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How often do we hear a sigh and then, “I wish my children acted more responsibly!” We’ve also heard, “She is so irresponsible. I have to do everything for her.” Or “At his age I had to act responsibly. I did not have any choice.” What has happened in an era when children have more […]
There has been a movement afoot to bring back virtues. With the fading of organized religion in many people’s lives, there has been a lack of, and a hunger for, old fashioned wise guidance for goodness. Virtues are different from values. Definition of Values Values are what we deem important to us. To assess our […]
For years people have said, “I love your home. It’s warm, welcoming, and cozy.” We have had at least three realtors say, “I would like to purchase your house myself.” How did Les and I discover how to make our home, sweet home? I was blessed with a mother, a poor-farm housewife, who used to […]
Do you remember a television show called Kids Say the Darndest Things? It aired from 1998 to 2000. Well, I propose that often times parents say the darndest things. I used to say them myself until I learned to improve my communication skills. Good parenting starts with awareness and then choosing better. Here we will […]
Invite and negotiate household workload.
She bent down and tied up her 9-year-old’s shoe strings. Remarkably, the little guy is a bright, and potentially capable, boy. Millennials (those born between the mid-1990s to early 2000s) are often times called The Me Me Me Generation. They tend to be over-protected from challenge, consequences, and tears. As the family researcher, Jean Illsley […]
While happiness is a desirable emotional state, compassion and empathy are developed through opportunities to feel disappointment, sorrow and pain. Parents weaken their children’s resilience when they protect them from experiencing the uncomfortable consequences of life’s hard bits. Consequently, I invited parents to resign from believing or attempting to make happy children. I am not […]
In 1972 our dear sixteen-year-old daughter, Kelly, ran away from home and joined Satan’s Choice biker gang. Kelly was not only a youth at risk, she also acted out on many bizarre and life-threatening behaviors. She acquired forty convictions, many physical wounds, and three children fathered by drug dealers. We now know Kelly lives with Fetal […]
Most parents want to be joyful, encouraging and wise with their children
Children have a moral right to be loved. S. Matthew Lia, New York University If all children have a moral right to be loved, then I and I imagine you have let them down. Absolutely, there have been times I have let my children down in the love department. They were when I was also letting […]
My colleague, Bernie Fitterer, of Inspiring Developments helps fathers become resilient to the demands of their role. He invited me and three other mothers to an event for fathers. We were provided questions from the attendees to answer from a woman’s perspective. What an honour. We four women sat in front of a semi-circle of […]
Adults better influence when children feel a deep sense of connection, bonding, and caring relationship. It is the adult’s responsibility to build that parent-child relationship. In an ideal world, children would have a close physical, attaching, and bonding experience from birth forward. But sometimes this ideal picture is disrupted due to a range of […]