My daughter is in middle school and my son is in high school. Despite the negative rap about teens in general as well as having teens, parenting in our household has been relatively low-key and easy (tolerable), courtesy of my teen son and daughter. It is almost like the widely advertised terrible twos and horrible threes that never visited our … [Read more...]
Reach your goals using a habit tracker + free printable
I have been setting new years resolutions or goals for as long as I can remember. I have journals filled with lists of 10 resolutions from each year. Some items got completed or accomplished and crossed over, some goals came back year after year. I've tried many different types of journals and agendas to keep track of my steps towards completing or … [Read more...]
How I stopped yelling at my kids with this one simple questions
Tell me. Who do you yell at most frequently in your life? Your parents? Your siblings? Your spouse or partner? Your friends? Your neighbors? Your coworkers? Your boss? Your business partners? How about your kids? Think about it and let it sink in while I tell my story.This is the story of how I used to raise my voice at my kids until I … [Read more...]
Ideas for fun and memorable family traditions
My son is a creature of habit or traditions I might say. He has liked his routines since birth. He likes certainty and having his expectations met on an ordinary day. I, on the other hand, growing up with few family traditions, didn't think much of any of this before noticing the value my son puts on these simple traditions we create as a family. … [Read more...]
Raising everyday makers
We are raising our kids in a very different environment than we had in our childhood. Specifically, children growing up middle and upper-class families are not only surrounded by a considerable amount of possessions of their own but also are exposed to what other people have and do in social media from young ages. This results in a mindset of … [Read more...]
Handwritten inspirational lunch notes for kids
I love inspirational quotes. I always save them on my computer or my phone thinking that I'd share them with my kids. I've even thought about putting up a chalkboard where I would write daily inspirational quotes or affirmations. Unfortunately, we don't have too much empty wall space left in our main living area. Eventually, I decided to give a try … [Read more...]
What I’ve learned when we gave our child his own cell phone
When my husband told me he wanted to hand down his old cell phone to my son when he upgraded to a new one, I was worried. I thought it was too early. Our plan was to give him a cell phone no earlier than 13. I looked at him. There he was 10.5 years-old, looking almost 14, playing with our phone.We discussed and finally decided to go for it. … [Read more...]
Teen cell phone contract with printable sample
Raising kids sometimes feels like driving a power car that accelerates from 0 to 60 in seconds. I was writing about preschool selection, like, yesterday. Today, my first-born has his own cell phone. It wasn't in our 5-year growth plan. We were thinking "no earlier than 13". Things change, kids get independent, cell phone upgrade time comes up. For … [Read more...]
Crazy things parents do only with their first child
With your first child, you aim to be the perfect parent and you do some crazy things that you'd never repeat with your second or latter children.Read “what to expect” book from cover to cover and every weekly pregnancy newsletter from babycenter.com. You make a list of questions filling up a letter-sized paper before going to your ob-gyn. … [Read more...]
When your child’s question is unanswerable
When their child(ren) start(s) talking, parents enjoy their cute, sweet chatter as much as they dread their major verbal milestones such as "No!" Phase, "Why?" Phase, "Where did I (do babies) come from?" phase, "Death" phase, "Where is God?" phase and more relevant to the current editorial calendar "Is Santa real?" phase.I've always felt, we've … [Read more...]
My life without Facebook
I deactivated my personal Facebook account more than a year and a half ago. We were on vacation. Wi-fi was only available in our hotel lobby and nowhere else. I preferred to sacrifice social media for a week, instead of soaking the sun on the white sand beach on my vacation.After 3 days, I realized something that blew my mind.I was still … [Read more...]
Why I love reading parenting books
If you follow me on Goodreads, you know that I love reading books, mostly, parenting books. I have more books on my "to-read" shelf than "read" for obvious reasons. Some of the books I have or was planning to read are already outdated as my children grew out of 1-6 age phase and are moving steadily towards teenage phase.My love for reading … [Read more...]
10 tips to get your children pick up after themselves
I am a lazy parent, especially, when it comes to house chores. Give me any type of cooking, outdoor activity, physical exercise, arts and crafts or DIY projects or visiting museums and gardens, I'll get to it right away. I'll wake up at 5, I'll stay up late. However, when it comes to tidying up the house, especially the mess caused by two Tasmanian … [Read more...]
Weekly dress schedule – Kid’s School Clothes Lookbook
Last year, I used to travel for business and had to be gone for a whole week, every other week. In order to ease the workload on my husband's shoulders, I would prepare everything I could and cook the weekly meals on Sunday. One of the biggest hassles that remained in the morning routine, was my daughter's school clothes selection. We moved the … [Read more...]
Scarecrow parenting
I have had this post sitting in my drafts for a long time, since I’ve read One Classy Motha’s “Parasite parenting” post. As she explained how she had such a relaxing time, while her kids played with another (host) family’s kids, I thought I am the other parent who welcomes others’ kids to play with mine in my own territory, while I relinquish the … [Read more...]
Morning and bedtime madness overhaul
If you dread waking up on a school day to face the morning madness and nagging to get to the school on time, this solution will ease your pain if not completely restore your sanity.We started the school year, like any family in the country, lacking sleep and time to get ready for the school. As days passed by, the amount of the phrases used … [Read more...]
Volunteers build a new playground with KaBOOM!
I have been volunteering with one of the parent organizations at my children's school, whose purpose is to raise funds for school's needs. For the last three years, we have been focusing on getting a playground for the elementary school where more than eight hundred students attend. Especially after the school hours were extended in Chicago two … [Read more...]
Kids’ Summer Vacation Away with Grandparents – Vol. I
Almost 2 weeks ago, kids packed their luggage for their annual summer vacation in Turkey. We went to the airport, checked them in, and handed them over to my brother and sister-in-law before the security check point. There went the kiddos, with their cousins to get on their 11 hour flight to Istanbul, without us.This year, I and my husband … [Read more...]
Book Review: Lean in
I've read “Lean in” right after I've made a company change. I've had to think hard where my career was going after 9 years in a workplace where I loved my work and the people I worked with. I had long discussion with my husband and family. The decision to make the change didn't come easy. This decision was not only impacting my life but my family’s … [Read more...]
10 steps to prepare and cook weekly meals in advance
For the last 6 weeks before I quit my previous job, I had to travel for business. Half of these trips were from Monday through Friday where my husband had to care of the household by himself. In two of these trips, schools were closed due to Polar Vortex. I wanted to at least take cooking/meal preparation out of his hectic schedule. I spent my … [Read more...]