Parenting
Iris on parenting · June 14th
storyflo · parenting
Jun 14, 2026 · 20 min listen
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Iris on parenting · June 14th
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Hi friends! Happy Sunday! If you’re new here, The Sunday Scroll is a collection of articles, essays, and more that grabbed my attention during the week. Delivered straight to your inbox by 7am every Sunday morning perfect for scrolling with your coffee on the couch. I made a quick trip to DC last week to accept the 2026 Client Courage award from the New Civil Liberties Alliance and well, receiving such a thing in such a place (Madison Hall at the Library of Congress) was just surreal. What is this life. We just got my oldest back from Wake Forest Golf Camp and have one more week with Caroline before she’s off to Camp Greystone (for five weeks… hold me). I’m taking it easy with work this week to spend some fun time with her in the lake and at the pool! Hope your weekend is wonderful! If you enjoyed my post on what women are outsourcing (and how every time we say yes to doing something ourselves, we are saying no to something else) you should check out this deep dive on mother’s helpers and house managers, specifically, including how much women are paying for help and where they’re sourcing it. I love to see these conversations playing out in public, it’s so powerful. 41 things a soon-to-be 41 year old mom has learned (and is still learning) in life. A life changing laundry routine, you say? I’m all ears! Everything you never knew you needed to know about enzymes, water temperature, and rinsing. “Because time is the strangest thing we live inside. We never actually see it move.” This is so cool…eight photos that put life and time in perspective. Our toddler days feel like a distant memory, but if you’re in the thick of it this is really good advice on how to enjoy toddlerhood (not just survive it). I’ve been having so much fun shopping for 4th of July outfits! I don’t know if it’s because of America’s 250th, but I feel like there’s a lot of cute red, white, and blue fashion this year. Hello, this hat is perfection and if you just want a subtle Americana detail this neckerchief is darling. I saved a bunch of stuff here! (And if you too are having complicated feelings about the fourth, love for a country — like love for a person — doesn’t require pretending it’s perfect. You can hold its brokenness in one hand and your hope for it in the other, and still mean it when you say you love America.) A very fun roundup of soccer movies for kiddos excited about the World Cup! And in that same vein, why watching sports makes people happy. Forever a Nap Dress fan, but this $70 smocked dress is a really close second! Never thought I would be so excited about celebrities using a Cricut machine, but everything about Taylor Swift and the Haim sisters wearing homemade t-shirts makes me happy. My friend wrote this sweet piece about our time working together last year (first doing press for my cookbook, talking about pot roast… then doing press for my lawsuit, talking about tariffs and international trade… what a ride). I brought this little printer with us so I could print out photos of the kids from camp. I’m trying to be better about our pictures not just living in our phones! Mosquito repellant bracelets, because, of course. File this under things I’m loving because my family continues to think I’m insane, but this hat brings me so much joy. My favorite sunglasses (which are currently 30% off!) Handy zipper pouches for organizing crafts, boat things, pool things. I’ve been living in these jelly sandals, they make my millennial heart so happy. I’m always on a mission to find ways to keep my business and life more organized (hello, I literally created a planner). When it comes to apps it feels like I’ve tried them all — and I have thoughts! I’m working on a massive post of all the apps that keep my business and life organized, how I utilize them, and what’s actually worth paying for. If you too find joy in organization, this post is for you!
Making your mom-life easier this week with two more easy, simple kids lunch box ideas. This is what we’ve been packing for summer camp lunches so far! Join Our Summer Reading Challenge! Every Sunday at 7:00AM EST, HealthyMom Club Paid Subscribers receive two lunchbox ideas plus recipes and product links—in addition to our Monthly Family Meal Plans, exclusive articles, and more! For as little as $5/month, join as a paid subscriber & gain access to the HealthyMom Club bank of 80+ kid lunch ideas (new ones sent out every Sunday!), monthly family meal plans, & expert guest articles 💖 Subscribe now ➡️ Don’t Miss Out! Get the meal plan of the month here: TWO Kid’s Lunch Ideas👇🏻🌽🍊 Read more
Getting dressed everyday while juggling kids’ schedules, deciding what to have for dinner, and 18 loads of laundry is a lot. Comfort is key, and sometimes the right outfit can shift your whole day. We’re bringing the Pinterest board to you with comfy & easy outfits that still look chic. Here are 5 simple outfit combos to spark some joy in your closet this week. These cream overalls on repeat all summer, add cute jelly sandals and a feminine top for perfect 90s coded summer outfit Shop the Look: Phone Case | Cap | Overalls | White Top | Jelly Sandals | Bag | Bracelet Heading out to watch the World Cup, do it in style. This vintage tee and cute accessories elevate this simple outfit for a fun night out. Shop the look: Denim Shorts | Hat | Kitten Heels | Etsy Tee | Belt | Phone Case This set is perfect for summer at the office, paired with a lightweight cardigan to battle the air-conditioned space. Add raffia details and red touches for a trendy touch. Shop the look: Striped Pants | Cardigan | Tank top | Necklace | Flats | Bag | Sunglasses Whether you’re heading to the pool, the park, dropping off at camp, or running errands, this is our favorite summer formula for easy mom style: a graphic tee and lace shorts. Shop the look: Graphic Tee | Lace Shorts | Bogg Bag | West Coast Cap | Sneakers | Necklace This Americana-inspired outfit is perfect for a full day of festivities that start at the pool and end with fireworks. . Shop the look: Dress | Swim Suit Top | Swim Suit Bottom | Sweater | Hat | Bag | Sandal | Phone Case | Necklace More From Our Fashion Editor: The Euro Girl Summer Capsule: Your Passport to Polished Style From Beach Days to Sunset Dinners: A Week of Vacation Outfits for Your Next Trip The Best White Tees I Tell All My Friends About Summer Athleisure Capsule Wardrobe: Easy Yet Elevated Pieces for Everyday Wear What do you want to see outfit ideas for next? Let us know in the comments. We’ll be back in your inbox next week with more Pinterest-inspired outfits to copy. See you soon! More outfit ideas:
I have been on a bit of a binge recently. I loved her article on The Death of Millenial Feminism for The Atlantic last month (which inspired my own popular piece arguing that Hannah Neeleman and Lindy West are basically the same). More recently, I was intrigued by her recent cover story on The Men Who Want Women to be Quiet, and the associated Ezra Klein podcast, The New Right’s Very Old Vision of Men, and then, since I was on a roll, I went all the way back to 2018 and watched her most famous interview of all time with Jordan Peterson for British GQ (71 million views on that one. Damn). Initially, I wanted to write a response to “The New Right’s Very Old Vision of Men” (what the heck do they even mean by “very old” here? The 1950s is not old. Ancient Greece is not even old. The Paleolithic is old) but then I realized that there’s another question being skirted in all of this that bugs me even more: Why are conservatives so obsessed with evolutionary psychology? At one point in the viral Jordan Peterson vs. Helen Lewis interview, Peterson starts railing on left-leaning ideological capture in universities (a point to which I am not entirely unsympathetic) and says this: [Leftist ideologues] are destroying the universities, and that’s not a good thing. And they’re particularly destroying the social sciences and the humanities. The sciences are safe so far, but not for long...There isn’t a competing position on campuses except among the evolutionary biologists and the evolutionary psychologists, and they’re under complete attack. They’re certainly next on the chopping block as far as I can tell.” Listening to that, I was kind of flummoxed. You see, I studied evolutionary biology at Stanford, and (although this was 15 years ago) I was not under the impression that the humanities and biology departments were at war. They probably did not interact and talk to one another as much as they should have. But it’s not like the biology lectures I sat in on included searing take-downs of gender studies department papers. (My favorite biology professor, Robert Sapolsky, did occasionally take pot-shots at the worst of the “social construct” school of thought. In his blockbuster book Behave he called a paper with the title “PMS is a mode for the expression of women’s anger resulting from her oppressed position in American capitalist society” a “howler”. But last I checked, no one was circulating petitions to fire him.) And furthermore, although the biology professors were certainly more likely than some of the humanities people to admit that men and women are different (anatomically and behaviorally), that genetics matter (no one is a blank slate), or that we share an unfortunate natural proclivity for aggression and hierarchy with every other primate, they were, for the most part, pretty ideologically left-leaning. They were more likely to come barefoot to a lecture than wearing a suit, they were pretty gung-ho on environmental activism, they were 100% atheist, and they were generally in favor of things like income redistribution and universal healthcare. Peterson would probably take this as evidence of the fact that ideological capture has penetrated so deep into the universities by now that even the biology departments have not come out unscathed. To be sure, some biology departments have produced some shamefully bad science in the name of justifying leftist political ideologies within the last ten years. But for the most part, evolutionary biologists lean left because…well, because there is nothing in evolutionary biology that says they shouldn’t. The only people using evolutionary biology to justify a conservative worldview — who feel it’s the only logical take-away based on the “science” — are the people who don’t know very much about evolutionary biology. They are the kinds of people who think we can make a straight leap from lobster behavior to human behavior without reckoning with the 350 millions years of evolution that happened since we parted ways on the tree of life. When I first started this newsletter, I was honestly quite surprised by how many conservative-leaning thinkers it drew. I myself was a card-carrying liberal feminist (although I have since drifted right on some issues), and I was talking about things like our evolutionary legacy of allomaternal care, birth spacing, breastfeeding, and gender egalitarianism in hunter-gatherer societies. These hardly felt like themes that should be popular with conservatives. Then again, my husband pointed out to me that, almost by definition, there is no more “conservative” worldview than the worldview of evolutionary mismatch. What I am essentially arguing, in most of my work, is that replicating certain elements of our ancestral living would be good for our brains and bodies, and would, based on extensive empirical evidence, lead to greater health and happiness for many people, even in modern society.
The AgingIN Changemaker Award is looking for people who’ve led real, lasting improvements in eldercare—whether through research, advocacy, or hands‑on work. If you know someone in your community who fits that bill, you can nominate them before July 3; the deadline’s coming up fast, so it’s worth a quick check.
I’m planning to put a name forward myself, because I’ve seen a few folks whose efforts truly stand out. It’s a simple way to give extra recognition to work that often goes unnoticed.
On a different note, I’ve just compiled a new reading list that explores the “virtue of friction.” It’s a collection of essays and articles that argue a little conflict can actually spark growth and better ideas. If you’re curious, give it a look and see what sticks.
Long walks on sunlight-dappled trails, flowers blooming, falling asleep to the sound of the rain, pasta salad, reading a chapter between innings of my kid’s baseball game, washing beach towels, fresh cut melon, late sunsets, a driveway full of bikes. It’s been a good first week of summer break and this is just the beginning. What is something I can do for our home? What is something I can do for/with our family? What is something I can do for myself? Today for me it’s planning out the week and getting it posted on the fridge for all to reference1, doing something active outside together (maybe pickleball or a bike ride?), and prepping some food to have on hand for the week. When I tell you that Quiet Time was a critical part of our days from when my kids stopped napping until early elementary school, I’m not kidding. It was our consistent daily break, and I needed it just as much (maybe more) as they did. It took patience and practice and praise, but we worked up to an hour of the kids in their rooms after lunch M-F resting/reading/quietly playing. Last summer they were 7 and 10 and I noticed that Quiet Time was no longer happening daily. Oftentimes we were at the pool or the kids were outside playing with neighbors during that time. Because they were so much more independent, I didn’t feel like Quiet Time needed to be a part of our day. This summer and moving forward, I consider Quiet Time as a tool I have in my parenting tool belt. This week I had an important call one day after lunch and told my kids that they would need to do Quiet Time in their rooms for 45 minutes. They shifted into Quiet Time mode after lunch like a Pavlovian response, ha. I’m grateful for the time, energy, and consistency it took to get QT up and running as it served us so well for many years. And now, life looks different, and we mostly don’t need it. It’s funny how something that is an absolute cornerstone of your life one day just shifts. So, we adjust our sails and carry on. This was a win in our kitchen this week! I think it could be served hot or cold. Recipe: Chicken + Marinade: 2-3 chicken breasts (I used a pack of fresh tenders) 1/4 c olive oil 1/4 c balsalmic 1/4 c lemon juice 1 T dijon 3 cloves of garlic, minced dried basil, dried oregano, and salt Balsamic Glaze: 1/2 c brown sugar 1 T cornstarch 1/4 c balsamic vinegar 1/2 c water 2 T soy sauce (note: I cheated and used bottled balsamic glaze from the grocery store) Pasta: cherry tomatoes, halved chopped fresh basil mozzarella pearls 8 slices of bacon, cooked 1 pound of pasta of choice, cooked Whisk together the marinade ingredients and add the chicken. Let sit in the marinade for up to 12 hours - I only did about an hour and it was still delish. Grill the chicken and slice into bite sized pieces. If making the glaze, whisk the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 3-5 minutes until the mixture thickens. Add cooked pasta, chicken, tomatoes, mozzarella, bacon, and basil to a large bowl and gently mix. Drizzle balsamic glaze over the top and stir to incorporate. Enjoy! Reel that put this recipe on my radar is linked here. So, it turns out that if you set up a chess set in an accessible spot in your home, the tweens will find it and play - a lot. Anything you’ve found to draw in the tween/big kid crowd? I’m all ears. Buckets that were full this week: social (adults and kids), kids sports/activities, getting a ton of steps just living life, reading, fun Buckets that were empty-ish this week: consistent exercise schedule for myself, good lunches and breakfasts for myself, time to work on Begin at Home - especially writing this newsletter, keeping up around the house, getting enough sleep, quality time with Todd Honestly, I don’t have some sort of magical solution to get everything in perfect alignment for summer. (If you do, please share.) I know I’ll be dropping some balls along the way. But I also shouldn’t casually neglect myself for an entire season, ha. I love summer and am grateful to be home with our kids, but whew, that in itself is a full time gig. If you’re still finding your summer footing, I’m right there with you! My 11 year old son’s baseball team recently experienced a good old fashioned butt kicking. And when my son was bummed on the way home from the game, Todd said, “sometimes you’re the windshield, sometimes you’re the bug”. I had never heard that expression before but gosh, isn’t it the truth?! There was definitely a day where I felt like the bug this week, it happens! But thinking of this expression made me smile. I hope you’ll remember it next time you or your kids are having a rough day. p.s. Need anything from Amazon or Target this week? Letting my affiliate link open in your app before checking out (no matter what you purchase) supports my work at no cost to you.
Hi everyone. Today I’m re-sharing a newsletter I wrote two years ago. Drowning is not a fun topic, but it’s an important one. There are many misconceptions about how and why kids drown. I hope you find this helpful, and please share! — My son has almost drowned twice, and both times, it was my fault. He had been frolicking in the shallow end for 45 minutes in both cases. Then I got distracted for a minute, and when I glanced back, he was gone. There were multiple people in the pool with him each time, some within a couple of feet, a few of them relatives — and nobody saw that he had drifted back to where the water deepened and had sunk below the surface. The only reason I noticed was because when I looked for him, he wasn’t there. These two experiences are among the most traumatic of my life, and they were pretty scary for him, too. Thankfully, he was fine, at least physically. But the incidents proved to me that drowning kids don’t call for help; they don’t kick or splash. They just sink and quietly disappear. They also revealed to me that swim lessons — which my son had taken after the first near-drowning — weren’t failsafe, and having adults around simply isn’t enough. I want to dig into the data on these two realizations in more detail today, because to me, at least, they were surprising. And they are crucially important, because more American kids die from drowning than from car accidents; drowning is the leading cause of death in kids ages 1 to 4. I have absolutely nothing against swim lessons — I think they’re crucial, and both my kids have taken them. But swim lessons can be dangerous if they cause caregivers to become overconfident about their kids’ abilities and watch them less closely. In a 2014 study, researchers repeatedly surveyed parents over the course of eight months as their preschoolers took swim lessons. As the kids acquired more lessons, parents began to believe that their kids knew how to keep themselves safe in potentially dangerous water situations — that they were, for instance, good judges of their own swimming ability and knew to stay away from pools when unsupervised, which aren’t things that swim lessons generally teach. The parents also began to assume that their kids needed less careful watching around water, which isn’t always true, either. In another study, researchers asked parents to judge how well their kids had mastered various swim skills in their lessons and found that parents overestimated one in every five skills. (This overestimation of swimming competence tends to be especially bad among fathers.) In a recent technical report on drowning prevention, the American Academy of Pediatrics warned about this phenomenon, noting that “parental perceptions regarding necessary levels of supervision change as children progress through swim training, potentially to the detriment of the child’s safety." Why aren’t kids who take swim lessons safe? Because, in part, young kids typically don’t learn survival skills in swim classes. “Mostly, what these lessons do is prepare the child for swimming by making them comfortable in the water — getting their face wet, going under the water — and teaching them some rudimentary skills,” said Barbara Morrongiello, a professor at the University of Guelph in Canada who studies parent safety practices and drowning prevention, when I spoke to her a story I wrote for Slate. There’s nothing wrong with this; if classes foster a love for water play and swimming, that’s great. What’s bad are parents’ assumptions that the classes do more. “Swimming programs for youngsters under four shouldn’t really be considered a drowning prevention strategy,” Morrongiello explained. That’s because the ability to survive a near-drowning typically requires more than just the types of water skills that keep children afloat in normal swim situations. Kids might drown because they’re really tired, have gotten a muscle cramp, or have been injured during water play — and they need to learn what to do in these specific situations to stay safe. Children are also especially at risk after falling into water fully clothed, because clothes make swimming more difficult. Cold water has the same effect. Last summer, my nine-year-old daughter, whom I’d considered to be a strong swimmer, had to be rescued by a lifeguard during a swim test at camp in a very cold lake. So even if your kid has had ample swim lessons, don’t assume that you can leave them be in the water — or half watch while you’re chatting with friends. Which brings me to my next point. A few days ago, my wonderful former journalism student Anna Gibbs wrote a powerful piece for Slate highlighting the data showing that most child drownings occur when adults are close by. She writes: More often than not, children drown in the presence of their guardians, not their absence.
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