A mother who became a parent later in life shares the ups and downs, the fears and the pleasures, of coming to parenthood in your late thirties. I had my first daughter a couple of months before my thirty-seventh birthday. Until my kids came along, I was pretty ambivalent about pregnancy and motherhood. But at … Read more
Mum of two Wendy Black pays tribute to the beauty of a kid’s TV show featuring a pink hatted cat sheriff, a cactus friend, a blue horse, and a woodpecker. Never has there been a more appropriate time to use the Sad Cat Face Emoji. I just found out that my favourite kid’s TV programme … Read more
Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes on her son’s first day of school. I’m breaking my rule of not writing about mothering without letting my thoughts sit for a while. It’s a thing I try to do, a luxury for a blogger slash internet writer type person. Most people in I don’t know what to call … Read more
Is the freelance dream souring? Victoria Crockford finds insecurity abounds inside the gig economy, and argues we need to make sure rights are not lost with the rise of flexible work. ‘Got Paid’, ‘Went Outside’, ‘Remembered to Eat!!’, cheerfully quipped some of the ‘freelance achievement stickers’ designed by Jeremy Nguyen for the New Yorker recently. … Read more
Pollyanne Peña recently moved to Christchurch from Wellington, she has a brand new baby, and she’s on the look out for new friends. In the first of a series in which she tests ways to find her mama coven, she goes to a speed dating event for mums. Moving cities and having a baby are … Read more
When you have a baby the days are long and the adjustment to a life with so much responsibility is hard – so why not argue about it? Sarah Francis explains why she’s definitely got it tougher than her partner. I am currently competing in a long running, intense and hard fought contest. My foe … Read more
An essay about being a daughter, being a parent, and protecting your future self from the past. By Laurel Hilton. We were driving round the bend in a 100 km/h zone. It was roughly in the vicinity where I did my driving test as a very pregnant 32 year-old, graduating from a Texan to New … Read more
When you’re exhausted and everything that could go wrong, does go wrong, you need a parenting hack to get you through. Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes has a tip to change your mindset and help turn your little devils into little angels. For much of my second child’s life I have wondered what’s going on … Read more
A destination playground saved Angela Cuming’s little family from cracking, so just why does her local council reckon the cost of them is ‘bordering on obscene’? During the long, long days I was stuck at home with three boys under three I would sometimes lock myself in the woodshed so my kids wouldn’t see or … Read more
These days an increasing number of families are blended families, which means more step-parents and step-children. Julia Kerr reflects on the challenges of welcoming a new parent into your family, and talks to her husband about becoming a step-father to her son. I didn’t know anyone with step parents when I was a kid. My … Read more
Book an Uber, an Airbnb and a stranger to look after your child? Maria Slade looks into the potentially risky business of online parenting services. Coverage of Balmoral mum Jane Haagh’s new childcare venture, Sitterzen, sent Facebook into a frenzy this week. Dubbed the ‘Uber of babysitting’, the aspect of her web-based service which most … Read more
It might seem like there is a breathtakingly obscene amount of incomprehensible unspoken, unwritten rules around children’s birthday parties but really it’s all quite simple. Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes has crafted the definitive set of guidelines. A few weeks back I hosted my son’s fifth birthday party. In my life I’ve hosted six birthday … Read more
Victoria Crockford reflects on the way society has changed its view of our collective mothers and each other, and how that impacts all of society. Driving home at 10pm. It’s the coldest night of the year so far: -16°C by the reckoning of the car thermometer. I’m sitting in the passenger seat hugging my coat … Read more
Sarah Watkeys and her playcentre whānau are grieving the loss of their community hub. Over the weekend, a fire destroyed the Belfast Playcentre in Christchurch completely. Here she writes about the pain she and local families are going through. We’ve just lost our playcentre. Fire. It has been a fixture in our lives since my … Read more
What would you do if your baby couldn’t eat? Jenn Gilbert shares her family’s story of naso-gastric tube feeding baby Ada. When I was pregnant with my first child, I had the usual first-timer anxieties. Would I ever sleep again? Would my baby cry a lot? Would my body ever be the same? But there … Read more
Can families live in tiny houses without driving each other mad? Carole Payton talks to a mum who lives in a 15 square-metre home with her family of four to find out what it’s really like to live tiny. The popularity of ‘tiny houses’ keeps growing. All over social media teeny palaces of perfect proportions … Read more
Brought to you by Inflatable World, Breeder’s Digest is your monthly coffee group in a podcast. Hosted by mum of three Jane Yee and virgin mum Nicola Winslade, Breeder’s Digest is a casual chat with your mates about all the rubbish bits of parenting and all the really good bits as well. Have your say using … Read more
Almost every sleep-deprived parent is used to the ‘smile and nod’ when they’re given unsolicited advice. Linda Jane Keegan is over it. Here she tells us why. Sometimes I can’t tell if I’m just being overly sensitive to idle parenting-related chitchat or if people really are subtly pushing unsolicited advice. It feels like as parents … Read more
It’s damn hard to date when you have young children. Sarah Bichan asked all of the brilliant and amazing mums she knows to share their best tips for romantic nights in. Since the birth of our dear, sweet child, my lovely husband and I had kept up the pretense of date nights but, really, they … Read more
Jai Breitnauer talks about shared parenting in the 21st Century when you’re a one mother, one father family. Long, long ago, in a hemisphere far, far away, there was a little girl called Jaime who liked red ribbons in her hair, grapes in her lunchbox and horse riding at the weekend. Every morning after a … Read more
Father’s Day isn’t a happy day for a lot of families. A new dad reflects on the lessons he learned from his own dad – one who wasn’t the father he deserved. Dear Dad, Happy Father’s day I guess. I wish this note were written under better circumstances, but the reality is that you’ve been … Read more
We have all had those really, really hard days and weeks where everything feels like it’s too much. Mum of two Jessie Moss talks about how she copes when life is sending her curve balls. This year I have been feeling increasingly paralysed by the seemingly immense and insurmountable tasks that surround me. From small … Read more
Like it or not, friendships tend to change after babies. Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes thanks her friends without kids who have stuck by her – even through conversations about poop. Friendships change when people have kids. It’s inevitable. Becoming a parent is huge – and it changes every minute, every second, of your day. It … Read more
It’s not every day you can say you expressed milk in the presence of world leaders. Gemma Gracewood looks back at that time she breastfed at the United Nations in New York, and considers what it’s like to work while parenting in the world of film and TV. One of the things about being a … Read more
The hysteria over screen time for children is quite out of control. The suggestion seems to be that it’s safer to give your child a wasp hive dipped in cyanide than it is to give them an iPad. Angela Cuming is pushing back against the many headlines. Opinions about kids using iPads are a little … Read more
More than 13,000 abortions were performed in New Zealand last year. Despite this, abortion in this country is enshrined in the Crimes Act. Jessica Hammond Doube doesn’t think it should be, and she’s doing her best to do something about it. The kaupapa of The Spinoff Parents is to uplift, love, and support parents – … Read more
You know her right? The Relaxed Mother? The mother you’re always compared to? Georgina Langdon-Pole takes on the myth. Gather around, ladies and gents. I am going to tell you the story of a magical sorceress. Legend calls her the ‘Relaxed Mother.’ The myth of the Relaxed Mother is perpetuated by the Baby Whisperers AKA … Read more
In her quest for good parenting advice, Thomasin Sleigh has asked Google, skulked around online forums and, of course, become a devoted fan of The Spinoff Parents. But what are the pros and cons of turning to the internet for parenting tips? There’s a great quote by the French philosopher Gilles Deleuze which I came … Read more
Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes considers the things that are important to know when you’re a little human being trying to make your way in the world. My four-year-old has an almost insatiable desire to know everything there is to know about the human body. He has seen every cartoon guide to the body on … Read more