Danielle and Alexander Meitive of Silver Spring, Maryland, think their kids should be allowed to play in their neighborhood without being constantly watched. But the state of Maryland disagrees, and has threatened to take their children away — a threat that may be far more damaging than just the risks of playing alone.
Parents are opting to have just one child in the midst of the recession, in spite of societal pressures.
Over the course of modern American history, economics have played a role in the number of children parents choose to have. Aside from economics, what are the benefits and drawbacks of limiting family size?
Since the economic downturn, many Americans have to make cut backs. For some people, this means not being able to pay child support in full. In Tennessee alone, child support payments are down $13 million from last year.
Can parenting responsibilities ever be divided truly equitably? If so, do you have to be well-to-do to make it happen? Takeaway talks to New York Times 'Motherlode' blogger Lisa Belkin and real-life couple and co-authors Marc and Amy Vachon.
Recent studies have shown that parents with young kids can put a solid marriage on the rocks. So what happens when you add a national economic crisis to the mix? Yale psychology professor Susan Nolen-Hoeksema and Lamar Tyler, blogger at the parenting website BlackandMarriedwithKids.com, say that it's particularly hard for loving married couples to connect when times are tough.
A third of men who take paternity tests end up finding out that they're not really the father. We hear from Tanner Pruitt, a father who took an unexpected route to gaining custody of a daughter that isn't his -- not genetically anyway.