Exposing the Damage: TV and Kids
February 26, 2007
There are millions of young children in this country who are being terribly mistreated by their parents.
These parents aren’t physically abusing their young children, and they may not even know that they’re mistreating them.
The mistreatment?
Millions of kids under the age of two are watching TV in this country. In fact, according to a study by the Kaiser Family Foundation of over 1,000 parents, about 65% of kids under age two are watching TV, and they’re averaging over two hours of watching a day.
They’re watching even though the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no TV for kids under age two. They’re watching even though this is a crucial period for their cognitive development, at an age when their brains are still being formed.
And the news for these kids just got worse.
Scientists at Children’s Hospital & Regional Medical Center in Seattle who studied over 2,500 children found a link between early TV watching and attention problems at a later age.
Specifically, the chances of one and three-year-old kids developing attention problems at age seven increased by 10% for every hour of TV watched each day.
Ten Reasons to Tell your Kids Stories
February 26, 2007
In today’s busy world, many parents have lost the art of telling their stories to their kids. Here are ten reasons why these stories are so beneficial:
1. Use them to teach lessons about life.
Stories will stimulate conversations with your kids more effectively than lecturing or "trying to get them to talk. There are a lot of issues happening for your kids these days, and stories give them a chance to reflect on them.
2. Stories connect your kids with previous generations.
In a society that seems to have families spread out all over, it’s vitally important to have ways to have your kids feel connected to their extended families.
3. Stories stimulate your kids’ imagination.
One of the best ways to prepare your kids for the world is to engage them in vivid stories that stir their imagination. Kids who are exposed to these kinds of stories will be the creative problem-solvers of the future.
4. Kids who are exposed to stories will continue the tradition with their own families.
Knowing that your family traditions and stories will be carried on by future generations is very comforting.
Drivers Education for Teens
February 25, 2007
Drivers Education for Teens
by: Wesley Smith
Virtually every teenager will do it; take a drivers education course to obtain their learners permit and eventually an unrestricted drivers license. Most states have requirements that must be met for a teen to get their learners permit.
What is a learners permit?
A learners permit is a special permit issued by a State Department of Motor Vehicles (often referred to as DMV, but some states have varying titles) office for teenagers to begin “behind the wheel” drivers education training. For many states, the average age you can apply for a learners permit is 15. However, there are a few states where you can apply as early as 14 and as late as 16 years of age. Different states have different requirements. For example, there are a few states that have no formal requirements, where as most require initial written testing of driving basics. Six to eight hours of classroom (or approved home training course) is typically required.
Drivers Education Training
Is It Colic, Infant Reflux, Or GERD? Learn How To Tell The Difference
February 25, 2007
It can sometimes be difficult for a parent to understand whether the baby has colic or reflux (and even GERD) since some of the symptoms (eg. poor sleep, constant crying) can be similiar. It’s also extremely important to rule out reflux as a cause of this crying, as it’s becoming widely acknowledged that many cases of colic are actually undiagnosed and untreated cases of reflux. In these cases, simply treating the reflux may eliminate the colicky behavior.
The easiest way to determine whether a baby has colic or reflux is to look at the definitions and symptoms of each. Then compare them to your child’s symptoms.
COLIC
Colic can be defined as uncontrollable, extended crying in babies who are otherwise healthy and well-fed. All babies cry, but when they cry for more than three hours a day, three to four days a week, they are said to have colic.
Symptoms of Colic
The main symptom is continuous crying for long periods of time. This crying can occur at any time of day but it usually gets worse at night. It’s not believed that colic is caused by pain although a colicky baby may look uncomfortable or appear to be in pain. They may lift their head, draw their legs up to their abdomen, pass gas and become red-faced. Poor sleep habits is also common.
Top Ten Ways to Raise Emotionally Intelligent Kids
February 25, 2007
Having a high level of emotional intelligence in your children is the best way to ensure that they live a happy, successful, and responsible life as an adult. Here are ten ways to help your kids attain a high degree of emotional intelligence:
1. Model emotional intelligence yourself
Yes, your kids are watching very closely. They see how you respond to frustration, they see how resilient you are, and they see whether you’re aware of your own feelings and the feelings of others.
2. Be willing to say "no" to your kids
There’s a lot of stuff out there for kids. And your kids will ask for a lot of it. Saying no will give your kids an opportunity to deal with disappointment and to learn impulse control. To a certain degree, your job as a parent is to allow your kids to be frustrated and to work through it. Kids who always get what they want typically aren’t very happy.
3. Be aware of your parental "hotspots"
The Best and Worst of Motherhood
February 25, 2007
Until the moment I became a mother, I couldn’t quite understand or comprehend the depth when people say "Mothers are the strongest, most noble and loving people in this whole wide world" It’s just a whole bunch of cliché stuff that I could live without, thank you very much!
The pain. The joy. The sacrifices. The love. The fear. The confusion. The anxiety, panic, loss of time, loss of privacy. The internal battle between a person’s own inner personality conflicting with those of being a mother. The need to be alone and oneself roughly pushed aside because a child needs caring, loving and affection. The loss of sleep, the loss of opportunities.
I knew but I never understood.
Now that I am mom, everything within me is screaming for attention. My needs to be the best mom in this whole wide world and the need for me to be the best that I can be. Now, I realize the weight of the statement. We are the noblest people in this whole wide world.
There are many different sensations which come along with being a mother. Some good and some bad.
Family Meetings Are Now On The Agenda
February 24, 2007
"Not another meeting!"
That tends to be the reaction from many parents when they hear the M word mentioned. Parents tend to associate meetings with the workplace rather than families. Even at work, meetings tend to be tolerated rather than keenly anticipated.
My research and my anecdotal evidence suggest that families that have a process to share decisions and to resolve conflict have more cooperative kids and less open sibling disputes. To be truthful, I stopped talking about family meetings in my presentations some years ago as people’s eyes tended to glaze over when I mentioned the M word.
But I am now ‘talking up’ the concept as many parents I have worked with in the past have remarked how useful they were in turning their families around from Me-centred to We-centred groups.
Family meetings are a useful way of unifying a family and developing a shared approach to its organization. They are based on the management principle that children like a say in how their family operates and that they are more likely to stick to rules and decisions that they have had a say in making rather than those imposed from above. In many ways, this is stating the bleeding obvious but we need a process to make this happen. That is where family meetings come in.
10 Things You Can Do To Help A Shy Child
February 24, 2007
There are a few points about shyness in children which will help you better understand the best approach in dealing with your child. You will need to identify the nature of your child’s shyness. Children are shy in different ways for different reasons. Understanding the nature of your child’s shyness will help you develop a program geared towards your child’s specific needs. Here are some tips to help you get started.
1. First of all, are you sure your child really is shy? Some children like to size up a situation before they jump in. Caution should not be misunderstood as shyness.
2. You’ll need to find out the type of situations that make your child shy. Some children are shy only when they are in a group. Others become shy when asked to make a presentation in front of the class at school. Try to identify the specific skills your child needs to be more at ease in social situations which make them to be shy.
Obesity And Pregnancy
February 24, 2007
If you are overweight when you become pregnant, your physician will likely recommend that you gain less weight than a woman who is average or normal weight. You should not diet during pregnancy because it is vital that you supply your body and unborn baby with an adequate number of nutrients. What you can do however to minimize your weight gain is to ensure that you eat a healthy selection of foods during your pregnancy.
One of the best things you can do to avoid too much weight gain is ensure that you have a healthy selection of snacks handy when at times when hunger strikes. Think about things like yogurt, raisins, nuts, fruit and other healthy selections that are not only convenient but also taste good.
There are health conditions that being overweight or obese increases the risk for during pregnancy. Among these include:
- Preeclampsia
- Premature Birth
- Gestational Diabetes
- Cesarean Sections
Giving Birth to Children with Obesity Problems
Unfortunately women who are already overweight prior to pregnancy are more likely to gain excessive amounts of weight during pregnancy. Several studies have suggested that more than 80 percent of overweight and obese women will gain too much weight, defined as weight exceeding 40 pounds or more, during their pregnancy.
Ease Bug Bites with Easy Herbs
February 24, 2007
Summertime means insect bites and stings. Ouch! Take a leaf from Susun S. Weed’s storehouse of natural remedies: Soothe, heal, and prevent bites with safe herbal remedies that grow right where you live: north or south, east or west, city or country. The best natural remedies for insect bites are right underfoot.
Plantain, also called ribwort, pig’s ear, and the band-aid plant, is a common weed of lawns, driveways, parks and playgrounds. Identify it by the five parallel veins running the length of each leaf. (Most leaves have a central vein with smaller ones branching out from it.) You may find broad leaf plantain (Plantago majus), with wide leaves and a tall seed head, or narrow leaf plantain (Plantago lanceolata), with long thin leaves and a small flower head that looks like a flying saucer. Many Plantago species have seeds and leaves that can be used as food or medicine. A South American variety (Plantago psyllium) is used to make Metamucil.
How to use plantain? Make a fresh leaf poultice. Pick a leaf, chew it well and put it on the bite. “Like magic” the pain, heat, and swelling - even allergic reactions - disappear, fast! (Yes, you can dry plantain leaves and carry them in your first aid kit. Chew like you would fresh leaves.)
