My (almost) two-year-old daughter loves to listen to Elmo songs. Thanks to AI, she can say “Hey Google, play Elmo” in any room in the house and her favorite jams will fill the speakers, so long as Google can “speak toddler” that day. While this is cute and convenient for her, it’s also created a…
As a 34-year-old mom of two (a Lego-obsessed 6-year-old and a toddler who thinks sleep is optional), wife of 12 years, and CEO of a nonprofit dedicated to strengthening families, I often find myself juggling more than just the usual daily tasks. It’s the mental load—the invisible, relentless stream of responsibilities—that truly weighs me down.…
https://firstthings.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/WP-Banner-scaled.jpg8962048Lauren Hallhttps://firstthings.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ftf-logo-300x186.pngLauren Hall2025-05-06 10:45:442025-05-06 10:45:47The Invisible Load: Why Moms Are Mentally Maxed Out (and What We Can Do About It)
If you’ve ever said, “When I have kids, I’ll never say that,” only to hear your mother’s voice come flying out of your mouth, you are not alone. Parenting has a funny way of stirring up ghosts from our childhoods, especially the ones we thought we’d buried under self-help books. But there’s a deeper undercurrent…
How Artificial Intelligence is Shaping Families
My (almost) two-year-old daughter loves to listen to Elmo songs. Thanks to AI, she can say “Hey Google, play Elmo” in any room in the house and her favorite jams will fill the speakers, so long as Google can “speak toddler” that day. While this is cute and convenient for her, it’s also created a…
The Invisible Load: Why Moms Are Mentally Maxed Out (and What We Can Do About It)
As a 34-year-old mom of two (a Lego-obsessed 6-year-old and a toddler who thinks sleep is optional), wife of 12 years, and CEO of a nonprofit dedicated to strengthening families, I often find myself juggling more than just the usual daily tasks. It’s the mental load—the invisible, relentless stream of responsibilities—that truly weighs me down.…
What is Generational Trauma, Exactly?
If you’ve ever said, “When I have kids, I’ll never say that,” only to hear your mother’s voice come flying out of your mouth, you are not alone. Parenting has a funny way of stirring up ghosts from our childhoods, especially the ones we thought we’d buried under self-help books. But there’s a deeper undercurrent…