Devra Renner

I am excited to be a Family CE at BlogHer! My primary blog is . I am an author of the award winning book "Mommy Guilt:Learn to Worry Less, Focus on What Matters Most and Raise Happier Kids"(AMACOM 2005) and the Spanish edition "Mama Culpable"(NORMA) My commentary has been featured in the New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Washington Post, Babycenter, Parent Magazine, Forward Magazine, AdAge Magazine, ParentDish among others. I've been a Senior consultant for Zero To Three's Military Projects. I am co-founder of Parentopia, LLC a consultation and training firm. An experienced presenter, I speak at conferences and conduct workshops and seminars.  I am a past member of the professional advisory panel for PBS Frontline's Digital Nation and have been a featured expert on Currently I work as a school social worker in a large public school system. I've co-created an anti-bullying curriculum based on Marshmallow PEEPs. I kid you not.

Why I Became a Social Worker Instead of a Dolphin

March is Social Work Month. What? You didn't know this? C'mon. Surely you must be celebrating the profession responsible for removing children from their parents' custody and switching all of those babies around in hospitals.  I mean really, if you watched movies on Lifetime television, you would know what "real" social workers do.  And with that, I'm illustrating why we need a sarcasm font.  I don't often write about my "offline" life when I am in an "online" space, but I think it's time for me to talk about what I've been doing for the past twenty years. ...more
@dsp503 I loved it!more

iPod Therapy

Are you someone who doesn't just listen to the music, the music is really the soundtrack of your life? That's me too! I remember when the Dateline Timeline questions would be posed and I always could nail the year by the music clue.  Seriously, my own life is a timeline set to music. And being this way meant I was Queen of the Mix-Tape throughout the 80's. ...more
I call it my "Self Esteem Playlist". Almost everything on it is by a lesbian woman or a Disney ...more

New Study on Working Mothers Misses the Truth Behind What Kids Eat

Really? Wow. What sort of policy would that be? Would we have Congress mandate all parents need to be home by 5:30 pm in order to get dinner on the table? Or maybe we would lobby the Senate to put forth a bill requiring parents to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables. I'm just going to say what I think most parents, if not people in general, are thinking, "Give me a break!" We need policies alright, but it's not the parents who need the help, it's our country. I'm not an economist, but it doesn't take an economist to know we're in a slump here. Money is tight. Fast food is cheap. ...more

We need to stop government subsidizing the GMO soy products, much of which are controversial ...more

Clinton Kelly Interview: TLC's "What Not To Wear" Ambushes a Parenting Blogger

Amanda (aka Dumb Mom who writes the blog Parenting By Dummies had been nominated for a fashion intervention by her best friend. It was all going down at the Newseum. TLC's "What Not To Wear" had selected Amanda for an ambush style makeover (airing tonight). She was going to have to pack up her wardrobe, bring it to New York City, and shop by the rules set by style gurus Clinton Kelly and Stacy London. I was in on the secret -- and got to ask Clinton Kelly a few questions, to boot....more

Love him. Have considered starting to dress in all sweats just so friends would nominate me for ...more

When a Peacenik Becomes a Military Spouse



"Made-for-TV movies and the media have done a fabulous job of making social workers appear as if ...more

Chelsea Clinton Got The Interfaith Ceremony I Didn't ... With My Rabbi

She understood why I wanted it to be a different rabbi with the same name. You see, 20 years ago, I had asked Rabbi Ponet to co-officiate at my wedding, and he told me "No." But he did not do so harshly. In fact, he took me out for coffee at a local cafe bookstore in New Haven and there, at a back table, he explained to me why he would bless my wedding in the basement on High Street (what served as a small Hillel shul of sorts before the Slifka Center existed), attend my wedding, but not officiate at my wedding. ...more

Susan Katz Miller




My mom became terminally ill and died shortly after I started my blog (about a year and a half ...more

Putting the Oy in Decoy: Politician Suggests Police Pose as Jews To Fight Anti-Semitism in The Netherlands

Using a decoy to nab the bad guy (or girl) is a lot like like fishing, you put your lure on the line, wait for the bite, and reel in your catch. Vice cops have been using the decoy method for years. It's nothing new for police to dress up as prostitutes and homeless people in order to fight crime in major metropolitan areas.  Yes, but is it good for the Jews? ...more

Since they've only proposed the plan, there isn't anything I could find about how the plan, if ...more

Not Your Imagination: It Costs More for You to Raise Your Kids Than It Did for Your Parents to Raise You

Unless you are homeschooling on a self-sufficient farm, it probably means the total expense of childrearing  is at 17 percent of your budget right now, as opposed to two percent in 1960. ...more

I have entered so many contest just to win a little money to pay for my sons loans, will be ...more