Blog - A Fine Parent

How to Keep Your Child Safe When Outdoors This Summer

by guest_author.
(This article is part of the Healthy Families series. Get free article updates here.)

The summer is undoubtedly a testing time for any parent. While it’s great to see your child spending time exploring the great outdoors, it’s fair to say the sudden rise in temperature brings with it a unique set of challenges.

My little one, in particular, seems to be in the wars at this time of the year. The sudden rush of adrenaline he seems to get from playing outdoors quickly fades away thanks to the zapping heat. If I don’t keep my eyes peeled on him at all times, he’s an accident waiting to happen.

The good news, however, is that there are a number of preliminary steps that I’ve learnt to take over the years that have helped make the season much less stressful.

To help your little ones avoid any seasonal mishaps, I’ve brought together five of the most important things to take into consideration during the summer, below:

[Read more…]

How to Get Back on Track When You Start Heading for a Mommy Meltdown (or Daddy Detonation)

by Julie Verner, Ph.D..
(This article is part of the Positive Parenting FAQ series. Get free article updates here.)

Racing around the house, tensions are mounting, and the clock in my head is ticking louder and louder.

Tick! Tock! Tick! Tock! We’re late! We’re late!

My underlings continue to amaze me with their expert aptitude for crafting new versions of dawdling. Like a leaky bucket, minutes dribble on the floor behind us.

Sibling conflict is a major culprit today. “Bwuthew isn’t talking to me. He fawted and I towd him to say, ‘excuse me’ and he didn’t ansew.” Two minutes down the drain as his story painstakingly makes its way into words.

Tick! Tock! Tick! Tock!

Another two minutes pass as I stand there scratching my head. I don’t even know how to answer him, except to say, “Just put your shoes on.”

The later it gets, the less I am able to cope with the fact that I am still wearing pajamas. Every effort to dress is circumvented. “I don’t like that kind of bread!” “Where is my other shoe?” “Can you get down my lunchbox?” “Can you pay me $2 since I took the dog potty and cleaned my room?” “Mom, this ponytail is fuzzy in the back. Can you redo it?”

Tick! Tock! Tick! Tock!

Frustration builds alongside foiled efforts. Tension in my body mounts. Their silky faces, clumsily-formed words, squeaky voices, and large, innocent eyes are shamefully inadequate to ward off the volcano preparing to blow.

What happens next is nothing short of a miraculous moment.

[Read more…]

How to Instill a Love of Reading in Your Kids

by Michèle Gamzo.
(This article is part of the Positive Parenting FAQ series. Get free article updates here.)

Do you feel your kids need a break from their iPad and other devices that seems to buzz and click all the time?

Do you think their attention span could be better?

British neuroscientist, Susan Greenfield, is one of the many researchers who’s unveiled some frightening and disturbing findings about devices and children’s attention spans. As part of the study UK teachers were surveyed and 91% of teachers believe that children’s attention spans are getting shorter as most children choose to spend time on their devices, rather than reading.

As a busy mom (as are we all), I often don’t prioritize reading time with my kids. As a speech pathologist, I know better and am frequently asking myself to prioritize that special time with my children.

As I was going holiday shopping last year, I saw something absolutely astonishing at the department store. There sitting on the ground among the heaps of clothing shoes and angst-ridden, busy shoppers was a little boy quietly reading! I couldn’t believe my eyes. He was so focused and engrossed in his book, he didn’t even look up to notice my gawkish stares. I quickly pulled my sister over to see, and she was also stunned. I felt like I was watching some extraordinary and rare behavior on the discovery channel. [Read more…]

Myth of Multitasking: How to Stop and What to Do Instead

by Cortney Kilby.
(This article is part of the Mindful Parenting series. Get free article updates here.)

Doesn’t it sometimes feel like it’s impossible to be a parent and not multitask?

As the mother of two very active children, aged 7 and 3, multitasking is not only a necessary evil, but crucial to me. When you add in the fact that I opened my own one-woman court reporting firm in July 2015, plus I have a host of health issues, things become much more difficult.

My husband is not only understanding, but does more than the average bear around our home. That doesn’t change the fact that, as Mom (Momma, MOMMYYYYYYYYY!!!!, MOTHER!), I do 90% of the listening-to-every-sound-and-analyzing-it-for-potential-likelihood-to-cause-death-or-dismemberment / organizing of activities & rides to and from activities / generalized and often unnecessary worrying around here.

And since I work from home, I also do a great deal of the housework.

All of this obviously requires a heck of a lot of multitasking.

I need to be able to change a diaper while I listen to my older child’s long – and I mean, like, I’m-not-gonna-be-able-to-attend-your-4^th-of-July-party-because-I’ll-still-be-listening-to-this-story-my-7-year-old-is-telling-me long – story about some kid I’ve never heard of who pushed down some other kid I’ve never heard of, the story ending with, “And then my hand started to hurt,” which has ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with anything she previously said, and I have to be able to convincingly feign understanding while avoiding being peed on by the diaperless one.

And I know I’m not alone.

In a lot of parenting situations, multitasking is completely unavoidable. [Read more…]

How to Help Your Kids Understand and Curtail Angry Outbursts

by Edie Jones.
(This article is part of the Positive Parenting FAQ series. Get free article updates here.)

Have your kids ever screamed at you in total, uncontrolled anger?

Pretty much every mom I know has had this experience – some more than others – and still, every time we experience it still feels as raw as the first time it happened.

I recently had a mother pose the situation of her eight-year-old son who was having difficulty with anger. This had moved her to ask for ways to help him. It usually happened when he didn’t get his own way. This would cause him to lose control and even was affecting his ability to make friends.

Reflecting on her question took me back to when my kids were young, remembering how easy it was to respond to such outbursts with my own anger, especially when the outbursts continued.

[Read more…]