Are you responsible “for” your children or “to” your children? There is incredible power in these prepositions, and which one is uppermost in our minds as we guide our children makes a world of difference! If we obsess with academics and getting our child into a prestigious school, then when our child informs us the…

“The greatest thing you can do for your kids is learn to focus on yourself.” This quote from Hal Runkel’s ScreamFree Parenting book appears to be counter-intuitive Zen-Speak. What? How can I focus on me when my child demands all my attention? This is a must-read book for all parents. It has the formula for…

For the gazillionth time, my Aunt Betty told me to go get a switch off of a tree so she could spank me (in the country we called it “whipping”). I had learned in the past that if I brought in a wimpy switch she would get mad and go yank a log off. As…

Long before the staple “trust fall” was used in team building exercises (where you fall backwards, blindfolded, into the arms of your teammates), there was the “trust jump”. “Daddy, catch me!” Our children jumping into our arms into the pool, trusting that we will catch them. Our sons never tired of this. Over, and over…

Raising a child to maturity is similar to steel cut oats! I have enjoyed oatmeal since my childhood. My Aunt Betty would make Shawn & I oatmeal, cream of wheat, grits but my favorite was oatmeal. For years I have read about the benefits of steel cut oats for making oatmeal as opposed to using…