A few years back—OK, let’s call it 40—a father’s responsibilities were relegated to bread-winning, assembling toys and giving a good pep talk every now and then. Flash forward to 2014, when the average family man now changes diapers, sits on teddy bear tea parties, and hits the playground regularly. Today’s dads are stepping up their game.

To honor the man who does everything (we’ll forgive him for leaving the toilet seat up or forgetting to stock the diaper bag), we’ve compiled a list of great Father’s Day gift ideas. Whether you’re the daughter of a great dad, or the life partner of a magnificent man who’s helping you raise some rocking kids, you’ll find something here that’s worthy of the man (or men) in your life. And no, that doesn’t mean another tie, a bottle of cologne or soap-on-a-rope. Here are 10 unique and fun ways to show your love for those wacky, lovable and doting fathers on June 15. … //READ MORE

My Facebook friend Laura died last night. She was the best friend I never met.

Laura and I came from the same neighborhood, a unique childhood paradise of 20 or so 20-story buildings in one square mile, complete with an elementary school, middle school, high school, shopping center and two nice parks, all within one block of the Atlantic Ocean. Built in the 1960s by Fred Trump, father of the Donald, Trump Village was the first new middle-income, co-operative community built on Brooklyn’s south shore, in between Brighton Beach, later to become  New York’s Little Odessa by the sea, and Coney Island, the once glamourous Oceanfront play land. The new community was instantly populated with mostly Jewish, mostly young couples and families, and instant friendships were formed in the lobbies, the classrooms, and the playgrounds between the buildings. … //READ MORE

Not since the 1960s has the cocktail culture occupied such a prominent place in the home. Today, not only bar carts but entire rooms in the house are being devoted to the art of mixing drinks. Nowhere is this more apparent than at the current Decorator Showcase in San Francisco, where designer Reba Jones dedicates a small space to the “endless pursuit of blending.” Powerful elixirs, nostalgic cocktail recipes and vintage barware line the shelves of this sexy red room tucked into a corner of the spacious mansion. Also on display at Showcase, “Dad’s Honey Hole” is designer Sunny K. Merry’s tongue-in-cheek nod to the private bar of days gone by, “where a man could be himself without judgment.” Gentlemen’s magazines, wallpaper featuring pin-up-girl images, and a full bar nestled inside a steamer trunk make this a room Don Draper could kick back in. Now, only one question remains: Who’s gonna design a drinking hole for the ladies, complete with cosmos and couture? Sistas need a sanctuary, and we need it now!

It happens every school year in first and second grade classrooms all over the country. As soon as the curriculum begins to focus on reading, writing and math, parents are called into school to discuss the possibility that their child has a learning challenge. If you’re one of these parents, perhaps you got the call because your child isn’t reading on grade level. Maybe your son has a short attention span and is having difficulty sitting in his seat. Perhaps your daughter isn’t getting along with her peers. Whatever the reason, the teacher is concerned and suggests that you have your child “evaluated.”

Academic evaluations are routinely done by public school at no cost to parents, or may be done privately by professionals specializing in educational evaluations. The latter can be very costly. Either way, the process can be stressful and overwhelming.  If your family is in this situation, here are some steps you can take to make things easier. … //READ MORE

During a recent dinner with several mom friends, the discussion turned to the stay-at-home vs. go-back-to-work debate. Now, this is a hot topic that many women start thinking about from the day that little plus sign appears on their pregnancy-test applicator. It’s a subject on which everyone—from mothers-in-law to politicians—seems to have a strong opinion, and those opinions can get pretty heated. When women begin judging one another, it can become downright nasty. I know a few stay-at-home moms who are righteous about their choice, as well as a couple of career-driven moms who view themselves as superior for remaining in the work force. Thank goodness, the majority of my friends fall somewhere in between, understanding that this is a decision every woman must make for herself, that there’s no one right answer and, most important, that children raised by both working moms and stay-at-home moms will most likely turn out absolutely fine.

Still, everyone has something to say on the topic. At this gathering of close friends, guards dropped and the women at the table got honest and emotional talking about the often-agonizing decision of whether to head back to a work and leave your baby in someone else’s care, or stay at home to enjoy your child but put the brakes on your career. One of the moms said she knew the moment she got engaged that she wanted to stay home to raise a family full time. (“My mom and grandma and great-grandma did it—I guess it’s in my DNA,” she said.) Another woman insisted she was destined to work until the day she died. “As much as I love my kids, I would be bored out of my fucking mind … //READ MORE

If you’re a lover of reality TV, you may have heard the clear, mesmerizing vocals and hauntingly beautiful lyrics of singer-songwriter Melissa Giges. Her music has been featured on shows like MTV’s Real World, Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Bad Girls Club and Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami. And her heartfelt debut album, Evident, won her a loyal following that traveled way beyond the reality-show circuit.

Next month, Giges returns with her second album, Just When I Let Go, an introspective yet raw exploration of relationships. The album’s first single, “Audience,” is an empowering look back at an emotionally draining union (“You took anything I’d give/Then you’d offer the breath when I couldn’t breathe.”) that enables Giges to flaunt her … //READ MORE