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...]
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...]
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...]
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...]
Good Things & Great Times Jar
I am a little bit behind on the new year's personal development initiatives. I've seen this "good things & great times jar" on various blogs and I loved the idea.A memory jar is similar to having a collective gratitude journal, but this one is a collective one for the family. A family memory collection jar. It encourages focusing on the … [Read more...]
Feeling-o-meter to help children identify and describe their feelings
My son gets frustrated and upset very quickly. He has a short fuse. He always describes his state as he's "MAD". Whatever happens, he's always mad and whenever that word comes out of his mouth, things get escalated pretty quickly.I explained to him that most probably he doesn't get MAD in every situation. He doesn't feel the same level of … [Read more...]
How to get your children help clean-up
Every weekend, children - have to - cleanup and organize their own living and playing areas. Then 5 minutes later, until next weekend, they run around like a tornado and we end up with a house like a bomb exploded in the middle. Now that they are 7 and 5, I do not clean up their territories anymore. Unfortunately, they do not keep it tidy or they … [Read more...]
“First think, then act” status update
It's been more than a month, since we've completed the “First think, then act” program in February. I wanted to share the results with you. I also learned that today is "National Siblings Day".The month of February was a work-in-progress. My beloved kids really tried to work on the communication, mostly because they did want to get a green icon … [Read more...]
Sibling Relationship: Making new habits
For the last few weeks, my son and daughter literally lost their capabilities to communicate and getting along well. The constant bickering, stubbornness, competition, disrespect and fights got worse. Not only did we lose our peace in our home that but they carried their unacceptable behavior out of the house to family visits and public … [Read more...]
“Taste it once” rule
My kids aren't picky - luckily - and they have a good appetite. However, time to time, when they are offered new food or dishes, they might be reluctant to try. My son is a little bit sensitive to smell and texture in taste. My daughter, might refuse either to imitate her brother, or just because she's decided so. It sometimes works other way … [Read more...]
Why I love family vacation
After 7 days of teachers union strike, public schools started 2012-2013 school year today. The extended summer break came to an end.Before the summer break, among most of the parents around me and on the blogs that I read, the main consensus about vacation was “a vacation is not a vacation when it's with kids”. I seem to be the one of the few … [Read more...]
A world without praise and encouragement
When you hear from experts on education and discipline, there is a big issue surrounding the use of "Good Job!", aka praise. There is a really bad stigma around praise, almost as much as veral or physical abuse. Ok, I might be exaggerating a bit, but repetitive praise is widely cited as an obstacle character development. All the books I have read … [Read more...]
Parents as teachers, parents as entertainers and other parenting styles
Every parent has a different parenting style. In our household, I and my husband have self-assigned duties and responsibilities in the daily life of our children, based on our individual personalities and interests.For example I am a teacher parent. I am the "Secretary of Education". I feel more comfortable with activities such as reading, … [Read more...]