The Most Powerful Family Ritual? The Bedtime Story There is simply nothing more powerful than the bedtime story—especially in this age of continuous screen time. The bedtime story is the perfect ending to the day. So let’s rethink and reclaim this special decompression time for both parent and child. It is not just something we […]
“You are so good at that!” you announce to the child, firmly believing that this warm praise is going to boost the child’s self-esteem and… increase performance. But in study after study, and book after book, the widely accepted consensus is that complimenting your kids can cause lifelong problems and actually decrease performance, especially if you
What’s better than baking cookies? Eating cookies other people have baked! This year organize a cookie swap. To keep it pandemic proof, consider a couple of alternatives to the in-person exchange. Have everyone participating bake on a specific weekend, and then pick a time to drop the cookies off at respective houses, or find
Just in time for all the holiday meals coming up, we’ve got 39 table talk questions that will be sure to invoke giggles, guffaws, and gasps. We recommend slipping these wacky dinner conversation starters into your next family gathering to slip into the dinner conversation—everyone will learn some fascinating facts about the ones they
The great thing about the holidays is having the chance to spend time with loved ones and create family traditions together. But this time of year can also get busy and go by fast, so to make sure we really enjoy the holidays and have lots of family fun, we suggest making a list of ideas
Once your child is born, you can expect major changes in your life. Your focus goes from your own life to the life of your son or daughter, and that alone can be enough to scare parents. What many new parents don’t expect are some of the smaller, more subtle changes that are associated with
Is your teenager depressed? The symptoms may be harder to spot than obvious blues. The following are some of the signs of teenage depression, and are most significant when they occur in combination and over a period lasting more than two weeks. • First, sadness, anxiety and hopelessness. • Second, lack of interest in food
The cold is a viral infection of the nose and throat. It usually passes in three or four day unless your child develops a complication. Call your child’s doctor if any of the following happens. – First, the eyelids develop a yellow drainage or are stuck together after a nap. This means your child needs
Adults often ask me, “What question do you hear most from teens?” The most frequent concern that teens have, and the one most often voiced by patients, and in letters from readers of our books is, “Am I normal?” This question can be asked in many different ways. One teen might say, “I’m fourteen, but
The prospect for seeking professional help from a family counselor, a psychologist, or psychiatrist can be a painful one. But your teen or your family may need professional help in the following instances: One, if you’re caught up in hurtful patterns of behavior that create and perpetuate tension within the family. Two, if your teen
