Way back in February you sent in the deposit. Sleep-away camp, here we come! It was going to be fantastic—swimming in the lake, roasting marshmallows by the campfire, pillow fights in the cabin. Just weeks before opening day, your son’s excitement fills the air. I get to go away for two whole weeks! No school! No chores! No sister getting on my nerves! No parents to bug me! Then, as you’re ironing on the last of name labels, he wanders in and quietly asks, “What if I’m homesick?” Reality … [Read more...] about Sleep-Away Camp Separations
Transitions
The Unmentionable: Wiping Your Child
Sheepishly, the mom asked, “Should I still be wiping my seven year old’s tush after he makes a poop?” Some of you might be gasping in horror, but others of you are nodding in agreement as you wonder the same thing. The third time in a week that I was asked the question in a parenting group, I knew it was time to write about it: When should a child wipe his own bottom? Isn’t it funny that parents flock to my seminars on raising self reliant children…. and the next morning they run to wipe … [Read more...] about The Unmentionable: Wiping Your Child
Fifty Years Later
I answered the door at 10:00 a.m. Sunday morning, to find a good looking, gray haired gentleman. “Yes?” I said, somewhat perturbed that my racing to set up for the 12:30 p.m event was being interrupted. “I am Jeff Hearn” said the guest who was supposed to have arrived at that 12:30 start time. “You’re Jeff Hearn?” I choked, incredulous, not having seen Jeff since he was an 11 year old classmate, graduating from sixth grade at UES. (I also wondered if he never learned to tell time after 50 … [Read more...] about Fifty Years Later
Smoothing the Start of the School Year
It’s August...three, four, even five more weeks of summer vacation depending upon your child’s first day of school. Summer time and the livin’ is (still) easy! Even though the consistent, routinized school year schedule actually makes life easier for most children and parents, getting back into the swing of things can be a real challenge. There are so many adjustments to be made from the more carefree summer life to the hurry-up-we’re-going-to-be-late-school year. A mindful transition … [Read more...] about Smoothing the Start of the School Year
Whose Dreams Are They, Anyway?
I guess my book, You’re Not the Boss of Me, came out too late for the mom who wrote in the Two Cents Worth column of my local newspaper: I think the [delete name] Pony Baseball Association should consider eliminating playoffs for the younger players (Pintos). My Pinto player’s team has already lost and it was devastating for him and me. Age 7, 8, and 9 is too early for that kind of serious competition. There are so many parts to this letter on which I could and should comment. However, … [Read more...] about Whose Dreams Are They, Anyway?
The “Right” Age for Video Games
With your first born child, it’s pretty easy to control his diet of everything—sugar, television, war toys, choice of friends—for the first few years anyway. But then he hits school age, somewhere after five years old, kindergarten age, and the once controlling parent begins to question some of her controls. My child is the only one who doesn't...and now you fill in the blank. Most parents know that they are fighting a losing battle if they are too orthodox about their restrictions. Never … [Read more...] about The “Right” Age for Video Games