Most moms would probably say that spanking is saved for extreme offences so the parent can communicate their point with grave importance. Whether spanking is or isn't effective isn't what I'm here to debate, although I'm happy to hear your opinions on the matter. Oh, I love opinions. When opinions ...
What I learned as a stay-at-home-mom with an identity crisis
I've had a hard time of it recently. Not in a pity party way, but in a grieving-what-I-thought-my-life-would-look-like-but-what-it-is-not kind of way. I don't regret decisions that I've made to be a stay-at-home-mom, simply that there is a transition that inevitably happens, and it is perfectly good ...
What’s The Difference Between Childish Behavior and Foolishness?
Is my child simply having childish behavior or are they acting in foolishness? Here is some insight on those behaviors and also how to train in order to prevent unwanted situations from happening. It's a given fact... As a parent, you're going to eventually experience some "less than ...
Developing Trustworthiness: The Do’s + Don’ts
Here are some do's and don'ts to watch out so you can teach trustworthiness to your children. Trustworthiness is an important quality we need to invest time in building in the lives of our children. Think about it, do you like to spend time with people you don't trust? If you were an employer, ...
Raising Starter Finishers
"Finishing is better than starting." Eccl. 7:8a A few years ago now I was at a discipleship school in the UK. The leader of the school often taught us on various subjects and one particular morning she taught us about the importance of being "Starter Finishers." A starter finisher is by definition - ...
How to prepare your child for another baby (reader Q + A)
I recently received an email from a dear friend in a similar situation to myself, having babies very close together. My first two are 13 months apart and, as I type, my third bun in the oven will be only 16 months younger than my second. Here's what she writes. "I was wondering how ...
The difference between protection and over protection
Perhaps it's because I am neurotic, paranoid about my children's physical safety or just because I think too much about things, but the term over-protection has grated on me. I would think "how can you over-protect?" Then, it hit me, when people speak of others - negatively - as being ...
To Breastfeed or not to Breastfeed
I was going to title this article Breastfeeding: Does it or does it not suck? But since I've already used that when talking about pacifiers, I thought I'd just be a grown-up and use a nice title. Now, this article will not enter into the age-old debate on breast vs. bottle. Breastmilk is natural ...
“Nurture Shock” book review (children and lying)
If you've wondered why children lie, what motivates them, the nurture shock book will help. It's great parenting advice for families. I've already familiarized you with Nurture Shock. The authors, Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman, have reviewed research concerning various behaviors children ...
What I Learned when my daughter woke up the entire 2nd floor of our hotel
And it was not a small hotel. In fact, resort would be the more apt description. It went something like this. She was up late the evening before because we hosted for Thanksgiving. After being put down for a nap in the hotel she had been sleeping roughly an hour when the neighbor's very loud ...