I recently sat down with a mom who told me her story about parenting a child who has experienced living in an orphanage, foster care, and being adopted at two different times in his life. I was moved by her strength and the lessons she has learned as she strives to become a person of
If there’s one thing I’ve learned about toddlers, it’s that they have some pretty big feelings, and sometimes they struggle to convey those feelings well. Sometimes, they know what they’re trying to say, but are unsure about how to express what they feel, or they may not understand what they’re feeling, and that can be scary
Is your child nervous about the start of the school year? It’s common for all kids to feel nervous about beginning school. For some though, those beginning of the year nerves turn into something more. If you’ve noticed your student is struggling with excessive worry or anxiety, there are several simple things you can do
We live in a time of political turmoil, disease, and natural disasters. At home, we may be enduring trials such as divorce, the death of a loved one, or mental illness. These difficult subjects are hard enough to talk about with other adults. Attempting to explain these events to children can be a daunting task.
Personal boundaries are more than just standing 6 feet apart from strangers. Some children are too shy to engage with many of their friends, so they don’t have a lot of practice with appropriate boundaries. Some children are best of friends with everyone they meet, and parents may worry this will put their child in
While allowing kids to fail feels messy and frightening, letting them learn from their mistakes helps them to become empowered, releasing the controlling hold of fear that paralyzes decisions and helps develop lasting, deep-rooted accountability along with, ironically, building the self-confidence that comes with personal autonomy and recovery from failure. Failure is a part of
It’s 5:10 pm. You were supposed to be at the park to meet the babysitter 10 minutes ago. But you’re stuck at the grocery store waiting in line after rushing in to grab “just a few things”… with the 3-year-old. Shockingly, Susie kept asking for candy after you specifically told her NO MORE CANDY. You’re
I remember when I was 12 my family went to a restaurant and the waiter asked me the classic question, “Do you want soup or salad?”. I had just graduated from the kid’s menu and wasn’t used to that question, so misunderstanding what he said I responded very confused with, “Yeah I’ll have the super-salad…”.
Children in today’s hurried, high-tech world need structured, routine times when they can connect with their parents and siblings. One of the best ways to do that is family mealtimes. Many of us are so busy that we may feel if we are not multi-tasking all the time, we are not productive enough. We often
I never considered myself a particularly emotional person. Well, that is, until I had kids. Becoming a mother has a way of helping our emotions to “blossom.” And of course by that I mean, all the wonderful emotions, like deep love, elation, pride, real joy. . . but let’s be honest– most of us have had
©2023 United Way of Utah County
