Surviving January with Help from the Danes, the Japanese, and Jesus

January 20, 2015 By Ellen Painter Dollar

On whom can we pin the blame for January, I wonder? It doesn’t seem quite fair to blame Janus, the God of beginnings and transitions, after whom the month is named, for this month’s long misery. Although, the pressure to embrace new beginnings (all those resolutions!) during the year’s most miserable month is likely part of our problem with January. While we temper December’s cold, dark days with holiday lights, lit fireplaces, and abundant gatherings, in January’s colder, almost as dark days, we’re... Read more

14 Blog Posts from 2014 That You Need to Read

December 30, 2014 By Ellen Painter Dollar

These are the posts written in 2014 for which I had immediate recall because they were so wise, moving, funny, or all of the above. Read more

On Assisted Suicide and Chronic Pain, Sex and Prayer, DNA and Ice Buckets: Top 10 Posts of 2014

December 29, 2014 By Ellen Painter Dollar

The 10 most-read blog posts of 2014—a list that provides a good snapshot of topics I regularly cover, such as genetics, chronic pain, medical decision making, parenting, and Christianity. Read more

Is There a Right Way to Celebrate Christmas?

December 23, 2014 By Ellen Painter Dollar

Christmas. It’s such a mixed bag, isn’t it? I’m an unapologetic lover of all things Christmas. I love choosing just the right gifts for my kids, stacking bins of homemade cookies on the back porch, and driving around to see light displays—the more garish and over-the-top, the better. For the past few years, including this one, I’ve spent Advent writing posts and essays (such as here and here) pushing back against the tendency of some dour preachy Christians to argue that the excesses of an American... Read more

Let’s Stop Bashing These Christmas Traditions

December 19, 2014 By Ellen Painter Dollar

I’m all for trashing traditions that give us only glitz, gluttony, and maxed-out credit cards. But many of the traditions that get a bad rap, including these five, remain cherished by our family each year. Read more

Feel Like Everyone Wants a Piece of You?: A Guide for More Wholehearted Living for Moms

December 17, 2014 By Ellen Painter Dollar

The core message of Wholehearted Living is that while our families and responsibilities will sometimes pull us in a million directions or make us feel that we've handed out so much of ourselves to other people that there's very little left for us, we can take a few minutes each day to nurture quiet and engage in meaningful reflection. Read more

How Much is Too Much for Holiday Giving to Kids?

December 16, 2014 By Ellen Painter Dollar

Three perspectives on why holiday gifts and giving traditions need to be thoughtful, meaningful, and tweaked in a way that makes sense for the particular blend of personalities and histories that make up our unique families. Read more

All Good Things (& Christmas Trees) Come to An End

December 8, 2014 By Ellen Painter Dollar

The sight of a Christmas tree strapped onto a car roof awakens all kinds of anticipation for me; at this time of year, even the mind-numbing routine of driving my kids around is made delightful by the sight of lighted trees and electric candles in people’s windows, and strings of lights adorning outdoor trees and shrubs. But in a few short weeks, the trees being carried home this week to be trimmed with lights and ornaments, to be quietly admired in... Read more

On Doing Advent Wrong (or Maybe, Just Right)

December 3, 2014 By Ellen Painter Dollar

Christmas is about the material illuminating the immaterial, about intangible spiritual truths being revealed through tangible physical things. God doesn't reveal the love and grace at the heart of the universe by beaming deep thoughts into our brains. God reveals love and grace through a newborn baby. There is nothing "spiritual" about a baby; babies are all flesh and need. Similarly, our Christmas traditions communicate what we know about God's love and grace through stuff that we can see and smell and touch and taste, stuff that speaks to our own flesh and need. Read more

On Three-Parent IVF and the Act of Begetting

November 21, 2014 By Ellen Painter Dollar

Every few months, a story pops up about a new frontier in reproductive medical technologies: so-called “three-parent IVF.” NPR recently reported on efforts in Britain to allow embryos created via this technique to be transferred into women’s uteruses, while a New York Times Magazine cover article last summer focused on whether the Federal Drug Administration would approve human clinical trials. The three-parent IVF technique engenders controversy partly because all reproductive technologies do, but also because it would be the first technique to make germ... Read more