My 16-year-old participates in many activities at school as well as extracurricular lessons at an educational center outside. She’s chosen these activities all by herself, and I didn’t force her to go into any of
It’s the season to be…making rituals? http://traffic.libsyn.com/handinhandparenting/Ep_9_Rituals_POST.mp3 What is a Ritual Anyway? Elle asks this week are rituals the same as routine and is implementing them just a lot of extra work? Abigail mentions some family
How can I get my toddler to nap? What do I do about whining? How can I get my child to listen? Parents at one outreach center in Watts, South LA have the same parenting
We long to relax and enjoy each other’s company on vacation, but in new surroundings, after long journeys, children can feel out of sorts and disconnected, and often meltdown on holidays. Allocating one-on-one time builds
We’ve all read research and articles promoting play, but play is more than independent play or playing with siblings or friends. For sure, kids benefit from those ways to play, but playing with parents and
How can you respond to a hurt child calmly, when you feel panicked yourself? Instructor Emilie Leeks discovers it takes some practice, but the results are easy to see. “We’d only just left for the
 Sooner or later, almost every child gets carried away by strong emotions. For some children, it’s an everyday occurrence. We parents can get carried away ourselves, especially when we have one or more children
As they move from play dough to playground and from dress up to dodgeball, it may seem like our children spend their whole day playing. And that’s great. But some of the best ways to
Our son is nearly three years old. He still goes through some separation anxiety when he’s without his mom. We usually put him to bed together, but the other night, my wife needed a break.
My partner’s son has to do one hour of eye exercises each night. Needless to say they are the last thing he wants to do. To give my partner a break from the limit setting
We all want our kids to come home from school chattering happily about their day, but that doesn’t happen too often. Separation can feel very different and very real for children, especially at the start
My three-year old daughter had been seeking quite a bit of connection from me for the last day or two. She had been employing all of the tactics we’ve developed over time to get me
We’ve all had those mornings. The one that begins like nothing will ever be right again: “I do not want to get dressed. I want breakfast.” “I don’t want cereal. I want oatmeal.” “I wanted
After 28 years of being together, my husband and I divorced. My son and two daughters were in their teens. The divorce and the years leading up to it had been very painful for each
I was excited to become a mother, but I didn’t have any idea what I was in for. I thought that parenting would be lots of love and gently guiding my child. I thought that