You’ve heard me gush about my new baby nephew, but allow me to gush a bit about my older niece and nephew who stayed with us for a week in July. I absolutely adore them and I want to encourage You, Parents “in the thick of it”, that there really is a light at the end of the parenting tunnel.… Continue reading →
Parenting
An Educator’s Best Trick for Good Manners For Children
Tricks For Teaching Manners DISCLAIMER: Not everything that works for teachers works for parents, sorry. I recently read a post where a parent of a teen lamented that her children’s friends didn’t say please, thank you, or the like. She was at a loss on how to address it so if you, too, are perplexed,… Continue reading →
4 Magic Words
4 Magic Words (Redefined for Toddlers) Let’s move beyond please and thank you and get practical. Here are the Magic Words for adults when speaking with toddlers. Can I get you started? This is a non-threatening way to offer help. Toddlers by definition, bristle at “Let me help you,” so just skip that power-play. This… Continue reading →
Coffee and Wine: The Secret to Surviving Sleep Training (and other parenting challenges!)
Guest Post from Galit Birk, PhD, Kindermusik mom since 2009 I am finding that parenting my second child is often more challenging than parenting my first. Makes sense, right? Now I have two as opposed to one to get ready in the morning, to make meals for, to clean up after, to spread my attention… Continue reading →
The Open-Ended Toy (guest post)
Why do all babies prefer the boxes, paper and ribbons over the expensive, flashy toys at their first birthday party? Why do all toddlers love to play in the kitchen drawer where you keep the leftovers storage containers? How long have building blocks of some kind been a staple in households where young children play?… Continue reading →
Making Time
There are only so many hours in a day. I seem to have more appreciation for that fact at the end of the day, while lying in bed, no longer responsible to do anything but lie there and talk about how much I’m going to accomplish…tomorrow. Running, reading, groceries, organizing, projects, dates with kids, dates… Continue reading →
The things we do for love
One more click and our vacation was booked. Our little family of four was headed to the beach this summer for the first time. At three and a half years old, Carson had never wiggled his toes in the sand or heard the ocean waves crash to shore. The closest he ever came to that was… Continue reading →
I can do it!
Do you have an emerging leader? A world changer? A child on a mission? Then you probably have a toddler. And you probably have a serious case of exhaustion! It’s a tireless task to parent a strong-willed child and although they loudly declare, “I CAN DO IT,” it doesn’t always mean that they can or… Continue reading →
Snack Smarts
Have you noticed a bit of a snack epidemic in the toddler world? Snacks at the grocery store, snacks while watching a show, snacks at play group, snacks after the soccer game, snacks at story time. With so many snacks, it’s no wonder they aren’t as willing to finish a meal or try new foods–hunger… Continue reading →
Chore Time 101
Children are born with the natural ability to appreciate a task that needs to be accomplished and to see the steps to complete it with a smile on their little faces. Not so much, right? Chores for children can sometimes become a chore in itself for parents. It’s a basic character builder, though, and a… Continue reading →
