The Babble post “Does My Three Year Old Have Race Issues: An Ugly Statement Gets to a Complicated Truth” brought me back to the 90’s when my daughter was in elementary school. We were living in Long Beach, CA, where I still live and work. Long Beach is a very diverse community, but with many [...]
Imagine a world where people realized their self-control was waning and they would excuse themselves until their coping skills returned. They would retreat to a place where they found comfort, perspective or distraction. Meditation is a kind of time-out, so is reading, or an afternoon nap. School detention, Juvenile Hall and prison are also time-outs. [...]
My 3 ½ year-old-son wants a princess bike for Christmas. I have no objection to his preference, but want to purchase a bike that will last for a few years. He rode a black bike at the store and loved it. When we came home, he reiterated his desire for a princess bike. Should I [...]
Our neighbor is 6 and has a passion for Hannah Montana and ICarly- which I'm disheartened to see is being past along to our 4 1/2 year old. I think the content is too "grown up" for both girls. Am I on track and when would the content be deemed appropriate? If we chose to [...]
When my child doesn't get his way, sometimes he will strike out at me, either kicking me or hitting me, and/or using angry words ("If you don't let me do XYZ, I won't ABC!!"). I try to stay calm and explain that I won't let him hurt me, but I would love some suggestions on [...]
Like most children, I loved Halloween in spite of the fact that my mother always made me wear a sweater that ruined my costume and wouldn’t let me carry a pillow-case as a sack like all the cool kids, because she thought it looked greedy. As an adult, Halloween confounds me – costumed children going [...]
Each Monday, I respond to questions at www.happyhourmom.com. Log-on to read my replies to some common parenting challenges. Feel free to ask questions through Happy Hour Mom, too, or send your questions to me at carolyn@engagetoday.com and I will reply here.Happy parenting!
We all like a surprise every now and then, and we are all sometimes forced to deal with a disruption, but generally it’s nice to know what to expect each day. Adults have the ability to plan and infer, children, mostly, have to go along for the ride. If you want a smoother trip, you [...]