Parenting

Book Review: Books about divorce for kids

No matter what the topic, reading a relevant book can help parents navigate through tough times. They are helpful partly because books give us guidance on important concepts to cover, and a script to follow, but also because the pictures give our kids a concrete visual image to go along with our words. Today's post is a list and brief summary of some of my favorite books on divorce for younger kids.

Kids + Sugar = ?

Ask 10 moms what you get when you mix their kids with a big dose of sugar, and I bet you'll get 10 responses on the same theme: hyperactivity. It's a parenting theory on par with gravity! So imagine my surprise when I read this article in the British Medical Journal, which says that sugar does NOT cause hyperactivity in [...]

Talking with kids about Money

I've recently been invited to contribute tips on talking with your kids about money(particularly around the holidays during this down economy) at a workshop called "How to spend, save and invest in a tight economy". The workshop is hosted by Megan Poore, a financial advisor in central Austin.  The workshop primarily focuses on adult issues, but one of her passions [...]

Shyness and Your Child–Part 3

Do you worry about your child's shyness?  Do other people label your child shy?  Do you wonder if shyness is a problem? In part one of this series about shyness, I talked about times/situations where shyness is normal and not a problem at all.  In part two, I listed 5 ways to help growth happen.  ) Today's post is [...]

“Raising Cain”, the prefrontal cortex, and pretend violence…

I was recently watching a wonderful PBS documentary based on the book "Raising Cain," and was struck by a particular comment.  The narrator quotes current brain research that finds that the pre-frontal cortex, the part of the brain that controls impulse control, isn't fully developed at age 18.  (More on the pre-frontal cortex here.)This is such a good message for [...]

T. Berry Brazelton on Self-esteem, Spanking, and Vegetables!

The New York Times website has a blog called "Well" that recently interviewed Dr. T. Berry Brazelton, one of our country's most known (and loved) pediatricians.  He's the author of at least 24 books on parenting, child development, and the like, and he's a bit of a hero to me.  In the interview, Dr. Brazelton and co-author Dr. Josh Sparrow [...]

Shyness and Your Child–part 2

Do you worry about your child's shyness? Do other people label your child shy? Do you wonder if shyness is a problem? In part one of this series about shyness, I talked about times/situations where shyness is normal and not a problem at all. But perhaps you are sure that shyness IS a problem... so today's post lists 5 steps you can take to help your shy child.

Knowing What You Know Now…

Knowing what you know now, what topics related to parenting would you suggest that a couple discuss either before getting engaged, or married, or deciding to have kids? (I'm imagining this post as a conversation-I'll go first, and you respond with your ideas, too!) So here's a few of my topic ideas: Do you want to have children?! If so, [...]