Gift Ideas for Parents: My Favorite Books from 2011 (and my wish list)

by on November 14, 2011
in books and music · 5 Comments

The following is by editor Kara Fleck.

It is getting to be that time of year again, when lists are made and checked twice and things are starting to look a little bit merrier and brighter.

This year, I’ll be sharing some of my favorite picks for kids in the coming weeks, but today I wanted to focus on gifts for a special group of grown ups, specifically, my favorite books from 2011 for parents.

If you’re on my Christmas list, and you know who you are, no peeking past this point, okay?

Here are three of my favorite books for parents that have been released this past year:

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Weekend Links

by on November 13, 2011
in showcase · Leave a Comment

Teaching The Art of Sharing

by on November 7, 2011
in character · 27 Comments

The following post is by contributor Amanda Morgan from  Not Just Cute and originally appeared in November of 2010.

All kids love sharing….as long as that means you have something to share with them! But when it comes time for these little ones to part with some valued treasure of their own, they quickly set aside their passion for equal divisions.  Here are a few reasons why sharing can be such a struggle, and some simple steps that we as parents can take to ease the way.

Children are Not Developmentally Designed to Share

Three things to remember from a developmental standpoint:

1. Young children are naturally ego-centric.

They see the whole world through the lens of their own wants and desires.  Giving something up because it makes someone else happy requires a very big mental leap.  This means that we have to gently teach them over and over to recognize and value the feelings of others.

2. Young children are  naturally seeking power.

It’s a motivating source that allows them to learn and become more proficient and independent.  If sharing is presented to them as a loss of power (“You must give something up“) rather than as an opportunity to be powerful (“You can choose what or when to share”/”You can help someone be very happy“), they will naturally resist.  Help children recognize the power in sharing.

3. Social skills are learned.

As is the case with social skills in general, children don’t naturally develop the ability to share.  Just as they don’t wake up one day knowing how to write their own name, they won’t suddenly be able to navigate the social art of sharing on their third birthday.  Be aware that sharing requires practice, which always includes mistakes along with the successes.

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Let’s Talk: Daylight Savings Time and Your Child’s Sleep Schedule

by on November 2, 2011
in parenting · 17 Comments

The following post is by editor Kara Fleck.

Daylight Savings Time will soon be upon us.  This Saturday evening, before we go to bed, we’ll be changing our clocks as we “fall back” an hour.

However, what seems simple – just an hour’s difference – can really wreck havoc on the sleep schedules of adults and kids alike.

Spring Forward, Fall Back … to Sleep?

Our kids generally do fairly well with the time change, and it is usually the “Spring Forward” that gets us as it becomes difficult to convince little ones to sleep while the “sun is still awake, mama.”  Usually after a night or two, things get back to normal as far as our children and bedtime goes.

But I know that there are families out there whose little ones have quite a time adjusting whether it is the Spring or the Autumn time change.  Daylight Savings Time can be a major disruption for some kids.

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