Grandchildren are the elixir of life. Their voices on the phone and their e-mail messages are magical, transforming a rainy day into one of glorious sunshine. ...more

March 11, 2009

A 53-year-old man fatally shot his wife and two daughters Wednesday before turning the gun on himself, and a 16-year-old son who survived the attack managed to call 911 as he escaped uninjured from the Miami home, authorities said. ...more

February 25, 2009

Bonnie Rabin is fond of saying that divorce lawyers are a bit like liquor stores. They're busiest in the really good times, and the really bad. ...more

November 29, 2008

Rushing from school to soccer practice to piano lessons to science club meetings is no new thing for many Bay area parents. ...more

October 8, 2008

Rushing from school to soccer practice to piano lessons to science club meetings is no new thing for many Bay area parents. But there is a new wave of research that many might find surprising. Two studies into the lives of middle-class children buck conventional wisdom and conclude that they are not the overscheduled, frazzled generation that many believe them to be. In fact, it might be the parents who are overloaded, one researcher suggests. ...more

October 7, 2008

Like a shrewd salesman who keeps his suitcase to the side, Thomas McCarthy's "The Visitor" doesn't immediately announce itself as a movie about immigration policy. ...more

May 11, 2008

More than any other job, parenting seems to present challenges for which there are no easy answers. Do you tell your son not to fight back when the bully hits him? Do you insist your daughter continue her piano lessons? Do you pay for A's and B's? ...more

December 27, 2007

How did internationally known contemporary pianist Jim Brickman come to give a workshop for local piano students and teachers at the Music Showcase in Brandon? ...more

October 31, 2007