7 Ways to Help Your Kids Express and Identify Emotions
QI overheard our daughter Lisa, age 12, and her friend Patty talking about how they hate two boys in their class. Hate is such a strong emotion. Why would they hate these boys? Lisa also claims to be in love with a boy in her class. A I have...
How to Get Your Teens out of Bed In The Morning
Q. We have two boys, ages 13 and 16. My husband leaves early for work, so it’s my job to get the boys up, ready for school and out to the car for the drive to school. I have to call them several times before they finally get up. By then I’m frantic, because we barely...
Resolution: Become Better Parents
Q My husband asked about my New Year's resolution. I shared that my resolution for 2025 is to be a better mother to our children ages 4, 7, and 12. He liked my idea and decided to resolve to be a better father. What do you think of our resolutions? Do you have any...
7 Ways to Teach Kids Generosity
QMy wife and I have children 3 and 7 years old. They are accustomed to getting lots of gifts for birthdays, Christmas, and when we return from a vacation. They have yet to think about and to give gifts to others. We would like our children to begin to focus not only...
Family Holidays: Fun or Disaster?
Q I’m dreading the holidays. My husband, children, and I split the holidays between each of our families. To reduce the stress, I want to go late and leave early. Am I alone in feeling this way or do other people experience added tension during the holidays?...
Creating Meaningful Family Memories
Q My husband and I work long hours. We don’t spend much time with our kids. We have a twelve-year-old son and a daughter who is eight. The kids complain that we don’t attend school activities as often as other parents. To make matters worse, my sister tells me that we...
Is Your Family Overcommitted?
Q My husband and I have three children, ages fifteen, eleven and nine. I’m worried that our kids will get involved in so many school and extracurricular activities that our family will be overcommitted this fall. How can we tell if we’ve created a lifestyle...
Easing Into Changing Schools
Q Our son Dennis, who is 11 years old loves his elementary school. He doesn’t want to switch to middle school this fall. I think he’s worried about losing his friends and having to make new ones in an unfamiliar setting. He is having trouble sleeping and his...
Etiquette When Visiting Grandparents
Q My wife and I and our two children will be visiting my parents next month who live out of state, and we don’t see them often. I want the visit to go well. I want my parents to have a good impression of our kids during and after our time with them. What...
What is Antifragile Parenting?
Q My wife and I are parents of a one-year-old girl and are expecting another child. We want our children to learn how to be courageous and self-reliant. We don’t want to be “helicopter parents”…those who hover over their children and constantly try to smooth...
Loneliness in Kids
Q My 13-year-old son Sam recently told me that he is feeling lonely. Before the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sam had friends that he interacted with in person every day. Then suddenly their in-person interactions were shut off and gradually he and his...
The Power of Positive Thinking
Q I’m a single mother. My daughter Vivian is a freshman in high school. She doesn’t want to go to school any more. She uses a lot of negative self-talk such as, “I’m stupid. I’m dumb. I just can't do the school work.” She procrastinates doing schoolwork or...