All families are trying their best to protect each member during these tricky times caused by the spread of COVID 19. Parents in the same home can control their own kids’ exposure—with whom their children come in contact and who enters their homes on a daily basis. They can even control their family’s newly acquired habits of constant hand washing, surface cleaning, hand sanitizing, and cough/sneeze covering. This protection is tedious, but it can be done when you remain pretty much … [Read more...] about Being Coronavirus Cautious in a Bi-Nuclear Family
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Parenting in a Pandemic
It’s one thing to manage your family’s health, safety, well-being as well as that of your parents and in-laws. It’s another thing when you have genuine concern about contracting a life threatening illness. But it’s a whole new ball game when your children are home 24 hours a day and you are in charge of their education, entertainment, on top of their health, too. Welcome to parenting in a pandemic. What’s a parent to do? When the Coronavirus warnings first came, none of us … [Read more...] about Parenting in a Pandemic
Talking to Kids about the Coronavirus
I have been reluctant to write a piece about the Coronavirus for two reasons: 1) I don’t want to fuel the sense of worry or even panic that seems to be building, and 2) there are many articles on the same topic circulating in cyberspace. But after I received 5 different emails today asking the question “How do I talk to my kids about the virus?” I changed my mind. Talk of the coronavirus COVID-19 is everywhere. People are wearing face masks which is a new sight to many kids. … [Read more...] about Talking to Kids about the Coronavirus
Kobe Bryant’s Death: Talking to Kids About Premature Death
Around the age of 4 years, most children begin to ask about death. It surfaces in their play, they say things like, “I’m gonna kill you,” they ask if you are going to die, among other questions and references. Unless they have experienced death at a younger age, this curiosity and sometime seeming obsessiveness are age appropriate and typical. It is a part of growing up. The answers to these questions are hard for all parents. No one wants to create fear or pain for her/his child. But … [Read more...] about Kobe Bryant’s Death: Talking to Kids About Premature Death
“Is Santa Real, Mommy?”
One of the signs (sometimes laced with a bit of sadness) that your child is growing up is when the inevitable question comes, Is Santa real? While it seems so simple, it is one that puts many a parent into a tail spin. What should I say? Should I tell him the truth? Should I lie? Won’t he be so disappointed? What if he accuses me of having lied to him when he finds out the truth? Let me put your mind at ease. You have not been lying to your child if you have allowed Santa … [Read more...] about “Is Santa Real, Mommy?”
Talking to Your Kids About Homelessness…in the Season of Gratitude
I want to feel upbeat today. Thanksgiving is a blink away, and it’s time to conjure up some gratitude. I do have so much for which I am grateful. And believe me, I am front and center in expressing it to whomever will listen. But today it’s hard to feel that way. My day started with article after article in the LA Times about the crisis of homelessness in my city. Then I went for a walk on this fall day in November, and it is too hot for me to be out exercising, 87 degrees. So, I … [Read more...] about Talking to Your Kids About Homelessness…in the Season of Gratitude