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Family Traditions: Why My Wife and I (Now) Spend the Holidays Together


Right before Thanksgiving, the good folks here at Blisstree posted My Wife and I Spend the Holidays Apart (And We Like It That Way), a little look at our non-traditional non-together festivities. The piece struck an online nerve, eliciting a fair number of comments, both here and abroad. It even landed Kim and I a guest spot on a the NPR radio show “The Story,” fulfilling a personal goal even if it had nothing to do with Ira Glass. Although, host Dick Gordon has a much more soothing put-you-at-ease voice, the kind made for hot cocoa. (Hear for yourself: Our segment begins around 29:30.)

http://thestory.org/archive/the_story_1175_Bley_Brothers_Thanksgiving.mp3

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with the responses. Not that everyone thought our way of doing things made a lick of sense, but nearly everyone took a live-and-let-live whatever-works-for-you attitude about it. It warmed my Grinchy heart, but it also made me feel guilty for a bit of writerly withholding to the readers. I apologize. I wasn’t entirely forthcoming … More »

Post from: BlissTree

Family Traditions: Why My Wife and I (Now) Spend the Holidays Together

Parenting Sucks, Says Research. So Do You Still Want a Baby?


One of Slate’s most popular articles today, “Parents are Junkies,” asks why we love parenthood so much, given all the research that says it sucks. In the last few months, several articles have been written about research proving that parenthood makes us less happy; not more. Statistics show that more often than not, the birth of a child gives rise to the death of a marriage, greater likelihood of depression, and an onslaught of anxiety about the resources available to said child.

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Post from: BlissTree

Parenting Sucks, Says Research. So Do You Still Want a Baby?