Boy or Girl? These 25 Gender Reveals Help You Share the News
Mere moments after announcing a pregnancy, the question pops out, “Is it a boy or a girl?” Every new parent wants to celebrate their new baby in a big way, and the announcement is just the beginning. Step outside the cake cutting or box of balloons and find a new way...
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Best Neighborhoods in Austin for Young Families
Over the past decade or so, Austin has become a highly desirable destination for people from all over the US. And for good reason: for the second year in a row, “US News and World Report” named Austin number one on its “Best Places to Live” list. Austin’s natural...
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A Next-Level Teen Volunteer
It’s common to hear about teens doing volunteer work; some want to help a specific organization, some are looking for ways to keep busy and others hope to round out their resumes. But Haley Betron has taken volunteering to the next level. Only just entering her junior...
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Don’t Let Bed Bugs Become Part of Your Summer Travel
Summer is here, and the travel session is in full swing. We love the idea of family trips. The fun, the memories, the souvenirs, and … bed bugs? WHAT?! If there’s any souvenir we do NOT want coming home with us after our trips this summer, it’s BED BUGS!...
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RSV: What You Need to Know
Every year, respiratory syncytial virus (or RSV, an illness in the lungs and breathing passages) causes over 2 million doctor’s visits among young children in the US. About 57,000 of these children are so sick, they need to be treated in a hospital. The American...
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Does Your Child’s School Support Health and Wellness?
We want our children to be healthy. When they’re at home, we offer nutritious food, encourage exercise and promote wellness. But once school begins, our kids spend many of their waking hours at school. So, does your child’s school support or sabotage health and...
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UV Exposure — Are You at Risk in Your Car?
You probably know it’s important to protect yourself from the sun’s harmful rays at the pool or beach. But did you know you’re at increased risk from ultraviolet (UV) radiation in your car? About 53 percent of skin cancers in the US occur on the left side of the...
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How Much Do You Know About Scoliosis?
Did you know that one out of 40 people in the US has scoliosis? The condition is a deformity of the spine — instead of being straight, it curves sideways and may look like an “s” or a “c.” June is National Scoliosis Awareness month. One goal of this campaign is to...
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529 College Savings Plans, Explained
Saving for college can be overwhelming - the savings options alone can make your head spin! The 529 plan is arguably the most well-known college savings vehicle. This overview will give you a better understanding of the popular plan and can help you make the best...
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How I Learned to Love Collaborative Classrooms
It's hard to believe summer is almost over and our kiddos will soon be heading back to school! I still remember those final summer days when I nervously waited to learn which teacher would be mine and which friends would be in my class. Now that I'm a parent, the...
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Weird Science: Three Projects for Home Exploration
You can’t read a parenting magazine these days without coming across the acronym STEM – science, technology, engineering and mathematics. We all know it’s important to expose our children to these disciplines, but do you ever find yourself feeling a little intimidated...
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Educational Places to Take Kids This Summer
Summertime in Austin gets H-O-T. Usually around mid-July, I struggle to come up with things to do with my kids that don’t involve water or dark movie theaters. Determined to enter this summer with a plan that both shakes up our lackluster routine and sneaks in some...
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Not Perfect, But Good Enough
Q. We were eating in a restaurant when my 16-year-old son blurted out “You’re bad parents!” This presumably because we took away his cell phone during the meal. He said he was expecting an important text from his girlfriend. He and his sister left and started walking...
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11 Things to Try When Your Child Refuses to Go to School
Q. My son is 14 and often refuses to go to school. Sometimes, I can convince him to get in the car, but then he’ll refuse to go inside. If I walk him into the school, later he’ll have a physical complaint such as a stomachache or headache, and I’ll get a call from the...
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Little by Little, Work on Skills All Summer
Q. This summer, all my kids want to do is have fun. They ask to swim and play all day. They ask to eat junk food while skipping vegetables and fruit. I enjoy the summer break too, but when do I need to get them ready for the next school year? A. I’m all in for summer...
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Just Lively or Something Else: Do My Boys Have ADHD?
Q. My husband and I have two boys (3 and 6), and both their teachers tell me they can’t sit still. The younger one won’t stay on the rug during story time. His older brother is often in trouble for not staying in his seat. I know the teachers are frustrated, and I...
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Shield Your College Student from Identity Theft
Back to school. Every year is more surreal as our kids seem to age at warp speed. This is especially true for parents faced with tearfully remembering the first day of kindergarten as they drive away from newly furnished dorm rooms with college-level well-wishes...
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3 Apps (and More) for Learning to Read
This is the first sentence of this article, and the fact that you can read it isn’t to be taken for granted. According to research noted by ourworldindata.org, only 12 percent of the world population was literate in 1800. 12 percent! How mind-blowing is that? ...
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Top Tools for Your Family Game Night
Some of my earliest childhood memories are of my grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles huddled around a game table set up in the living room. Games went on for hours. There was banter, laughter and strategy. They lived in a rural, poverty stricken community. There...
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Can Technology Solve Your Mosquito Problem This Year?
Pop quiz: What’s the deadliest animal on the planet? Likely, your mind jumped to some of the scariest offenders: poisonous snakes, ferocious beasts lurking on the savanna, or maybe you even guessed the sleeper that ranks right up there, the hippopotamus. But those...
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