Some Ads in Parenting Magazines Show Unsafe Practices

Flip through a parenting magazine while you are in line at the grocery store, or while waiting for your child to see the doctor. The photos and images your eyes skim over might actually be showing children who are doing unsafe things. These pretty photos in the advertisements may give parents the wrong idea when it comes to child safety. Parenting magazines, of course, are intended to be read by parents. These magazines offer advice on everything from nutrition and health issues, to how to cope when your child is having a public “meltdown”. One would reasonably assume that the … Continue reading

The Family Dinner Project Promotes Family Unity

Does your family sit down together every night for dinner? Many families are in the habit of parking themselves in front of the TV as they eat dinner. Those families are missing out on a great opportunity to connect with each other. The Family Dinner Project has some excellent advice about why eating dinner together as a family is so important. The About Page at The Family Dinner Project has an summary of why families really need to have dinner together. It says: Over the past 15 years, research has shown what parents have known for a long time: Sharing … Continue reading

Baby Advice Can Become Outdated

New parents are often overwhelmed with pieces of baby advice. Sometimes, the advice comes from family members who really do mean well by giving you a piece of baby advice that they used on their children. Other times, some random person at the grocery store feels the need to toss unwanted baby advice at you. It can become difficult to tell the good advice from the bad. One way to sort things out is to see if the advice you were given is in this list of outdated baby advice. All of the baby advice in this list started out … Continue reading

Mistake #2 Parents Make With Teenagers: Looking for Parenting Answers in Others

So far I have covered mistake #1 that parents of teenagers make, expecting the worse out of this stage of life.  The second mistake I am going to talk about is trying to find parenting answers through others. I know that sounds pretty strange, considering I am technically giving advice.  But at the heart of my message is this…every family is different, so you have to learn what’s best for yours. This doesn’t mean that help from others—whether it comes through books, seminars or blogs—shouldn’t be sought.  It doesn’t mean that you can’t be encouraged or inspired by others. But … Continue reading

Parenting Advice Challenges

You may think you have the absolute best parenting advice EVER to share with every mom and dad on the planet, but the fact is if said mother or father didn’t ask for your tips, it’s highly unlikely he or she is going to follow them. Unsolicited advice is invaluable advice. If you want to share your tried and true parenting techniques with other moms and dads, wait until you are asked.  Parents are more apt to follow advice if they are seeking it rather than having it forced down their throats.  What’s more, it’s important to remember that a … Continue reading

When Technology Becomes Unhealthy

Living in this world of technology, one thing I have noticed is a change in relationships.  Face-to-face interactions happen less often.  It’s easier to shoot out an email or text.  It may feel safer to have a discussion through instant messaging. Instead of talking about our feelings, we are voicing them on Facebook or Twitter.  And rather than enjoying quality time together with our friends, we sit a few feet from each other, tapping away on our devices. This can be not only unhealthy but dangerous.  I’ve seen one of my daughter’s friends fall for a guy she met online.  … Continue reading

Advice from a Military Mom

Maybe you know a military mom.  She could be someone in your family, a friend, a co-worker or an acquaintance.  If you do, I have some important advice to give. Granted, there is some selfishness behind my advice.  In fact, I am seriously considering emailing this blog to certain persons.  But in the end, I will probably restrain myself and be content with helping others to understand a thing or two about what it’s like to be a military mom. It’s not that I’m attempting to put non-military moms in my shoes.  And contrary to what some might assume, it’s … Continue reading

Christmas Unplugged

Forget about dreaming of a white Christmas this year, most parents I know are hoping for an unplugged version of the holiday; a Christmas void of blaring televisions, raucous radios and vociferous video games. How likely are you to enjoy a genuine silent night this Christmas? If you want to know how to make your dream a reality, take some advice from the Bear family. In The Berenstain Bears’ Old-Fashioned Christmas, Brother, Sister and Baby Honey Bear get a taste of what the holiday was like pre-TV, when they travel to Grizzly Gramps and Gran’s house. After rolling up in … Continue reading

Parents of Kids with Autism Worry About Stigma

Parents of children who have autism, or Asperger’s Syndrome, are concerned. They worry that their child will now be stigmatized because of all the talk that indicated that the shooter in Connecticut had Asperger’s Syndrome. Autism Speaks has some helpful advice. Let me briefly summarize the background of this topic, for those who are unaware. First, there was the tragedy in Connecticut that happened when Adam Lanza went into an elementary school and started shooting. Following the tragedy, there were many responses. The President made a public speech. Several bloggers (myself included) wrote about some aspect of what happened. People … Continue reading

A Roundup of Resources About Autism

Parenting, in general, is a situation that involves asking a lot of questions. What’s the right thing to do in this situation? What milestones should my child have made by now? Is that “normal”? Parents of children who have autism can consult some of the following resources. The answer to your question may be hiding in there, somewhere. It is fairly easy to go online and find general parenting advice for children who do not have any types of special needs. It’s not as simple to locate online resources that can advise parents of children who have autism, or that … Continue reading