Search Results for: blog allowing children to speak up for themselves

Children Who Are at Risk of Being Abused

This week I watched a horrifying story on Dr. Phil about a mother who remarried and whose three girls endured years of sexual abuse by their stepfather. It was just absolutely gut-wrenching to hear what these girls endured. While I felt for the mom, a part of me couldn’t grasp how 8 years of this could go by and she had absolutely no clue. In fact, at one point Dr. Phil asked her if looking back now, could she see signs and she still says no. I certainly don’t want to point any fingers at her but what I am … Continue reading →

Allowing Children to Speak Up for Themselves

So this school year, as I have expressed in some of my blogs, I became a football mom. My youngest is the only real athletic child in our family and so this was a real treat for my husband and me. Or at least we thought it was going to be. Turns out this was going to be an experience full of challenges and lessons for not only my son but my husband and I. This is especially true for me as I learned to let go and allow my son to learn from his difficult experiences. Not only do … Continue reading →

The Cotton Ball Diet is Dangerous

There have been many diets that sound a bit extreme – but that do involve actual food. The cotton ball diet, however, encourages people to eat a non-food item that their bodies cannot break down or gain nutrition from. The purpose of this diet, like all diets, is weight loss. It is important to know that the cotton ball diet is very dangerous! There are certain times of the year in which a lot of people suddenly decide to go on a diet. One is shortly before summer, when people decide they want to lose weight in order to look … Continue reading →

Can You Afford a Large Family?

Octomom can’t. The Duggars can. Go figure. Nadia “Octomom” Suleman, the infamous mother of 14 recently got nearly naked for the U.K.-based magazine Closer. Unfortunately, showing her skin only helped pay the bills temporarily and now the frazzled mom is relying on government assistance to feed her brood. Juxtapose Octomom and the Duggars and you might as well be comparing night and day. For years I’ve wondered how much Jim Bob, Michelle and their 19 kids raked in for allowing cameras to document their every move and broadcast it on TLC. Thanks to digging by E! Online’s staff, it’s estimated … Continue reading →

Benefits of Music Therapy

Posted on by

We’ve all done it – used music to learn or remember some bit of information. Think back to how you learned the alphabet. It was to a sweet little tune called the ABCs. Music helps all of us to improve a variety of skills from memory and balance to relaxation and relationships. The same goes for children with learning disabilities and physical disabilities. Music Therapy is defined as the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish goals. It is thought that music can promote overall wellbeing by helping with relaxation, stress management, memory, communication and physical rehabilitation. Memory … Continue reading →

Decisions, Decisions: When to Step Out of the Way

While making decisions as a parent isn’t always easy, I am finding that allowing my teens to make decisions isn’t much easier. You see there seems to be a fine line between allowing them to make a decision, which means I have to step out of the way, or making the decision for them. There comes a point in your teen’s life when you really do have to loosen the reigns. I can’t steer them in the direction I would like them to go all of the time. But let me tell you, stepping out of the way is really, … Continue reading →

Learning to Establish Boundaries

It’s always a good feeling when you see your teenager make what can be a very grown up decision. This just recently happened with my 13-year-old daughter who finally decided she had had enough in a friendship. It wasn’t that she was going to be mean to the person or retaliate. She was finally going to establish boundaries. Boundaries can be a difficult thing for anyone to put up, even for adults. So when I see my teenage daughter understanding the importance, it gives me great hope. Friendships at this age can be very challenging. It sometimes feels like I … Continue reading →

Can You Handle the Truth?

Do you get easily defensive when someone points out something negative in you? I will fully admit that I do. Even if I don’t display it outwardly, inside I bristle. I would think that most of us have a difficult time hearing something we don’t want to hear. Yet the truth is that many times the only way we can grow as a person is to be able to learn how to handle the truth. Recently I was having a conversation with my 16-year-old son. I brought up a concern I had, something I was seeing in him. Immediately he … Continue reading →

Relationship Rescue

911, relationship rescue required at Maple and Oak Lawn to resuscitate a bored couple who have ceased having anything to talk about and meet more because it’s a habit than out of any real desire. Specialists are en route to the scene now, please stay on the line until they’ve arrived. The above paragraphs seem a bit absurd, but in the age of reality television it’s more likely that somewhere there is a show just like this. With shows like the Bachelor and Wife Swap out there doing cattle calls to create tension or allowing couples to see how good … Continue reading →

Positive Identity

The last group of assets that will be written about in this series speak to the need for children to grow up with a sense of purpose and worth. Parents play an integral role in helping a child to establish their sense of self worth. The Positive Identity assets include: • Personal Power • Self-esteem • Sense of purpose • Positive view of personal future Children need to know that they have control and responsibility for things that happen to them. Of course, this is not always the case in situations of abuse or other external factors. Help your child … Continue reading →