by Jennifer Shakeel

I don’t believe that there is a parent in the world that doesn’t look at their child or children and hope that they are going to be good parents and hope that our children will have a better or easier life then we had where they are able to achieve more then we have. As moms and dad we know that life is not easy and that we are constantly faced with disappointments and limitations that can seem impossible to overcome. What we need to teach our children is to have hope. “Once you choose hope, anything’s possible,” as said by Christopher Reeve.

I believe that hope is something we are all born with and it is life and the people that surround us on a daily basis either nurture or destroy. As parents it is one of our responsibilities to teach our children how to keep that hope and us it to help them achieve whatever it is they want. Along with that though goes teaching our children determination and hoe to overcome obstacles and adversity.

Read More

Separation anxiety can be a very traumatic thing for both parents and children.  Often times, parents feel a sense of anxiety when leaving their child for the first time.  And in some instances, the children can feel the sense of anxiety and it will actually raise their own anxiety.  However, there are a variety of different steps you can take and work through the anxiety.  Typically speaking, separation anxiety begins around the ages of 8 months to 18 months.  And while it may seem like a terrible ordeal to go through, your little one will learn some valuable lessons.  Your child will learn that while you may leave, you will always return. 

Read More

According to the National Center for Charitable Statistics, the United States had 902,270 public charities in 2006. You can choose to give you money to help build houses for the poor, find cures for diseases, protect endangered animals, or help children learn to read. The problem isn’t finding a charity to support, but narrowing down your options and choosing the one you find most worthy.

Read More

Personalized gifts add a little something to any Christmas, Birthdays, or just about any special occassion. Not only do they help a child to feel special but they also become a worthwhile and cherished memory.

There are a number of personalized gifts for kids that can be given but music and books help to provide a lasting memory that is not just a treasured possession but can have educational benefits as well.

Getting your child to read can be a difficult challenge especially in the day and age of video games, computers and loads of television programming. Personalized books can be a fun way to get your child interested in reading along with their favorite characters. Your child’s name is placed within the text of each story making them feel like an active part of the adventure and getting them interested in reading. This can provide not only hours of quality time and a love of reading but also an increase in academic awareness that can help your child throughout their life as they learn to read. Personalized books can also help with name recognition, which is an important part, and step to self-awareness in children.

Read More

If you have more thant one child it can be natural to start comparing your kids to each other, or even if you just have one kids, natural to compare him or her to other children. However, comparing kids is not such a great idea if your child realizes it, or if as a parent you start to put too much pressure on him or her. I have caught myself many times comparing my 15 month toddler to my oldest son when he was his age, and that is something I need to stop doing myself. Each child is a unique individual and needs to be treated so, and as parents, our parenting style needs to adjust to. What might work for one child may not work and need a totally different approach on a sibling.

So, between sports, homework, dance classes and after-school activities, today’s adolescents are under unprecedented demands to succeed and are left with little time for just being kids.

Read More

by Stacey Schifferdecker

My husband tells a story about an ice cream social on his family’s farm when he was a boy. His family and some friends were sitting outside enjoying the beautiful weather and eating delicious homemade ice cream – the kind made with an old-fashioned wooden churn that you had to crank for hours. It was high summer, but this was Bible belt Kansas and the conversation turned to God’s blessings. Everyone began sharing what he or she was thankful for, just like many of us do around the Thanksgiving table. The adults were all thankful for the big bowls of ice cream, the good weather for crops, jobs that paid well, healthy kids, and other big stuff. When it was little David’s turn, he said, “I’m thankful for the water!” The adults all got a good laugh at the little boy who was enjoying a bowl of homemade ice cream but was thankful for the glass of water he was drinking with it. But to David, that water made his enjoyment of the ice cream even greater by cleansing his mouth between bites.

Read More

"Thanksgiving was never meant to be shut up in a single day"

Robert Caspar Lintner

 

When people ask me what my favorite holiday is, I always say Thanksgiving. I don’t know that deep down Thanksgiving is really my favorite holiday, but I feel sorry for it. There it is, sandwiched between the candy, costumes, and trick-or-treat of Halloween and the gifts, glitz, and glamour of Christmas. How is a simple, mostly non-commercialized holiday like Thanksgiving supposed to compete?

Read More

Sharing is Caring - Teaching our children to share can be one of the most challenging things to teach, and perhaps one of the most important things we can teach out kids. Younger children tend to think everything is theirs. One way to help teach sharing is to start donating to children’s charities. As the holiday season fast approaches, Thanksgiving and Christmas are opportune times to teach our children about sharing and caring for others who are not as fortunate. They can also learn that they can donate more than just money. It is also a good idea to donate new or gently used things, like toys, clothes books, or time.

In addition to teaching children to share, it helps them learn the value and satisfaction that comes with helping others. Decide as a family how often to go through things and pass on nice things that the family no longer needs. The items should be in good shape.

Read More

"How’s your diabetes doing, Mel?" And we remember her laughing reply, "Don’t worry about it, Dad. It’s all under control."

Read More

Introduction by Kevin
What does it mean to cherish our kids? Many parents, including dads like myself sometimes tend to get so wrapped up with work and careers, that we sometimes forget how much our kids need us. Perhaps one of the greatest days in my life was when my son was born. I was so happy and overwelmed my hands shook a little and my voice quivered a bit as I held him for the first time. For me, when I get busy, or frustrated, I think of this. What it does for me is to put everything back in prospective. It helps me find the time, or become less frustrated around my kids. Jobs and problems will come and go, but family is forever, and that is what is most important. Pam Leo in this article helps remind us how much our kids need us, and how important it is to let them know how much they are truely loved.

"Shower the people you love with love."
- James Taylor

Cherishing Our Children by Pam Leo

What does it mean to cherish our children? I don’t think I’ve even heard the word cherish used since the days when it was the title of a popular song. The admonition not to spoil children has been part of our parenting culture for so long that most parents are reluctant to shower love abundantly on their children for fear of spoiling them. Cherishing our children does not mean buying them everything, giving them anything they want, letting them do anything they want or not teaching them acceptable behavior. That would be spoiling them. The word, cherish, as defined in my dictionary means: to hold dear; feel or show love for; to take good care of; protect. Tender, loving care is the foundation of cherishing children.

Read More

Being or becoming a successful parent to your children is much more than just making sure they are fed properly or that they get to school on time. It’s more than simply making sure your child is safe and behaving good. Being a successful parent also means raising kids without guilt in their lives. It includes nuturing your childs emotions. Guilt means to feel bad about something that was said or done in the past. To a certain extent, the past can be used as a tool to motivate improved behavior. This is because learning from the past serves a useful purpose. But guilt is not learning from the past.

The real feeling of guilt means to be immobilized in the present over something that has already occurred. It is a negative and confidence-crushing feeling. Guilt is a tool used by adults to make other people feed bad. We tend to use it more on children because we think that it is a good way to control their behavior. I understand that your intention is merely to control your child and put a halt to whatever they are doing that is causing trouble, but using guilt can cause more internal and external social problems within you child for years to come.

Read More

Read More

Christmas is so much easier – babies, sheep, angels, stars. It’s pretty much all about love and presents: things your kids can relate to. Sure there’s the nasty part where Herod kills the baby boys, but that’s not an essential part of the story and you can leave it out if you want to.

Read More

Hillary Clinton and Rep. John Dingell today introduced the Childrens First Health Act. If passed. it will make health care for children more affordable and help plug the whole of some 9 million children in the US that do not have health insurance. Politically I have not made any decisions yet for president and I know health care is reform is widely debated. I look at this issue not only from a parent but also from a child who had chronic health issues, was hospitalized, and visited the emergency room many many times. To me its a crime so many parents in the U.S. have to skimp on their childrens health care because of rising costs or just not being able to pay for it. Our children are our future. I don’t feel its a matter of whether we can afford it or not, its more of a matter that we can no longer afford not to.

Here is Hillary’s video where she explains her proposal and justification for the Children’s First Health Act. 

It’s never too early to ask your kids to help you with chores around the house. You can even start as early as two years old. Remember to supervisor young children. While children mature at different rates, you can still determine what age appropriate chores are best suited for toddlers, kids, pre-teens and teens.    Read More