows of all are the ones with unbearable theme songs. These are the worst of the worst. When I had my first baby we didn’t have a television because we didn’t want … Read more
Whether your kids watch a little or a lot of television, it’s good to know where to find the best stuff. So is new kids platform HEIHEI worth a watch? Thalia Kehoe Rowden and her six-year-old son have decided to find out. Together, they’re watching all 39 shows, filling out an intimidating spreadsheet of notes, … Read more
Is it Normal is the Spinoff Parents advice column. Today Alex Ker from InsideOUT gives advice to a mum of a gender curious little one. Welcome to the fourth instalment of The Spinoff Parents advice column Is it Normal? curated by Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes. If you don’t know what this column is all about … Read more
Dr Jess Berentson-Shaw, our resident science expert, wants us to change the way early childhood education is discussed. Words mean things. That sounds simple enough doesn’t it? But unfortunately it’s not a sentiment everyone seems to agree with. The words we choose to use as researchers, policy makers, and communicators are not neutral. Words convey … Read more
Secondary infertility is a hidden pain many families are facing. Gemma Bowker-Wright shares her story. “Will you have a second?” said the mother at Island Bay Park a few weeks back. She pushed a toddler on the swing while a baby slept in the front-pack on her chest. Her tone was casual, off-hand, the way someone … Read more
No matter how well-intentioned, articles like the Herald’s ‘One week, three kids, how hard can it be?’ do no favours for anyone, writes Angela Cuming. It was just after 7am on a Monday and my husband was simultaneously making breakfast and lunch for each of our three pre-school aged children. That’s six meals. And then … Read more
Parents living in South Auckland were shocked, but probably not surprised, to learn this week that Auckland Council have been underfunding their playgrounds. Angela Cuming looks at some of the reasons why – and what is being done about it. So Hamilton City Council has finally done the right thing and voted to build new … Read more
When you have a kid, words like ‘hangover’ and ‘holiday’ take on a whole new meaning. Mum Anna Gowan rewrites the dictionary for parents Fact: Kids give new meaning to life. “Yeah yeah,” I used to say upon hearing this. “I’ve seen the nappy ads and the cheesy photo shoots of doting parents in baby … Read more
Auckland Council has announced it is to waive fees for the cremation of babies under one year of age. Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes looks at the push for better community support for grieving whānau. As of July 1 this year, Auckland Council will no longer charge cremation fees for babies under a year old. … Read more
Is it Normal is the Spinoff Parents advice column. Today we have the amazing Pinky McKay talking to a mum who asked: does it get easier? Welcome to the third instalment of The Spinoff Parents advice column Is it Normal? If you don’t know what this column is all about – here’s a good primer. … Read more
Refugee advocates are celebrating a win with a promised increase of the quota under the new government, but those refugees who get here are still facing years-long waits for family to join them. Tessa Johnstone reports “That’s me!” Mohamed* says, with a grin. He’s pointing to a grainy photo of a clipping from a Maltese … Read more
Men are increasingly the primary caregivers for kids, but public facilities for them to change nappies in remain woefully inadequate. This story was originally published on Newshub. As Clarke Gayford is about to show the world, males are perfectly capable of being primary caregivers. Plenty of them are keen to take some time off work … Read more
Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes on her son’s adventures at school and how she’s learning to adjust to having a school kid. About six months ago my son started school. I cried all day. I was surprised by how much it hit me. My little baby boy was now a school kid. I wanted to … Read more
When your audience is children, and their attention spans are shorter than their tempers, how do you keep them entertained at a theatre show? Thomas LaHood talks about his approach. The thing about making live performance for kids is that kids as an audience are just not polite. If they are bored with the show … Read more
New research reveals the penalty women pay after becoming mothers, and it should spur us to take action to change, writes Jess Berentson-Shaw “Having children is just selfish.” It’s a common line. People have said it to my face happily enough (not to my husband’s though, oddly enough). There is an element of truth to … Read more
Stay at home dad of three Cameron Lecky had a fight with an automated checkout machine last week. We’ve all been there, right? The honeymoon period ended last week. My previously impenetrable facade of cool, calm and collected Stay at Home Dad didn’t just crack. It came crashing down like it had been hit with … Read more
It’s the topic that always comes up after a few wines between mums: who’s having sex and who’s not? We present a no holds barred tell-all about the sexual experiences of mothers, curated by Emily Writes. Is it really a piece about sex if I don’t say “Let’s Talk About Sex, Baby”? Well, let’s knock … Read more
What is it like to be a mother living in poverty? Carissa Allen shares her story. Poverty does not care what colour your skin is, what your background is or how educated you are. Poverty does not discriminate and is often a result of circumstances, not choices. I am an educated, well-presented woman, I have … Read more
A theatre show written by parents and for parents is welcoming mums to see the show with their babies. It might be a first in New Zealand. Producer Rachel Millar outlines why they’ve made the decision to be accessible. After children and babies in cafes and children on planes, babies in the theatre is the … Read more
The Handmaid’s Tale portrays surrogacy as an act of violent exploitation. Surrogacy researcher Hannah Gibson considers how the show affects our understanding of surrogacy in New Zealand and asks: are women here being exploited? Recently, I sat down with popcorn to watch the second season of The Handmaid’s Tale on Lightbox. Based on the 1985 … Read more
Every parent has probably felt the disapproving eyes of others at some point when out with their offspring. Linda Jane Keegan challenges that feeling that kids just aren’t welcome anywhere. “It’s not working,” she said. And I thought, no, it’s not working. This workshop, organised to find out how to engage people like me, hasn’t … Read more
Today is Pink Shirt Day, an international initiative aimed at ending bullying. Here, Kiri Speirs shares her daughter Zoe’s story. It still haunts me to know that being bullied was a feature of the last few months of my daughter’s life, that in the beginning it wasn’t handled very well and that I failed her … Read more
In 2000, Fur Patrol dominated the New Zealand singles chart with ‘Lydia’, a song that merely a year later would be voted the 19th best New Zealand song of all time. And finally, 18 years later, ‘Lydia’ is streaming on Spotify. Tom Augustine pays tribute to a New Zealand classic. Some of the songs that … Read more
The second season of the teen series 13 Reasons Why will be online tomorrow night. Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes outlines what you need to know – because your teen will be watching this show. Content warning: This post contains discussions of mental health and suicide. Last year, The Spinoff Parents heard from a number … Read more