Readers — I’m traveling today and can’t eloquently express all my rage about what happened to this loving, rational mom. So let me just say that it is not fair to treat 6-year-olds who can open a car door as if they are salamanders or something, incapable of doing anything in the human world. Remember: The laws exist to deal with people who are doing something indisputably and incredibly dangerous, not people who happen to be raising their kids differently from the way you’d raise yours. And a shout out to Christy Gutowski at the Chicago Tribune for such thorough…
Author: lskenazy
This is from Maria Hasankolli, the Connecticut mom who was arrested for oversleeping while her 8-year-old son got ready for school and started walking there on his own. She wrote it in the comments to yesterday’s post here about her. (Boldface mine.): I may be tossing a pebble in the pond here, but none-the-less; Lucan (my 8 yr old) is the youngest of six; 21,17,15,14,10, then him coming in at 8. All boys except our 10 yr old. I’ve raised them all the same. I’m not a coddler but I am a fabulous teacher. They are well versed in self…
Maria Hasankolli, the Connecticut mom who was arrested after police found her son, 8, walking to school while she overslept, had her court appearance yesterday. Here is what she wrote: So I just left court. I was informed that “risk of injury to a minor” (my charge) carries with it a ten year sentence, five thousand dollar fine, and five years probation. My case was continued to January 6th, 2016. Thank you all for your support and words of encouragement. I’ll keep you informed as I go. Perhaps someone reading is struggling my struggle and will find comfort knowing they’re…
. Just got this in the mail and had to share. And if you’re thinking about a holiday gift…here’s azdbbnzafr the link! – L. Ms. Skenazy, I’m a first time mom. I found your book on a whim. It’s the best thing I’ve ever read. And I was an English major/teacher so I’ve read a lot. Shakespeare, Vonnegut, Homer… I liked you better. While pregnant I read zero other parenting books. I only read yours. It gave me so much confidence as a new mom. Granted my son is only four months old so he won’t be playing outside unsupervised…
On Nov. 18, Maria Hasankolli of Wallingford, CT, came home in the early hours of the morning after visiting a relative at the hospital. She overslept while her 8-year-old stepson got himself ready for school — and missed his bus. The boy, Lucan, decided to walk to school on his own, two miles away, and was about halfway there when a business owner spotted him and called the cops. The cops drove Lucan to school, then went to his home, woke Hasankolli and clapped her into handcuffs. She was driven to the police precinct, had her mug shot taken, and…
. From what I’ve read — and seen in my own family — the best way to deal with an out-sized fear is to try to confront it, rather than “feed” it by more and more avoidance. And since, as a society, we have come to fear stranger-danger and kidnappings more than almost anything else vis yriaefdbka a vis our kids, I’m bummed by Dear Abby’s “solution” for the fearful mom below. Dear Free-Range Kids: This was today’s Dear Abby — see below. I just wanted to know how much of a problem having children snatched from their own beds…
Before you read this little piece, ask yourself, “Would I let an 11 year old babysit?” Most people today would probably say no. Perhaps this will have them reconsidering. The Birmingham Mail reports: An 11-year-old girl from Tamworth single-handedly delivered a baby — then calmly went to school for the day. Caitlin Burke sprang into action when mum Tara Knightley’s waters suddenly broke at her home in Dordon on Tuesday morning. With the help of ambulance staff on the phone, the cool schoolgirl delivered baby sister Elsa-Monet, even managing to unravel the cord which was wrapped around the baby. And…
Here in my state, something wildly fair is about to happen: People who have been on the Sex Offender Registry for 20 years, who GOT ON the list for a “Level 1” non-violent sex crime like going to a prostitute, “public lewdness,” or peeing in public, are finally going to be allowed to get off it. This, of course, makes for a great news story, especially if you find a mom and interview her without explaining to her or the audience that “stranger danger” is the least likely danger her child will encounter, that the Sex Offender Registry is a…
. You don’t have to watch all 10 minutes of this video to realize how thoroughly we have forgotten what young children are capable of. (See yesterday’s post, which hinges on the idea that 4 year olds should never be outside near their own homes alone.) Such childhood independence is unusual today, but only because we overestimate danger and underestimate kids, to the point where we barely think of them as humans. We treat them like clueless, adorable, endangered pets. I’d like to see your puppy do THIS: . . Meantime, happy Thanksgiving! Be grateful we can change society by…
A mom who let her 4-year-old son play outside at the playground 120 feet from her home was arrested . Her neighbors had called 911 when they saw the kid outside. While many people might think four is too young for a boy to be outside on his own, the bigger question is: Is this a criminal offense? It should not be. The boy was in a gated apartment complex and on a playground. What’s more, if the neighbors were worried, why wouldn’t they just talk to the mom? And if the cops were worried, why didn’t they tell her…