How’d you sleep last night? Did you toss and turn? Did you wake up feeling lousy? Or did you fall asleep right away, and wake up feeling refreshed? If waking up well-rested sounds like a pipe dream, do something about it! Small, simple changes can help you sleep better tonight, as I know from firsthand […]
Sleep Better Tonight: Five Often-Overlooked Hacks Read More »
School safety is on everyone’s minds nowadays. It seems that every week, the news brings more horrific reports of another school shooting. As parents, we can sometimes feel helpless. After all, we can’t singlehandedly change gun laws or improve mental health funding in the United States. But there are plenty of simple action steps we
School Safety Tips for Parents Read More »
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone celebrating in the United States (as well as expats overseas) today! In honor of this national day of giving thanks, I’m thrilled to share a guest post written by a blogging friend of mine, Michele Tripple. If ever there were a Supermom, this amazing mama is definitely one in my eyes!
How To Teach Your Kids Gratitude Read More »
When life throws you a curveball, how do you react? What do you do when life throws you for a loop? How do you cope? Wouldn’t it be nice if there were quick and easy answers to make it all better? But life doesn’t work that way, does it? A loved one gets a serious
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August 2017 Dear Essie, The day you’ve been waiting for since at least last fall is finally here. It’s time for you to climb onto that big yellow school bus with your sister and start kindergarten. And when you do, I won’t cry, any more than you will. Part of me is sorry that you
Why I Won’t Cry When You Start Kindergarten Read More »
If you’re one of those families who magically and effortlessly gets your kids back to a school-year routine at the end of your summer holidays, you need not read further (unless you want a good laugh at the rest of us). But if you’re in the 99% of us who struggle in this area, here’s
The “Pizza Cow” Morning Routine Contract Read More »
It’s now August. Back-to-school is coming. When you think about the rest of summer, are you a glass-half-full type, or a glass-half-empty? Rest of Summer: The Glass-Half-Empty Version A few weeks ago I was all “Oh, summer has flown by, it’s almost over,” when a blogger-friend in the U.K., Victoria at Lylia Rose, left a
Max Out The Rest Of Summer: Ten Ideas For Your Bucket List Read More »
It’s finally here: the week you’ve set aside for a family summer vacation. But the weather forecast calls for one rainy day after another. That would sum up our vacation last week. Or for whatever other reason, you find yourself confined indoors with children who are going stir-crazy for lack of adventures. Either way, you’re
Your Summertime Rainy Day Cheat Sheet Read More »
(NOTE: I first wrote “Loving the Environment for Kids: My Top Five Tips for Raising Eco-Friendly Offspring” as a guest post for The Everyday Ecologist in June 2016. Since it’s no longer available on that website, I’m republishing it here with a few updates while I’m traveling. Enjoy! – Flossie) What do your kids know
Loving the Environment for Kids: 5 Tips for Raising Eco-Friendly Offspring Read More »
Some of you may have been wondering why, for a parenting blog, photos of my children are noticeably absent. I’ve been wanting to write for awhile now about why you won’t see my kids’ faces here, but honestly, I’ve been afraid to do so. However, this absence has been weighing especially heavy on my heart since Easter.
Why You Won’t See My Kids’ Faces Here Read More »
I’m now just over two months into my bullet journaling experiment. For those of you who’ve thought about bullet journaling – either to become more efficient and organized, or to help you juggle your competing to-do’s – yes, it’s made a huge difference in those areas. But I’m also surprised to discover another upside: Bullet journaling has unquestionably made
How Bullet Journaling Has Made Me A Better Parent Read More »
When’s the right time to teach your kid to budget? I vaguely recall my parents mentioning budgeting before college, which is when I became responsible for handing over a check each month at the bursar’s office. Nothing drives home the importance of budgeting like making sure your earnings will cover next month’s tuition payment. We’ve all heard of – and
When Should You Teach Your Kid To Budget? Read More »
Happy New Year! I’m in the middle of several weeks of enjoying holiday and vacation time with my family. Hence, in lieu of a longer post, I thought I’d share seven-year-old Kimmie’s resolutions and goals for the new year. Kimmie’s New Year Resolutions Kimmie actually volunteered some personal new year resolutions to my mother a
Kimmie’s New Year Resolutions and Goals Read More »
Do your kiddos practice bucket-filling on a daily basis? Have you even taught them about bucket-filling yet? You probably have, and just don’t realize it. But in this season of celebrating miracles and light and goodness, many of us are focusing in our families on bucket-filling anyway. Even if we don’t do so in the context
Bucket-Filling For Your Kids Read More »
Overheard at bedtime the other night, a half-hour after lights-off, as I’m trying to get Kimmie tucked in: Kimmie: “I’ve got to have a talk with Huckle’s teacher.” Huckle, a stuffed-animal incarnation of the Richard Scarry character, is Kimmie’s bedtime buddy. Oh, crud I think to myself – did she overhear me saying something along those
Overheard at Bedtime: The Fuzzies Economy Read More »
Have big-kid nightmares got your household missing more sleep than you’ve missed since you had a newborn around? That’s how our house has been feeling lately, since Kimmie went back to school. For example, take last night. It’s around 9pm. My husband and I had just wrapped up our nightly planning meeting and settled into
Big-Kid Nightmares? Try Big-Kid Massage Read More »
So the kiddos have been back to school for a few weeks now. How’s the back-to-school anxiety level in your household? In ours, it seems we’re still sorting through back-to-school anxiety, with mixed results. Your back-to-school anxiety checklist Have you noticed any of these back-to-school anxiety symptoms in your child(ren) since they resumed classes this
Back-To-School Anxiety: Tips on Herding the Purple Cow Read More »
Parenting While Disabled. There’s a loaded topic. I’m icing my left knee as I type this, having recently reentered the land where I can’t trust my body. Meaning that self-care is my top priority. This land doesn’t mesh well with caring for small children. In the United States, there’s growing awareness of the challenges of parenting
Parenting While Disabled: My Latest Attempt Read More »
Maybe you’re a first-time parent of a less-than-one-year-old. Maybe your kiddo is going through a sleep cycle shift. The switch to summer vacation and longer daylight hours in the Northern Hemisphere can leave even veteran parents wondering how to get your kid to go to sleep. And as seasoned parents know, you will find yourself
How To Get Your Kid To Go To Sleep Read More »
So you want to teach your kid to ride a bike. Maybe you’ve even heard of the “one day” method, and been suspicious – as I was, when I first stumbled across references to it online. Perhaps you’re wondering, as I did: does it work? Can you really teach your kid to ride a bike
Teach Your Kid To Ride A Bike In One Day? Really? Read More »
