Search Results for: blog do you think your kids a brat

Cultural Lessons on the Cost of Child Rearing

Heeled sneakers are all the rage with hip moms in France right now. While I will happily pass on the Sneakletto craze; I’m not opposed to employing practical techniques parents in Paris and other parts of the world have mastered in order save cash while raising young children. Less is more:  Surveys show the average American household spends $200 per child for birthday parties and gifts.  That means forking over nearly $1,000 per year if you have three or four kids.  Compare that to most French parents who typically celebrate their children’s birthdays with a simple home-cooked meal.  In Japan, … Continue reading →

Affordable Easter Treats That Won’t Cause Cavities

When Peter Cottontail’s cousin comes hopping down the bunny trail this Easter he’s sure to leave behind a smorgasbord of sugary treats, much to the delight of your children… and their dentist. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with indulging in a few Easter goodies, parents may want to supplement their kids’ saccharine-laced haul with a couple of holiday treats that won’t cause cavities. Easter-themed books starring popular children’s literary characters are a wonderful alternative to gigantic jelly beans, colossal chocolate creatures and marshmallow menageries.  What’s more, you won’t have to go into debt purchasing these fun-filled page turners that are … Continue reading →

Happy Kids: Mission Impossible?

You’re familiar with the saying, “Happy wife, happy life,” but have you found the key to fostering that happiness? According to a new survey, happy kids beget happy moms/wives which beget happy husbands/dads. The equation seems simple enough until you factor in life’s discomforts, hardships and disappointments. I’d love for my child to be happy 24/7.  What parent wouldn’t?  After all, nothing makes most moms and dads happier than to see their children in high spirits. My own 8-year-old would love for her entire family to be happy every minute of every day and is visibly uncomfortable when that idealistic … Continue reading →

One Year Came and Went

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Sometimes I think the first birthday comes in the blink of an eye. Other times, I think it takes forever to get there. That’s what having a baby is all about. Time is either dragging slowly or speeding by so fast you want to cry. When my baby turned 1 last month, I felt like crying. I think it’s because he has been such a little love. So sweet. And, he is my last baby. My last baby is one. That breaks my heart. But, at the same time, it makes me so happy. I look forward to all the … Continue reading →

Finding the True Meaning of Christmas

My 8-year-old has a severe case of the Christmas gimmies.  Unfortunately, I have myself to blame for her very unmerry malady. Whereas I am by no means showering the kid with pre-holiday presents, I haven’t been doing a very good job focusing on the “reason for the season” either. I’ve been swept into the chaotic tsunami that is the month of December.  Gifts to buy, wrap and mail; cookies to bake, decorate and distribute; cards to take photos for, write and stamp; and the list goes on and on. As a parent, it’s easy to get caught up in the … Continue reading →

Surviving Holiday Parties as a Single Parent

As a single parent this time of year can be filled with bittersweet emotions. Family and friends are gathering together to celebrate the holidays. While this is an exciting time of year, it can be hard for a single parent to attend such gatherings when they are attending on their own. It can be isolating at times to be in a room full of people with families and children running around when yours aren’t there. Not only are your children gone, but you don’t have that special someone by your side to help you endure it. You can be in … Continue reading →

Parents Celebrate Ouch-Free Bandage

They can send a man to the moon, but they can’t design a bandage that doesn’t cause pain when it’s removed? Parents the world over know the torment that’s triggered when their child’s bloody bandage needs to be replaced. When my daughter was a toddler, she would scream like a peacock on fire when I would come within 10 yards of her bandaged knee. Now, the wails don’t start until I’m four yards away. Baby steps. At 8 years old, the kid is still deathly afraid of any discomfort she may have to endure during the bandage-changing process. The crying, … Continue reading →

Birthday Parties and Holidays

Tonight Logan and I went to one of his friend’s birthday parties at Jungle Jim’s here in Utah. This little boy’s mother and I have been friends for several years and have watched each other go through the many struggles of single parenting. However, tonight I watched as her and her ex put aside all their differences so that they could both be there to celebrate their little one’s birthday. They stood beside each other as they took their son around to each of the different rides and laughed and joked with each other about how cute the kids were … Continue reading →

Laid-Back Anniversaries

It’s our fourth anniversary today. I know that’s not really a milestone (insofar as any year’s anniversary is one); that’ll come next year, with our fifth. But I don’t see us doing anything bigger next year than we’ll do this year. Like with everything else, Jon and I don’t make that big of a deal of our anniversary. We don’t even get each other gifts. That’s something we stopped doing before we were even married. The first year or two we were dating we got each other anniversary presents, but that ceased by the time we graduated from college. I … Continue reading →

Curried Pumpkin Soup

Soup and pumpkins are beautiful signs of fall. Combining the two will warm up a cool autumn evening. The soup is great paired with a salad or a sandwich. Keep the recipe on hand for Thanksgiving celebrations. You may want to have it on hand to give to your guests as they are sure to ask you for the recipe. I was surprised that a few of my kids also liked pumpkin soup. Normally, I make butternut squash soup but this goes over a bit better. If you don’t like curry the omit and get creative. Think about how squash … Continue reading →