Parenting Tips
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Big Day, Big Feelings: What to Expect When Your Child Starts Kindergarten
I dreaded my son’s first day of kindergarten. It was like this one day marked the end of an era – the passage from early childhood to the oh-so-scary “school age. “ There was no way that he was old enough to go to kindergarten, and I was definitely not old enough to have a kindergartener! When the day finally arrived I made sure to document every moment as if somehow that would preserve him in time. I sent him off to school with a special fuzzy in his pocket and kept one in mine as well, sure that this small act would connect us during his first full day…
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Mom and Son Date Ideas Boys Love
Mom and son dates have become a really important part of our family dynamic. We have four kids, and it is really hard to make sure that each one of them gets some special one-on-one time with us that’s more than just homework help or music practice. One thing we have done to give each kid some special attention is take them on a special date with just one parent. Sometimes it is something that takes planning, and other times it’s a quick at-home activity. But whatever it is, we make sure that we set aside time just for that child and focus on them. According to fancy scientific research,…
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5 Tips to Make You Enjoy Big-City Travel with Kids
Are you intimidated to travel with kids? Last week we took our kids to New York City for Spring Break. I think the phrase we heard most often from the local New Yorkers was “you are brave”. I suppose to most of the world, traveling with four kids sounds like a daunting task. For us this is just normal life. I mean, when you’ve traveled across the world twice, NYC sounds like a piece of cake! If you want to tackle Big-City travel, I’ve gathered … Five tips you can use to travel with kids, and enjoy it! 1. Bring hand sanitizer We all know that kids touch stuff. All.…
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How to Create a Chore System that Actually Works!
If the goal of parenting is to raise self-sufficient, independent humans who will one day grow up and live on their own, then when that day comes I want my kids to know how to cook something other than Ramen noodles, keep their home relatively clean, and have an idea of how to take care of another living being. To accomplish this, I developed a chore system that actually works to teach them these skills. Our chore system has two parts – Weekly Jobs and Weekend Chore Roulette. Here’s how it works: Weekly Jobs Every week my kids have one job that they are responsible for over the entire week.…
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Stop the Nagging With This (Free!) Summer Screen Time Checklist
Ahh, summer. The time of year where life slows down a little bit and your kids are free to play and be kids. Except all they want to do is play on their screens! I am totally fine with my kids enjoying screen time. It gives me a break, and it allows them time to relax. What I am not fine with is the incessant nagging about when they can have screens, or the way they can turn into monsters when the screens go off! A few summers ago I created a Summer Screen Time Checklist. It has been a wonderful addition to our summer routine! It sets up my…
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5 Reasons I Refuse to Buy My Kids Smart Phones
My kids are in elementary school and they are already asking for smart phones. A few years ago I would have thought they were crazy – no one gives their school-aged kids smart phones! Boy was I wrong. Apparently it is quite common for kids to have their own phone, as evidenced by the amount of students on their school bus with one! Every family is different, and has to decide what works best for them. Many families have great reasons for giving their kids smart phones. For our family, my husband and I have decided not to allow our kids to have smart phones until they are at least…
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Convince Your Kids They Don’t Need a Smart Phone
Raise your hand if you’ve ever had to go back home because you forgot your smart phone and you can’t make it through the day without it? What about if you’ve ever scrolled through Facebook or Instagram and looked up to discover 30 minutes (or more!) had gone by? And how about if the first thing you do in the morning (maybe even before your coffee!) is grab your phone? I have three hands in the air over here! Our lives as adults are completely and totally intertwined with our smart phones. We talk, text, keep track of our appointments, take pictures, and even pay with our phones. On top…
