Search Results for: blog spending time with your teen

Does Your Spouse Get Your Time?

One of the things couples fail to realize is that many marriage problems stem from a lack of time. You see, it takes quality time to nurture a relationship. If you are spending more time at your job or with your kids, then your marriage is bound to suffer. Now don’t get me wrong, different seasons in life require more attention than others. For instance, when my children were young they naturally required more of my time and attention. But even then, it didn’t necessarily mean my husband only deserved the leftovers. Time can’t always be measured in quantity. It … Continue reading →

Is Your Child Ready For Overnight Camp?

For home – based professional parents, summer can pose a challenge as far as balancing your work schedule with family activities and things for the kids to do on their own. For many home – based professional parents, camps are an important part of summer. They provide your child with a fun and interesting experience while providing you with a block of time in which you can get a bunch of work done. There are so many types of camps available, from sports to theater and everything in between including the classic outdoorsy type complete with cabins or tents and … Continue reading →

Do You Shield Your Child?

Today is Pearl Harbor Day, the 70th anniversary of a sneak attack that devastated a nation. I’ve studied this event a bit in the past, and it’s pretty gruesome. I want my children to understand facets of history, and yet I worry about giving them too much information before they’re ready for it. This is one of the ways in which parents are uniquely qualified to teach their children—they understand their child’s maturity level and they know what that child can and cannot handle. I have a daughter who can’t hear any bad news on the radio or it distresses … Continue reading →

Creative Communication with Your Teen

If you are the parent of a teen, then you know how difficult communication can be at times. If it’s not a breakdown of communication, it is miscommunication. Either one can get you in trouble. So how does a parent find a way to communicate with their teen when it feels like they are dealing with a clam? You know the type…they won’t open their mouth for anything. They feel uncomfortable being put on the spot and made to feel that they have to talk. One way is to not make it so formal. Talking with your teen doesn’t have … Continue reading →

Quality Time with Your Spouse

A couple of weeks ago, I blogged about the importance of getting away with your spouse. We were about to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary and despite original plans to take this romantic vacation to Maine, it had all blown up because of finances. But in the end I was grateful since it was during the time of the hurricane that we would have been there. The day before our 20th wedding anniversary we went back and forth with ideas on what we could do. We wanted to get away for the entire day but not spend a lot of … Continue reading →

The Dilemma of Friends Spending the Night

There is an interesting dilemma taking place in our home with regard to my children’s friends. I always enjoy having them over and sometimes spending the night. I definitely prefer everyone hanging out here, where I can keep a better eye on things. But recently the issue of having friends sleep over has changed a bit. My youngest son, who is in 7th grade, has friends that are either in his grade or 8th. A couple of those guy friends (who are in 8th grade) are also friends with my 9th grade daughter. I have no problem with her hanging … Continue reading →

Family Fitness with Your Preteens and Teens

In this blog I am going to be talking about family fitness with your preteens and teens. This is definitely a whole new ball game, since engaging with this age group can be more of a challenge. The reality is that preteens and teens would rather be hanging out with their friends, but don’t take it personally. We just have to really instill in our children the importance of maintaining good family relations and spending time together. What better way to do this than bringing in some type of exercise? You don’t even have to tell your children that this … Continue reading →

What Makes Your Kid Happy?

I heart Dr. Drew. Father figure to the dozens of teen moms exploited (I mean, profiled) on MTV’s “16 and Pregnant,” “Celebrity Rehab” guru, 30-year radio advice veteran, and now the host of his own show on HLN, Dr. Drew Pinsky is almost as busy as work-at-home mom. Almost. Actually, the dad to 18-year-old triplets is a champion of moms everywhere, as he recently stated on his primetime “news and views” show. I’m not the least bit surprised that Dr. Drew is publicly praising moms given that his wife was left to handle much of the child-rearing of their three … Continue reading →

Teens and Bedrooms: A Place to Escape

It’s not uncommon to hear parents of teens complain that all they do is spend time in their bedroom. The door closes and the next thing all you hear is music thumping. It can sometimes feel like your teen is closing the door in your face but most of the time, it is their way of escaping the world. A couple of summers ago our family became foster parents to two young children. They lived in our home from June through September. It was during that time we began to call my oldest son’s room his “cave.” That’s because the … Continue reading →

Ways to Make Teenage Driving Less Expensive

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Parents who have teenagers frequently find themselves in confrontations with what was once a pleasant, agreeable, happy, child. Things can get heated when a teenager is pushing to be allowed to drive, especially if a parent cannot afford to add that teenager to his or her existing auto insurance policy. Fortunately, there are some things that you can try that may make this situation less painful for your pocketbook. No matter what you are currently paying for your premiums on your car insurance policy, you probably think that it’s expensive. Adding someone new to that policy can make the cost … Continue reading →