(2008/09/07) Q: I have four kids younger than 17 and have been a single parent since my wife passed away three years ago. There are days when I wonder how I keep going, but most days have been better than I would have expected.
(2008/09/07) Q: We’re having a discussion — somewhat of a debate, actually — in our church over when it’s appropriate to allow children to sit with their parents during worship. What is your recommendation?
(2008/09/06) Q: My oldest kid starts high school next week. I grew up in a rough family with lots of dysfunction and chemicals. I have turned my life around and have done a good job of raising my three kids and giving them a better life.
(2008/09/06) Q: My 4-year-old daughter still has very bad tantrums. When she throws a tantrum when we are on an outing, I immediately take her home. However, this affects her older sister, who complains that she did nothing wrong but is also being punished. Is there something I can do so that the older girl is not affected by her sister’s punishments? By the way, I’m typically alone, so leaving the younger child with another parent is not an option.
(2008/08/30) Q: What in the world do I do when my teen wants to do nothing to help at home but wants me to buy and do everything for him? He is 15 and has been a pretty good kid up until the last year and a half. He wants to go, go, go with his friends, and I feel that our door is the revolving kind. When I say no, he argues with me. His dad works a lot of hours, and so I do most of the hauling around. I am exhausted from all of this and sick and tired of arguing with him as well. I work part-time, and with school and activities starting, there won’t be a break from all this, just different hours. I am willing to hear any suggestions you might have.
(2008/08/30) A timely conversation recently started on my Web site (www.rosemond.com) when the mother of two young children, ages 2 and 4, asked how to best tell them and how much to explain concerning the fact that their daddy is soon to be deployed.
(2008/08/30) Sunday, Aug. 24 Creation Station, 1 to 3 p.m., all ages, Children’s Museum, 207 Fifth Ave. S., free with museum admission.
(2008/08/23) Q: Yesterday our family was worrying about the impending start of school and how crazy our schedules become. I agreed to write and ask for suggestions since you help families with teens and their lifestyles.
(2008/08/23) Q: My 13-year-old daughter’s father is irresponsible, to say the least. In addition to being a lousy co-parent, he frequently cancels visits and is often obviously lying about the reasons. Nonetheless, I’ve told her never to speak badly of him to or even around other people. There are times when I even end up defending him, sort of. When she questions his love, I tell her that of course he loves her. When he misses a visit, I tell her that if he gave things more thought, he’d do better. I tell her to talk to him about all this stuff and she says she can’t. Sometimes her venting is rather sarcastic and ridiculing. I fear her power in relationships with males will suffer from her experience with bio-dad. Should I listen and say nothing or insist she speak respectfully of him if at all?
(2008/08/23) Sunday, Aug. 17 Creation Station, 1 to 3 p.m., all ages, Children’s Museum, 207 Fifth Ave. S., free with museum admission.
(2008/08/16) Q: When I was a high school student my parents bought stacks of paper, pencils, pens and folders and put them in a drawer for all of us four kids to use as needed. Periodically someone needed a special folder or tool, but not like today. Stores post lists that schools and teachers want kids to have. Not too much pressure for parents to buy the “right” stuff. It feels like a conspiracy of schools and stores ... like maybe a kickback. What has happened to just plain old paper and pens and pencils?
(2008/08/16) Q: My 3-year-old daughter is suddenly acting afraid of our elderly neighbor who has been a constant presence in her life since day one.
(2008/08/16) Sunday, Aug. 10 Creation Station, 1 to 3 p.m., all ages, Children’s Museum, 207 Fifth Ave. S., free with museum admission.
(2008/08/09) Q: I had my first son very young, 15 to be exact. I was there, but my mother pretty much raised him until I was 18 and moved out of her house. That is five years ago now, and my mother is still trying to tell me how to raise my child.
(2008/08/09) Q: My husband read our 7-year-old daughter’s composition book that she had been using as a diary and became upset at some of the things she had written: loving a boy, wishing her sister had died (she was a very ill preemie), hating life without her cousin around, and several curse words written in isolation. My response was that her private thoughts at this age don’t really mean anything and that she was just exploring her feelings, but he thinks I should confront her and talk about these issues. What is the right thing to do here?
(2008/08/09) Sunday, Aug. 3 Creation Station, 1 to 3 p.m., all ages, Children’s Museum, 207 Fifth Ave. S., free with museum admission.
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