Parenting
I’m Sorry. Did You Just Call Me a Stay-At-Home-Mom?
I quit my job and, even though I am writing full time and in the process of building a darkroom, by all accounts of definition I am a full time mommy (or “stay-at-home-mom”—there, I said it). I think I am going through a routine that might be familiar to women who have embarked on the brave and noble task of transitioning from independent-career-savvy-mom classically attired for her lunch meeting to harried-distracted-covered-in-peanut-butter…stay-at-home-mom.
Children With Asperger’s Syndrome
Asperger’s syndrome is a rather new category of pervasive developmental disorders affecting children. It is a form of autism generally related to the mildest and highest functioning individuals in the spectrum of autistic disorders. Recently, awareness of Asperger’s disorder as a type of autism has increased due to proper diagnosis of the syndrome and an increase in cases of autism spectrum disorders in general.
Overprotective Parenting
Often, parents live vicariously through their children, usually without being aware that they are doing it. They over-function, or are overprotective, and view their children as an extension of themselves. Parents, who have the financial means, may take the extra step of hiring personalized athletic trainers, send their kids to endless sports camps, and hire sports psychologists hoping to give their child the needed edge to gain sports notoriety.
The Real Gift of Parenting
Parenting is an ongoing process of healthy sacrifice: the sacrifice of attention, time, energy, money, personal agendas, and all the activities we would prefer to do if we were not parenting.
When Children Lie
One of the perpetual problems that many parents face is lying by their children. Parents will often personalize this problem and view it as a sign that their children lack respect for them. Parents may also believe that their parental authority is being undermined when their children distort the truth.
Important Conversations With Your Kids
I lay down on my six-year-old son’s bed the other night before he went to sleep. It’s a time when we have some of our most interesting and precious talks. This evening, I was preoccupied with other thoughts. While lying next to him, my mind was a million miles away.
Spare The Child, Ditch The Rod
Kids who are spanked occasionally aren’t ruined for life. But spanking isn’t necessary to discipline a child. Not when a little self-control and a little creativity is considered.
When Your Children Grant You Your Dismissal Papers
As parents, we try to hang on during this transitional period, and a tug for power and control ensues. Even though a parent may be aware of the reasons for this process of conflict, it still may be difficult for a parent to accept.