Tag Archives: children

Cute Handmade Mother’s Day Gifts (Inexpensive, Too!)

Handmade gifts, especially when they mark milestones in your child’s life can be lovely. You’ll find yourself years from now looking at them and remembering back to earlier times. I have a small collection of these gifts, and they always make me smile. For example, there is the wax cast of my first-born’s hand when he was only two. We were at a festival, and the vendor didn’t want to cast anyone under the age of four because children that age tend not to hold still. We insisted and said we would take it, no matter how it came out. … Continue reading →

When Other Moms Are the Enemy

You know how they say we can be our own worst enemy?  When it comes to parenting, I think we can have two enemies—not only ourselves but other moms. Ever notice how men don’t compare their fathering skills to one another.  But women do? Of course, get a group of men together and it’s highly unlikely they are going to be discussing their children anyway.  Their conversations tend to swirl around work, sports and the latest home project. But put a group of women together and their children tend to pop up in the conversation.  And unless it’s a group … Continue reading →

Do Children Make You Happier?

What role do children play in a parent’s happiness?  Do we find more joy in raising these youngsters or is there a longing for B.C. days (before children)? Apparently new research indicates that yes, parents are happier than those who don’t have children.  However, those with children that are the least happy are single and young parents. In fact, these groups may even be less happy than childless adults. Some have argued that the results are skewed because they didn’t differentiate between parents of babies and those with adult children.  Clearly the age of a child will make a significant … Continue reading →

My Baby is a Screamer

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I think that I have a screamer on my hands. No wait, I know I do. Neither of my other children ever screamed like my little guy is doing. Yesterday, we took our little guy to church as usual on Sundays, and we were sitting in class and he was playing with some crayons. He was getting frustrated because he was not able to take them in and out of the bag that they were in easily. So, he started screaming. I am not talking about a cry, but I am talking about a scream of frustration. It seems this is … Continue reading →

Your Child’s Safe Haven

I’m not exactly sure what time the world is supposed to end today.  But my guess is if you are reading this blog, the earth is still intact. It seems we can’t learn our lesson enough, previous predictions that have turned out to be oh-so-not-true.  Although, it seems more people are holding weight in the Mayan calendar running out. As if my teens didn’t have enough to worry about (no, they really didn’t think the world was going to end today), there were other attempts to wreck their last day of school before winter break.  Several threats of violence against … Continue reading →

My New Mom Obsession – Old Children’s Books

I’ve got a confession to make – I am thoroughly obsessed with old children’s books. When I read to my boys at bedtime, we choose from a varied selection of books that we borrow from the library and books that we own. Some of the books I like, others not so much. Then there are a few that are just amazing, and those tend to be the ones that were written and published years before I was even born. I am unsure why those older books are so captivating, but they are. Dylan seems to enjoy them too, and for … Continue reading →

Spending Time With Your Teen

I don’t know if other parents feel the same way but as our children get older and become teens, it tends to become more difficult to spend quality time with them. It’s not that I don’t want to spend time with them. It’s just that life keeps us busy and my children are in this stage where their friends are their main priority. So as a parent I have tried really hard to make sure that we spend quality time together. I think as the parent of a teen you have to be willing to enter their world. When they … Continue reading →

Four Frugal Summer Activities

Summer is a wonderful time to have some great family fun. My kids are so excited about the summer and all that they can do. Well, my son told his kindergarten teacher that he plans on spending the summer playing video games, so we will have to remedy that thinking, but I am sure it will be easy to accomplish; after all, kids were just made for summer fun. There are so many things to do that are free or low cost in the summer. Here are four frugal summer activities that you can do with your family. A Block … Continue reading →

Time to Take Off the Training Wheels?

At what age are most children ready to learn to ride a bike? The age varies and has more to do with balance and coordination than age, itself. Children must be able to coordinate balancing, steering, pedaling and braking all at the same time. Some children can master bike riding without training as young as four years old, others are upwards of 9 years old before they can even begin to master this complex skill set. The average age is about 6 years old. How can parents help teach balance? Many parents rely on training wheels to do what they … Continue reading →