parenting

Talking to Your Kids (All of Them) About Choking
A dear sweet friend of mine nearly lost her son the other night. Just a few seconds, maybe a minute more and she'd be planning a funeral right now. Here's her story: Sam, our fourteen-year-old, came stumbling into my bedroom on Saturday night at ten, crying pretty hard and saying, "Mom, I don't know what happened,…
Q&A: How do I stop my son from stealing?
A reader asks, "I am having a problem with my 8 year old stealing things. He takes small things from people at school as well as things from his little brothers. A few weeks ago he took one of my diamond rings to school. I need some advice on what to do to help him…
Q&A: My Son is Being Picked On … What Do I Do?
A reader asks, "I am looking for some advice to help my son deal with children who are unkind. He is 6 years old and in 1st Grade now. He is a very bright and kind child. He is having difficulty learning to stick up for himself. He tells me that he is not brave…
It Seems I’m Always Yelling
A reader with four boys 8 and under called for help: I feel like when I talk, no one hears me. So then I yell. My friends call me "The Drill Sergeant Mom". I am so frustrated. Wow, do we ever sympathize! One time, we had a friend -- a mother of several girls --…
What’s Your Son Got to Say Tonight?
Recently we asked our Facebook page what people wanted us to write about. Several asked "How can mothers have a good relationship with their sons?" Our friends Marilyn and Rick Boyer helped us a lot with this topic in the articles they called Learning to Delight in Your Children. It helped us to clarify something we've…
Real Men and Abortion
What does Raising Real Men have to do with abortion? Everything. Years ago we lived in a town with an abortion clinic and often stood outside offering to help the desperate women that came there. Although everyone had a different story, in many respects they boiled down to this: the baby's father didn't take responsibility.…
Something’s Changed!
"I just don't understand! My sweet son is so temperamental lately." "It's like he's a different kid." "I don't understand the anger. What's that about?" "School used to be fun, but now it takes forever." "He acts so addled. Can't remember what I tell him for one minute." We hear it all the time. We've said it ourselves. We…