Parenting: The Challenge

It's great for parents to have other parents to talk to about parenthood and their children. There is a valuable understanding that is very helpful when you go through the journey of raising a family. However it is also very important to discuss things outside the realm of parenting. Don't feel guilty talking about things that are not related to your children, like you are not allowed to speak of your life before kids. Yes your role in life may have changed, but you are still someone besides "mom" and it's great to be able to relate to people on other levels. Every parent needs a break at some point from talking about their kids and asking questions and getting ...

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Hobbies benefit children in many ways. It gives a child an opportunity to express themselves, and it allows them to discover themselves and build self-esteem. They are also great educational tools. A child interested in rock collecting learns about geology and science, and a child in writing stories learns about sentence structure and proper grammar. Hobbies teach children to set and achieve goals, solve problems and make decisions.  They can also set the course for what your child becomes later in life as they often turn into lifelong interests or careers. Be available to your child to provide guidance, support and encouragement.  This is a great time to teach your child strong work habits, such as following directions closely, setting goals, ...

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I recently read an article about a new book that came out discussing how sleep training can damage babies' brains.  In her book, “The Essential First Year,” by Penelope Leach she says that letting your baby cry for prolonged periods of time can put them at risk to brain damage. She says that long, hard crying brings on stress and releases the "stress hormone" cortisol. Too much cortisol can cause damage to their brains. Apparently there are no real claims to this as Leach has not revealed any of her sources to back up the evidence to support her argument. I did sleep training with my son and though it was very hard. We never had him crying longer than ...

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As Children get older it can be harder to have them keeping their room clean. What are your options besides just keeping the door closed? Offering rewards in order for them to clean their room will only teach them that will get something for doing something, which won't help them after they leave home and need to keep their entire house clean. They won't be getting any rewards for that. What you can try is to have a clean up day where the entire family cleans their rooms. Let them know that their laundry won't get done for them if they leave their clothes all over the floor, that you will not be picking them up. Enforce a "no food ...

More about: How Can You Get Your Teen to Clean Their Room?

My parents live in France during the summer. When they are here during the winter they take my son every week overnight. They have created a strong bond with him where he has gotten used to their presence. Now that they have left the regular visits have ceased. how do they keep their bond strong? It helps that they are both into technology and video chat with us while they are away. My son really enjoys being able to see them and talk to them even if he's not in the same room with them. My mom has decided to write him letters and keep up with the video chats and even reading him stories during the video chat as ...

More about: Grandparents Connecting With Grandchildren

If you're looking for a gift for a toddler it can be a bombarding experience, so many toys are branded now and it can be hard to find something that they will play with for a while. Surprisingly my three year old likes digital voice recorders. Who knew? He will walk around the house for an hour recording himself and playing it back. He loves listening to the sound of his voice. One of the coolest things about it is that we have a audible memory that could last for many many years. For Easter I got my son two small pots that came with basil and chive seeds, they were only a buck and he loves watching them grow ...

More about: Unexpected Toys for Toddlers

There are many different times that parents decide to transition their toddler into a big bed, potty training, tired of picking them in and out of the crib or maybe they have a second child that will be using the crib. It can be a challenge making the transition a smooth one. Get your child involved by taking them to get the new bed and how they are so big now and get to sleep in a big kid bed. Have them help you make the bed and put their favorite stuffed animals and pillows on it. You may find that the nap/bed time routine becomes disrupted, they can now get out of bed on their own! If you don't ...

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It's cute when you see children hugging their friends and when they hug family members. It's is not cute when you force your children to hug someone, especially an adult. I am a pretty affectionate person and I always like to hug and kiss my son. However, I think it's important to be respectful of their choice if they do not want to hug someone and let them know it's ok if they don't want to.  You want to be in touch with your child's temperament and go with what they are comfortable with. It's a good idea to teach them to be polite to say hello, to shake hands and be respectful to adult. You don't ever want to ...

More about: Do You Make Your Child Hug?

Words can be very powerful things and they can carry a lot more weight and impact than we realize, so as parents we need to choose our words carefully. There are words you should never say to your children. The "F" word is not a good one to be throwing around, it's not a very nice word, nor would it be good for them to hear and use on the playground or at school. "Shut up" os another one that is not appropriate and it's insensitive. Using "or else" is just an idle threat. Children should know why and should respect what we say without a dangling threat. Yelling and screaming are not a good way to handle a situation, ...

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If your child is overwhelmed by his or her homework, have no fear, you can learn a few steps to help create the right balance. Talk to the teachers and ask how much parental involvement there should be. Make sure you understand what his or her definition of homework is. Find out if the material is being taught in class and if there is extra support available during class. Find an optimal time for getting homework done, some kids are better in the evening or the morning. Make a schedule so it's agreed about when homework time is. If it is too challenging and you are finding it hard to help them yourself look into some outside help. Libraries and ...

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