Mary Dell Harrington & Lisa Heffernan
Grown and Flown
The essential resource for parents navigating the teen and college launch years
Grown and Flown is the clearest first choice for parents of teenagers — there is simply no blog that covers this life stage with the same combination of depth, authenticity, and consistency. Mary Dell Harrington and Lisa Heffernan launched it in 2013 as parents living the transition themselves, and that perspective saturates every post: the content never talks down to parents, never oversimplifies the emotional weight of these years, and never pretends the answers are easy. From high school stress and college applications to the identity shifts of senior year and the genuine grief of the empty nest, this blog meets parents exactly where they are.
✓ Pros
- Covers the full arc from high school through college and young adult launch — parents don't have to switch resources as their kids age
- Co-founders are actual parents of college students, not child development theorists — the voice is authentic, experienced, and never condescending
- Massive Facebook community of 1M+ means the comments section is as valuable as the articles themselves
✕ Cons
- The sheer volume of content can make it hard to find specific guidance without using the search bar deliberately
- College prep content occasionally overshadows pure high school parenting topics for parents of younger teens