Elisabeth Thurston Fraser
Blog Articles by Elisabeth Thurston Fraser
How to Bring Kids to a Protest March
This Saturday, on the first anniversary of the largest single-day demonstration in recorded U.S. history, San Francisco will again be hosting one of the dozens of Women’s Marches taking place across the country. Whether or not to bring children to a peaceful demonstration is obviously a very personal deci... read more
Friday: The Fresh Start Edition
Who else is ready for school and childcare schedules to get back to normal? I know I am. Here we are almost a week into 2018 and I haven’t even finalized my intentions for the year, let alone started acting on them. That’s why I’m declaring the first week o... read more
BADM Family Class Giveaway
Yesterday the New York Times asked what parents could do to “robot-proof” our children’s future professional paths. That concern might sound alarmist to some, but even parents who don’t live in fear of the singularity have probably paused to consider what our increasingly automated world might look like when our b... read more
Friday: The Silence Breaker Edition
Is anyone else experiencing a bit of whiplash alternating between attending preschool winter concerts and watching the latest sexual harassment scandals unfold? While I’ve spent much of this year feeling sick to my stomach, the latest headlines give me hope my daughters and son may come of age in a... read more
Friday: The I Want a Wife Edition
Did anyone else wake up this morning, realize it’s December 1, and panic that you haven’t prepared a Pinterest-worthy advent calendar? I’m consoling myself with the fact that every child I’ve ever met is delighted with the $.99 chocolate calendars from Trader Joe’s. While I plan to make a Trade... read more
Can Gratitude Transform Your Family?
Science says yes. Thanksgiving may be only one day each year, but the benefits of adopting a grateful mindset are ongoing and significant. Here are just a few: Kids who regularly practice gratitude are kind.People with a grateful world view are better able to cope with difficult life events.Gra... read more
Friday: The How-to Edition
It's the weekend! Normally, a rainy start would be disappointing, but in this case, it's novel. After marveling at the wet street and dog walkers carrying umbrellas for a few minutes, my three-year-old asked to go outside and touch the water as if she'd never seen rain before. May your... read more
Extra TGIF
Never is the phrase TGIF truer than on the Friday following a midweek holiday. With rain on the agenda this weekend, we've all earned a cozy day of apple cider and Harry Potter movies (Judging by the number of Harry Potter-themed costumes I saw on Tuesday, we're not the only... read more
Friendsgiving is the Answer to Everything
While I may have three enthusiastic celebrators of National Doughnut Day (coming up on November 5) living in my house, the best recently-invented holiday has to be Friendsgiving. What's not to love? You gather with your chosen friends and family (not a conspiracy theorist uncle or judgey second cousin to be see... read more
San Francisco's Best Trick-or-Treating Streets
This year San Francisco took top honors on Zillow's list of the 20 best cities for trick-or treating. Their ranking measures home values, percentage of kids under 10, and proximity of homes. Whether or not Zillow considered number of vertical feet covered while trick-or-treating is unclear. In any case, San Francisco kids... read more
Some Things in San Francisco are Free
This might be the best weekend of the year. Gorgeous weather is in full effect, the number of potential activities seems boundless, and we're reveling in the sweet spot between back-to-school and holiday craziness. Must be October in San Francisco. My family is looking forward to celebrating pre-Halloween with some o... read more
Halloween for All: Managing Fears and Special Needs
Walking down a bustling New York street the day before Halloween with my then-three-year-old daughter, we turned a corner to encounter a masked man. He held up his arms and whispered “boo.” I shrieked. My daughter was unfazed—well, except for some confusion about the bizarre social interaction. While my eldest... read more
Making City Life Easier for Families (One Post at a Time)
GGMG’s mission has always been to support, connect, and improve the lives of growing families in San Francisco. We hope this blog helps make the city friendlier and easier to navigate for all the families who live here and those who visit. Upcoming features include surviving the SFUSD school lo... read more
Reclaiming the Pump
We live in a hub of technological innovation. Our kids spot self-driving cars on city streets with increasing regularity. There’s an ongoing debate about whether robots should be allowed to deliver our food. And yet, breast pumps haven’t changed significantly since their invention . . . over 60 years ago. I remember foll... read more
Podcasts for Kids: How to Achieve 20 Minutes of Peace in the Car
My kids are 3, 6, and 8 and their feelings about long drives range from “I have a number of very specific questions about the scenery” to “these car seat straps are the source of all unhappiness in the world.” With school commutes in full swing, weekend trips to the pumpkin patch on the hori... read more
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