June 17, 2021 The decision to try for a baby can be really exciting but it can also be stressful. Couples who want a child may hope it happens right away but, sometimes, it can take a while. If you’re also juggling the demands of a busy work/life schedule and possibly other children, it can seem like…
June 14, 2021 By getting rid of excess, staying organized, and embracing simplicity, you can find more time to focus on what really matters. Here are 30 suggestions to simplify your summer with the kids. It will allow time to pursue more fun and meaningful activities and get the most out of your days. Not…
June 8, 2021 School has ended and summer is here but that doesn’t mean the learning has to end! Science experiments are a great way to explore the world around you – and for some schools an experiment for the science fair is mandatory. At a loss for ideas? We’re starting a new series of…
June 7, 2021 Schools in many parts of the United States are increasingly offering a dual language program for students. When describing a dual language program in this article, I’ll refer to English and Spanish, but of course there are many other combinations such as English/French, English/Chinese (Mandarin), English/German, etc. The most common type of…
June 7, 2021 We all know the last year has taken a hit on finances. Are you deciding to return to the classroom this fall? Perhaps you are taking a course online, working toward a certificate, or going to school full-time for a degree. This can pose quite the challenge for mothers of young children….
June 5, 2021 Life is short—yet many of us spend time wondering what we should do with our lives, rather than actually going out there and trying. As hockey legend Wayne Gretzky once said, “You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.” It’s important to actually strike out and follow your heart—even if…
November 24, 2020 If the kids are starting to get bored with their distance learning, try a few of these fun weather experiments to engage their interest. Science experiments are always more fun than sitting in front of a book or a computer screen. With just a little bit of time and a few simple…
November 19, 2020 Being thankful requires awareness. It doesn’t come easy for everyone. For kids, it’s something they often don’t even think about until Thanksgiving rolls around and schools and parents ask them what they are thankful for. It’s a great reminder, of course. But how can we cultivate that thankfulness year-round? Not just a…
October 7, 2020 Trick or treating has been around in some form or another since the 1930s. But, this year many families are wondering whether or not they want to risk taking their kids from house to house for candy and treats. No one wants their child to miss out on Halloween fun but are…
September 3, 2020 Explaining things like social distancing and wearing masks to younger children can be a bit of a challenge. While we want to make sure they understand what we’re asking, we don’t want to scare them. And, we don’t want to give them more information than they can handle. For very young children…
August 25, 2020 Looking for crafts to keep the kids busy? As we wind down summer, this is normally a time when people go on vacations, spend time at the pool, and get out in the community to experience whatever it has to offer. But, with more and more people choosing to stay home for…
August 11, 2020 It’s almost time for back-to-school, but chances are you’re anything but excited. Parents, teachers, and students are having to make tough decisions about what education will even look like this fall. Will everyone meet in a classroom? Online? Some sort of hybrid? Will outbreaks shut everything down before it even gets started? …
August 10, 2020 School is starting to creep closer for a lot of us. Maybe summer is starting to feel a bit tired as well. You might be searching for an idea to add some fresh life into your time off while simultaneously kicking your children’s brains back into the learning gear. So have I. In…
August 3, 2020 Summer is in full swing and the hot weather is here to stay for a few months. Families are looking for ways to cool down and have fun. But, many families are concerned about the safety of congregating in public spaces. And, that includes pools and beaches. So, is it possible to…
July 23, 2020 Life sure doesn’t look the way it usually does at this point in the year. After some reflection, and a little bit of mourning, I decided to make the most of a unique opportunity with chances to recreate the benefits of our travel with at-home versions as well as embracing new hobbies…
June 25, 2020 Summer has arrived on the heels of distance learning. It might feel like this year, more than others, your kids will need extra make-up work. Educational tools like workbooks or memory exercises can motivate some types of children … but they can also create a lot of resentment from those who prefer…
June 9, 2020 Within the last few weeks, it’s been impossible to ignore that race is still a major issue in the U.S. today. No matter a person’s political affiliation, we can all agree that we need to end racism for good. Many corporations have made announcements and ads that say the same. One email…
May 7, 2020 There’s a not-so-secret society of moms out there in the world: The Society of Sports Moms. It’s made up of those of us who spend significant time taxing kids to practice, sitting as spectators, hunting up uniforms to wash at the last minute, and shuffling schedules. Even with years of experience, I…
April 29, 2020 We can all agree that the middle of a lockdown during a pandemic is definitely not the ideal time for a milestone celebration. Or any celebration, really! But we recently celebrated my oldest child’s 16th birthday. We had already started planning several events with good friends but those plans had to be put…
April 24, 2020 Now that everyone is working and learning from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, are the kids going stir crazy yet? It can be a challenge on the best of days to keep the kids busy and occupied. But, when they cannot visit with their friends or go to the park, it…
April 17, 2020 Earth Day this year seems a bit pushed to the side of the major happenings in the world. Ironically, with so many of us staying home, the day will probably bring nicer air and skies than usual. Staying home with kids is in no way a vacation, but it can allow us…
April 10, 2020 We recently discussed Executive Function as a skill to teach during the school closures. But how do you teach it? The term executive function can be summed up as “management of what’s inside and around you”. Skills like organization, focus, time management, self-control, and goal-setting all spring from this idea. We can…
April 1, 2020 Parenting a teenager might be one of the most confusing and internally jarring sensations in the world. I was having a typical lunch with my oldest when it occurred to me that those loose unplanned moments were what I will miss when he leaves for college. We drifted in topics and suddenly,…
March 23, 2020 Parents around the world are in a time of flux. With so many schools closed or the future unclear, it’s easy to feel that education has stopped. We worry that our kids will fall behind without everyday instruction. We feel like we need to jump in as fully-fledged teachers with all the…
March 20, 2020 Now that the holidays are over, it’s time to start spring cleaning. Are you wondering how to go about decluttering your child’s room? Before you can really deep clean a room, it needs to be decluttered. While decluttering your own room or belongings is simply a matter of deciding what you do…
February 25, 2020 International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8 every year. It is a day to celebrate womanhood and the movement for women’s rights. Take a moment this International Women’s Day to read the biography of an inspiring woman of history to your daughters … and sons. We can all learn from the…
February 14, 2020 Every year, February rolls around and we hear about Black History Month. It’s an important recognition of people left out of the mainstream narrative because of the color of their skin. We hear inspiring stories and see pictures of major event, but I always am left with a strange feeling of incompletion….
February 6, 2020 Do you know those moms that always have it together? They accomplish fifteen things before drop off, their kids have morning and evening chores that actually get done, and they invite you over for an impromptu visit with a spotless home and fresh gourmet gluten-free muffins. I’m not one of those moms….
January 23, 2020 Winter is here. Whether you love it or barely tolerate it, it’s staying for a while. So having a bucket list to check off can make the long cold days more tolerable. For some of you (lucky ones) cold weather isn’t as much of a problem. A few of these items may…
January 10, 2020 Winter can be long and keep many of us cooped up, but being home with your kids can make a great opportunity to teach them some elements that school likely doesn’t. Money Skills No matter the age, many children got money for Christmas. Without making it a math class or a complicated…
January 9, 2020 We’ve all heard of book clubs … and some of us may be in them. But for all the rest who aren’t, there are several reasons you might want to join. And it’s not all about reading! Book clubs are fantastic ways to meet new friends. For moms with grown children, this…
December 23, 2019 Nine years out of ten, New Years Eve sneaks up on me. The holidays are wrapping up. The family is in recovery mode. Then the calendar tells me that the year is about to end. It seems strange to let the night pass without any acknowledgment, but it can also feel like…
December 19, 2019 Ready for the new year? The new decade? You’ve shopped. You’ve wrapped. You’ve baked. You’ve planned. You’ve visited. You’ve hosted. You’ve worked. You’ve risen early and stayed up late. You’re basically exhausted. Busy moms are always giving, doing, helping, and managing to juggle many things at once. Kudos to you! So now…
December 18, 2019 This time of year, whether you celebrate Christmas or not, whether you are romantic or not, whether you watch television or not, there is no avoiding those television Christmas movies. Love them or hate them, you’ve probably seen at least one. I love to tease my mom for watching them but I’ve…
December 9, 2019 Whether your children see their grandparents often or once a year on a holiday, there’s usually talk about school, sports, movies, new hobbies, and favorite toys … amongst other things. How often, though, do the grandparents get to tell tales of their youth? Perhaps some do, but my parents only do when…
November 22, 2019 We’ve made it to the holiday season, which probably means one of two things. Either you have lists from your kids that are pages long and name every toy or gadget ever advertised. Or, the list just says … “money.” You are left trying to figure out how to balance all the…
November 6, 2019 This time of year always launches the crescendo of the to-do list, holiday expectations, and time-juggling stress. Rather than think too much about all of the stuff racing toward me, I want to relax and smile. And if I quietly pretending I’m vacationing on a deserted tropical island with a hammock, book,…
November 5, 2019 As parents, there are many difficult discussions we need to have with our children. We want them to be prepared for whatever challenges or experiences they might be exposed to. And, in some cases, we can use knowledge from our younger years to get that conversation started. Discussing things like premarital sex,…
October 28, 2019 Fall tends to remind us of the importance of gratitude. As a parent, I usually have big aspirations for building that sense of appreciation in my children. It is wonderful to take them somewhere where they can experience the lives of others with less and take steps to help them in some…
October 15, 2019 Any month is a great idea to practice random acts of kindness. This month consider doing some of the following. You’ll help others and feel better about yourself in the process. Do you have an elderly neighbor? Consider raking and tidying up their yard as the leaves finally fall from the trees….
October 14, 2019 When people think of Thanksgiving, the first things that come to mind are probably turkey, stuffing, pumpkin pie and visiting with friends and relatives. You may also think of Pilgrims, the change of seasons, and the approach of winter. And, if you’re like many people, you also think of the things in…
September 18, 2019 One of the hardest parts of parenting is the expectation. From the minute the test comes back positive, we start imagining who that baby will become and what life will look like with them in it. For some, those imaginings start even earlier. We laugh at the people who like to say,…
September 16, 2019 I’m a huge library person. I rarely miss a week and have been known to stop at libraries when we travel to other states. So when recently I spoke to several moms who said they don’t go to the library, I had to extoll all the virtues. I told them all the…
September 13, 2019 As a mom of a child who is gluten-intolerant, Halloween is not the most allergy-friendly holiday out there. Until we learned our daughter was gluten-intolerant, we never considered allergies when choosing our Halloween treats. If the candy was on sale and had a cute Halloween picture on the front of the package,…
September 12, 2019 Compared to 100 years ago, the amount of added sugar in our food supply is staggering. While the initial risks of having so much sugar in kids’ diets was downplayed, it’s looking more and more like something we should be taking seriously. The American Heart Association recommends that children consume no more…
