Joanna Schroeder

I first saw shame take over my son’s face in a somewhat unexpected place: the toy aisle at Target.

There are a lot of women out there right now who think yoga pants are great everyday wear, even when they’re not working out. There are probably also just as many people who think that women wear yoga pants entirely too much, and that they're inappropriate.

Much of my life has been ruled by fears I didn’t want to face. Now that I'm older and have been battling them, I feel an enormous weight lifted from my shoulders. I only wish I'd been able to shrug off these societal pressures years ago

That’s the thing: I love sex.

People try to keep it real by talking about the struggles of being a parent, and that’s great, but the truth is this: Parenting can be great fun.

What is this body? I wonder lately as I look in the mirror. Despite the fact that I’ve had this body shape for years now, it feels unfamiliar. I feel like it doesn’t reflect who I really am. But what body would reflect that?

No, it’s not the presents. It’s all the little things.

The biggest news in feminist parenting lately has been about portrayals of powerful girls and women. Mattel’s new partnership with DC Comics is a big step forward in this, creating a new set of dolls and action figures that feature the female characters in the classic DC comics stories.

I’m spelling them out here so that other parents can talk about them and other boys can see that there isn’t just one way to become a good man.

I'm going to keep an eye on my health—but keep the scale under the bathroom vanity.