Parenting Reflections

Over-worked and Over-weight?

March 14, 2012 Last week I saw a report from Kaiser Permanente that the number of overweight people in the U.S. is increasing fastest in the 2-5 year-old population. That got me thinking about how often in recent months I’ve heard reasons why children were doing something other than exercising. I must admit, I got rather grouchy when I ran over the list in my mind.

Calming for extroverts? Or introverts?

February 28, 2012 Another aspect of self-calming is whether your child is an extrovert or introvert. The most useful definition here is that extroverts generally restore emotional equilibrium by being with others. Introverts generally do so by being by themselves. Introverts may very much enjoy being around people, but being with people requires more emotional effort for them.

Can young children really learn to calm themselves?

February 27, 2012 Yes. But not “yes” as in you show them today and they do it tomorrow. It is more of a process than a simple lesson. Raveena had two young daughters — Nita, 28 months, who was physically quiet and Ayna, 4½, who enjoyed gymnastics. Mom wanted to teach them to take deep breaths to calm themselves.

Who’s responsible for happiness?

February 5, 2012 I can clearly remember the day I learned who was responsible for children’s happiness. My husband and I got a babysitter for our nine-month-old daughter and took our 6-year-old son Kevin to a special museum display he wanted very much to see. The outing took five hours. And, except for one incident, we all had a grand time. As we drove up to our house, I asked my son how he liked the trip.

What is a parent’s job?

January 4, 2012 To start this blog I reflected on the events of the past year that might be interesting. My mind kept returning to a conversation I had with my six-year-old granddaughter last summer. She and her family were visiting. This particular evening, my husband and I were feeding the kids and putting them to bed, as their parents had a night out.