Search Results for: blog finding excuses to hug

To Hug or Not to Hug?

I was talking with some friends today about the way society has changed over the last several years. It used to be that we could hug each other and think nothing of it, but with sexual harassment and child abuse on the rise, we’ve all become very careful in how we treat each other. To some people, hugging is more natural than a handshake, and the hugs are offered as a sincere expression of caring and friendship, but with all the suspicion that abounds, they have to curtail a gesture that otherwise is very natural to them. For the most … Continue reading →

Finding Excuses to Hug

My kids are not so snuggly any more. We’ve moved through what I hope will be remembered as the snarkiest years of teenagehood and they can stand to be in the same room with me. But those snuggly, hugging days are pretty much long gone. Now I have to be a bit stealthier and pay attention to those rare opportunities when a hug is in order. Birthdays are good for at least one hug. Even a teenager is willing to entertain a big birthday hug from the annoying mother. As a matter of fact, any time a gift is given … Continue reading →

How did I get here? My kids are officially teens!

I am new to the Parenthood blog, but not to families.com. I have been on the site for a couple of years now as the Homeschooling blogger. I now have the honor to write not only for homeschooling, but also parenting (specifically teens), the home blog, and also the frugal blog. In short, I will be writing a little over here, and a little over there! It’s not that I am stunned to be writing the parenthood blog. It’s that I am stunned that I have kids old enough for me to write about teen issues in the parenthood blog. … Continue reading →

Exercise Time: Crunching the Numbers

Regular exercise yields incredible benefits: You can lose weight, tone your physique, lower your risk of heart disease and diabetes, and increase your self esteem. But, finding time to workout is what prevents so many people from reaping the rewards of exercise. So, how can you fit workouts into your already busy schedule? Fitness experts say when you are first starting out don’t overwhelm yourself by trying to find a huge chunk of time to workout. Rather, carve out a few minutes here and there and increase the durations of your routine as time progresses. Also, look for ways you … Continue reading →

Would I Watch Over Them ALL The Time If I Could?

When my children were little, I really did want to be a guardian angel following them everywhere they went. I can remember how much I would actually ache when I’d have to be away from the three of them when they were tiny—even if it was just for one over night. Somewhere around the time my kids hit adolescence, I started to feel a bit differently. While I definitely still worry and fuss about them when I don’t know what they are up to, I don’t suppose I want to actually SEE and KNOW everything that they do now! I … Continue reading →

“Mom, I’m Bored! Wanna Do Something?”

I am the last stop—the final person on the list of possibilities that my teens come to when they are looking to alleviate boredom. There have been windows of time when I wasn’t even on the list—I fell completely off. But, now, I have returned to the bottom of the list of possible human interactions, but I know if someone asks me to watch television, go for ice cream, or whatever, that they have exhausted all of their other social opportunities… Let’s get one thing straight, however, I EXPECT to be at the bottom of the list. As a matter … Continue reading →

The Portent of a Summer Rain

We have been in a reluctant limbo–the four of us here in our little family. We are clinging to summer and yet, in just a matter of days or a couple weeks, we know that another school year will start up and Fall will be showing her colorful face. We’ve been this way before, we’re old hats, we know how it goes. This morning, I woke to the sound of rain and a rare, gray, rainy, mid-August day. It just isn’t normal for us to have rain this time of year and I cannot help but acknowledge that it is … Continue reading →

Let’s Find Reasons to Smile

There are days…okay, WEEKS when it dawns on me that I probably haven’t smiled at my kids in I don’t know how long and I know that they haven’t smiled at me either. We go for days grumbling, scolding, and looking disapprovingly at each other. I can’t help but think that a little smiling might make all the difference and change the vibe in our house instantly… When my children were small, I remember the advice was to “catch them doing something good”—while that can still work with the teenager, they aren’t nearly as likely to beam and glow and … Continue reading →