As the big hand creeps its way toward midnight, most people give at least a fleeting thought to New Year resolutions. Those usually have to do with eating or exercise or a nagging behavior ripe for modification. And we all know how long those last: Not very. Instead, let’s talk about resolving to make some changes in your parenting--small adjustments that you can do and keep up, that will make a big difference in your life with your child. Even the best (whatever that means!) of parents, … [Read more...] about 5 Tips for Powering Up Your Parenting in the New Year
Environmental influences
Kids in Restaurants, Part 2: Lousy Local Conditions
Kids in Restaurants, Part 2: Lousy Local Conditions On Friday I lunched with a colleague at a “grown up” restaurant. The atmosphere was quiet and refined. Seated right next to us was a family of three—mother, father, and, in-between them, their adorable 18 month old child. We wouldn’t even have known he was there were it not for his occasional giggles. Mom and dad quietly spoke to him, played with him, included him in conversation, and redirected when things started to go south. It was a … [Read more...] about Kids in Restaurants, Part 2: Lousy Local Conditions
Kids in Restaurants?
Our dinner at a local sushi restaurant was a bit earlier than we usually dine. So I casually mentioned to my husband that we might overlap “family time” at the eatery. But we decided that it wouldn’t be a problem; we both love kids. Little did we realize it was the parents who would ruin our dinner out on a Friday night. This blog is not about parents who use tech devices during meals. I have previously complained about that. (https://betsybrownbraun.com/2010/10/16/join-the-family/) Nor … [Read more...] about Kids in Restaurants?
Fathering is Interactive
On a recent Saturday morning, my husband and I found ourselves at the local park, right in the middle of Little League play offs. Déjà vu! It was thrilling to relive our now grown kids’ baseball days in the park—cheers echoing across the field, coaches calling out plays, dust from the infield coating our faces, the ecstasy of the hit, the agony of the dropped fly ball. The commissioner of Little League, 25 years in the role, inhaled the moment with us. It’s changed in so many ways, he then … [Read more...] about Fathering is Interactive
Being Neighborly
Keeping your child safe, (also the name of a seminar I offer), is every parent’s top priority. And each time the internet explodes with news of another abuse to a child, parents are shaken to the core. Fear reverberates across the county, and we ask, “How did that happen?” and “What could have been done to prevent such a nightmare?” Such is the case with the heart-stopping news of Amanda Berry’s, Gina de Jesus’ and Michelle Knight’s abduction and final escape from the living hell of Ariel … [Read more...] about Being Neighborly
Circle the Wagons. How children learn to express empathy.
Current research on the topic of empathy in children points to likelihood that infants as young as 6 months have the ability to demonstrate empathy. Whether or how empathy develops as the child grows is a whole different story. Here we go again, nature vs nurture. A recent experience points to an answer. Shockingly, I recently stared cancer in the face. Even I, the healthiest person I know, did not escape the reach of the Big C. A totally successful surgery was followed by a less successful … [Read more...] about Circle the Wagons. How children learn to express empathy.