Hi friends – for the first time I had a chance to go to the Drury Lane Oak Brook Theater, and it was lovely. I saw “Ragtime,” and it was a truly terrific performance, the most ambitious, apparently, the Drury Lane has ever put on even including some Broadway stars. I loved it!

I really enjoy live theater, especially musical theater. And when I can take my kids to a show, all the better. But the downtown venus and prices can sometimes be impediments. I was happy to be reminded that there are other great and more affordable options for my family to enjoy professional live theater. I think it’s terrific for kids to be exposed to it.

I hadn’t been taking advantage of a great option in my own backyard – now I will!

Thought you might like to know! – Betsy

P.S. – season tickets are a great way to get the best value, and I think worth the investment if you can.
Drury Lane Theater

. . . No More Teacher’s Dirty Looks!

Remember that fantasy? Well here’s this week’s column. Um no, my kids will not be experiencing “unschooling” any time soon!

No More Teachers, No More Books. . .

Thanks for stopping by!

Hi friends and happy tax day. (Well, whatever. . . )

This week’s column is not about taxes. It’s about those darn teenage boys – like mine – who won’t say anything. Research for this column made me feel that at least I don’t have to take it personally!

Why Teen Boys Don’t Talk!

Hi friends – here’s this week’s column. FYI, Maddie has been told she’s not getting the mice. I must say she took it quite well!

Tempering the Temper Tantrum

Thanks for stopping by – Betsy

Hi friends. I realize that pundits all over America are writing about Obamacare. I decided to jump in because, as I told my kids, this one really hits home! I also think a lot of people don’t know about a little history here involving Dan Rostenkowski and some very angry seniors citizens!

The Sting of Health Care Reform

Thanks for stopping by!

Betsy

Hi friends, here’s this week’s column. I get the impression that many parents are shocked to find their sons are dabbling in pornography. But wake up! Unless your son is kept off the computer and his friends’ computers 24/7, he’s seen it, probably is seeing it, and is enticed by it. Period. Here’s what I think a more positive way to deal with it than you might have previously thought about.. .

A Pornography Pep Talk?

Thanks for stopping by!

Betsy

Today most young people will live with one or more romantic partners before marrying – if they do marry at all. This is the “new normal” – and it’s not a healthy one for our culture.

When Fewer Wedding Bells Are Ringing. . .

BTW, in this week’s column I refer generally to studies which show that married people who did not cohabit first are statistically more likely to be happy than those married couples who did cohabit first. There was just no room to site all the studies which demonstrate this finding, so I’ll include here a sampling over several decades.

One finding studies demonstrate is that couples moving from living together into marriage often go from a sense of “freedom/no commitment” to “commitment/no freedom” and this can lead to a feeling of being “trapped.” Whereas couples who go from not living together to being married are more likely to view marriage itself as “freeing.” Interesting.

This, of course, can have an impact even years later on how positively or negatively married couples view their marriages.

9. R.E.L. Watson, “Premarital Cohabitation vs. Traditional Courtship: The Effects of Subsequent Marital Adjustment,” Family Relations 32(1981), 139-147.

10. Alfred DeMaris and K. Vaninadha Rao, “Premarital Cohabitation and Subsequent Marital Stability in the United States: A Reassessment,” Journal of Marriage and Family 54(1992), 178-190.

11. Stephen Nock, “A Comparison of Marriages and Cohabiting Relationships,” Journal of Family Issues 16(1995), 53-76.

12. Catherine L. Cohan and Stacey Kleinbaum, “Toward A Greater Understanding of the Cohabitation Effect: Premarital Cohabitation and Marital Communication,” Journal of Marriage and Family 64(2002), 180-192.

13. Lee Robins and Darrel Reiger, Psychiatric Disorders in America (New York: Free Press, 1990), 72.

14. Andrew Greeley, Faithful Attraction (New York: Tom Doherty, 1991), 206.

15. Jan E. Stets, “Cohabiting and Marital Aggression: The Role of Social Isolation,” Journal of Marriage and Family 53(1991): 669-680.

16. Todd K. Shackelford, “Cohabitation, Marriage and Murder,” Aggressive Behavior 27(2001), 284-191.

Thanks for stopping by!

Betsy Hart

Hi friends – here’s this week’s column. A little “whistle while you work” anyone?

Take this Job and Love it

Thanks for stopping by! – Betsy Hart

Hi friends – here’s this week’s column. My discussion with someone else’s “the other woman” is getting a lot of attention. In fact it made the cover of the Sun-Times this week.

Yes, Casey is very real. See what you think!

Casey’s Affair: A Conversation with “The Other Woman”

Hi friends – this week’s column is about something that strikes close to home with me. Aging!

Aging is Not for Sissies!