Lessons in Parenting

Are you planning a huge event for your local school, house of worship, or volunteer organization? dealing with the aftermath of an unexpected homeowner’s claim? about to move cross-town? looking at buying or inheriting a new-to-you, gently-loved piano for your budding musician?? These are all situations when you might be tempted to go it alone […]

Want your child to grow up with good values? Here’s where to start: In our fast-paced 21st-century existence, everyone’s attention span is getting ever-shorter. As parents, unless you constantly remove distractions from your kiddos’ lives (television, electronics, etc.), you’ll be competing for their attention at every turn. Starting as soon as they begin to play

Your Plan Of Action For When Your Child Locks The Door (Literally!): Anyone who thinks kids aren’t fascinated by door locks either doesn’t have kids, or hasn’t met every kid I know: At first, pushing that shiny button is the “let’s see what this does?” curiosity of a toddler. When your kid hits preschool age,

Becoming a parent for the first time changes you. For many of us, it’s the most wonderful thing that’s ever happened to us – eventually. But those first couple of months can be pure torture. It’s hard to fully appreciate how wonderful parenthood is when you’re exhausted and don’t have a moment to yourself. If

Does My Child Have A Learning Disability/Difference? A Step-By-Step Guide For Parents Ah, the joys of going back to school! New Supplies! New friends! And, if you’re a work-at-home mama, more sleep because you’re no longer trying to cram in all those work hours after your kids’ bedtime (as I am while drafting this)! But

I have a confession to make: I was born in the 1970s. When I was growing up, the Little House On The Prairie TV series was in its first run. It was still on the air the Christmas I turned five, when I received my very own 9-volume boxed set of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s classic

Why Grownups Need Bedtime Routines Too: As parents, we spend a lot more time than we’d care to admit to worrying about our kids’ bedtime routines. When they’re babies, we can’t wait for a routine. We look forward to them going to bed at the same time every day and sleeping through the night, because

Do you worry about the summer slide? It’s hard for the average kid not to lose ground academically over the long summer break. Add in a learning difference or two, and summer can become a real threat to your child’s academic progress in the upcoming school year. What’s a parent to do? Slipping learning activities

Creating A Game Room For Your Kids: Do you have an extra room in your house that hasn’t yet found its purpose in life? Maybe it’s the finished area of your basement. Maybe it was going to be your spare bedroom, but never quite got there. Either way, I bet it’s currently filled with all

Quick & Easy Ideas to Banish Summer Boredom: How will your kids spend their summer? Mine have a good mix of camp, music and swim lessons, and family adventures lined up. But there will come a time for every family – some sooner, some later – when your kids utter those two dreaded words: “I’m

Helping Your Kids Make Summer Meaningful: How will your kids spend their summer break from school? Will they laze around the house all day, glued to video games? Or will they make memories, learn new things, and become even closer to the rest of the family? The choice is up to you, and now is

It’s hard to escape math in our day-to-day lives. Whether you’re trying to pay bills, balance your budget, or saving up for your next family vacation, you need math to help you get there. Still, though, plenty of kids struggle in math in school. Whether your child struggles with math, or solves math problems “for fun,”

Apologies in advance to anyone who actually makes it to the end of this post. When I started this blog in 2014, I did so in part because parenting is hard. And more specifically, because a good friend of mine kept telling me that she always found my parenting advice and solutions so helpful, every

Ways to Get Your Kids Spending More Time Outside How did you spend your summers as a child? I’m willing to bet you weren’t stuck on your tablet or smartphone! Playing outside, having fun making up games and exploring, came a lot more naturally before the digital age. Now that the lure of screens is

My mama just finished her top-to-bottom spring housecleaning, and is rightly proud of herself for having that checked off. I’m just getting started on mine, now that my spring consignment sale events are behind me. And just as when I was growing up, there are certain aspects of seasonal deep-cleaning that are definitely a family