What
Should I Eat, Coach?
One
year ago, the Wellborn family from Plano needed help. Eleven-year-old
Brecken was growing broader faster than he was growing taller and
some of the kids at school were beginning to tease. Additionally,
the Wellborns suspected that 13-year-old Makenna, a competitive
gymnast, needed more protein in her diet to get her through her
intense schedule of practices. “We were going through a period
of poor eating habits,” recalls mom Pam Wellborn, “and
we wanted to nip it in the bud.”
Using
Guided Imagery With Your Child
Guided
imagery is a dynamic way to increase a child’s chances for
successful development of inner talents and personal resources.
Parents, teachers and other service providers can use imagery with
confidence to increase a child’s mental focus, help clarify
values, increase study efficiency or instill other successful traits.
5
Ways to Connect With Your Teenager
When my children were in their mid- to late teens, I looked at
them, listened to them and sometimes reacted to them as if they
were some type of illegal alien dropped into my life from some
other planet, whose primary purpose was to eternally harass my
existence and deplete my pocketbook. Sometimes I was frightened
by what they seemed to be turning into. Sometimes I was proud
of those sudden flashes of maturity, appreciativeness and good
judgment they displayed. Most of the time, I was aware that I
was on the adult side of that generation gap that existed some
25 short years earlier.
Yikes!
My Kid is Stealing!
One of the more common problems that we as parents
encounter (but that nobody likes to talk about) is what to do
when your child steals. There are a number of different reasons
children steal and a number of different ways to handle the problem.
Whatever the reason a child is stealing, parents need to approach
the problem with wisdom. If parents just react according to their
natural inclination, their response will almost certainly be wrong
and destructive.
Meditating
Mamas
If
we want to enjoy our daily lives, it is exceptionally helpful
to slow down for part of the day and focus on your breath. Research
has shown that periods of meditation — of focusing on your
breath — helps us transcend worries, lowers our anxiety,
diminishes depression and increases clarity. Meditation balances
our moods and enhances our ability to connect fully with who we
are.
Frugal
Family Fun
Here
are some frugal entertainment ideas for the whole family. This
is just the tip of the iceberg. Keep your eyes and ears open and
you will find many more opportunities to have fun with your family
without spending a lot of money.
Fresh
Ways to Have Fun Outside
Are you looking for fresh ways to spend time with your friends
and family? Outdoor activities getting a little boring, are they?
With your fast-paced life gaining speed all the time, it’s
easy to stick to what’s familiar — but is that any
way to live? Let’s take a few minutes and look at how easy
it is to break out of the same-ole-routine and into the new with
wholesome activities near home and out of doors. Read on to see
why it’s tough to beat having fun with friends and family
outdoors in the fresh air.
Top
10 Ways to Be a Better Father
The
expectations for fathers are increasing both at work and at home.
Here are 10 ways for fathers to be more effective in the most
important job they'll ever have. See your kids as capable. The
Achilles’ heel of many fathers is to see their kids as "not
good enough." Your kids will feel this, and they'll live
up to these expectations. The more you approve of them, the greater
they'll be!
Look
At It From A Kid’s-Eye View
It's
quite easy for most fathers to look at their kids with a critical
eye. And why not? There's a lot riding on the outcome of your
kids' development. There's the nagging worry that you're not doing
your job well enough and that your child will develop "problems."
There's also the fear of being judged as an incompetent or uninvolved
father by others. And there's the relentless presence of your
children, making mistakes by the truckload while you watch.
Communicate
With Your Teen
There are many reasons parents and teens argue,
but consider this: sometimes it’s because adolescents don’t
“read” facial cues correctly. Often teens translate
a parent’s worried or panic expression as anger. Then they
respond to what they perceive as anger. In her landmark study
the volunteers were asked to discern an emotion based on the facial
expression in a series of faces. All adult volunteers correctly
identified the emotions. However, many of the teenagers misunderstood
the emotions. When Dr. Todd examined the brain scans, she found
her teen volunteers utilized a different part of their brain when
looking at the facial expressions.
A
Closer Look At Your Child's School Lunch
Starting
in October 2002, irradiated meats became featured in many U.S.
school lunch programs. Food manufacturers in the United States
are currently allowed to irradiate raw meat and poultry to control
microbial pathogens and began marketing irradiated beef products
in mid 2000. However, according to Samuel Epstein, M.D., professor
emeritus of environmental and occupational m medicine at the University
of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, consumers are
wary of irradiated food — and with good reason.
When
Your Teen Goes Vegetarian
With vegetarianism
on the rise, many parents are hearing their teenagers claim they
are going to become vegetarians. The parents’ first reaction
may be to panic and insist that they continue to eat meat. Most
parents are filled with questions about the safety of such a diet,
what their teens will eat and how it will affect the family. Gaining
an understanding of vegetarian nutrition will help to ease many
of these concerns.
You
CAN Influence Your Teens Attitudes About Sex
Most parents
would agree that they don’t want their middle- or high-schoolers
to become sexually active. Teen sex can pose irreversible consequences
including significant health risks, social and emotional effects
and pregnancy. Sexually active girls are predisposed to genital
tract infections, cervical cancer and pre-cancerous lesions. For
boys, unprotected intercourse increases the chances of prostate
and urethral infections.
The
Family That Eats Together Stays Together
You often hear that families
should eat together. What evidence is there that this is a good
thing? A recent study suggests that family meals might increase
adolescents’ well-being. Middle school (n=1608) and high
school (n=3074) students, ages 11 to 18, completed surveys. The
frequency of family meals, level of family connectedness, academic
performance, substance use, self-esteem, depressions, suicidal
thoughts and suicidal attempts were assessed.
Are
violent movies, video games, and television programs harmful to
my child’s education?
The answer is “yes”
— experts agree that violent media is harmful to children
and their education. Education is the act of acquiring knowledge;
therefore, any activity that impedes this knowledge acquisition
is undesirable and problematic. There are many factors that contribute
to a child’s education, but popular media such as movies,
video games and television are profoundly influential because
statistics show that the average child spends more time in these
activities above all other activities except for sleep.
Redefining
"Grounding" for Your Teens
I invite you to ground yourself
in love and compassion. For thousands of years, great, grounded
teachers have exemplified the power of love and compassion to
generate happiness and to feel the joy of being alive. Ground
yourself in love and compassion, and you will feel that same joy.
Getting Kids to Organize Themselves
The school
year is in full swing again in many places -- and with it, another
opportunity to make the days run a bit smoother than they did
before. Like most parents, I've discovered there are a handful
of challenges each year that need to be addressed to make for
a productive, successful school year.
Parenting
Teens - Connect With Your Teen
Check out 100 ways to connect with your teen at
home.
10
Ways to Get Your Kids to Talk to You
Parents
can often be frustrated by their kids' unwillingness to
share their lives with them. Whether your kids are toddlers
or teens, there will be times when it's difficult to break
through and find out what's really going on.
Teen
Education & Careers
Summer
Jobs: Your Teen’s Ticket to Success
Looking
for something productive for your teens to do this
summer? Consider the following ideas.
Start
a Teen Reading Group
If
you're looking for a way to connect with your teenage
daughter this summer, consider starting a girl's book
study group with your daughter and her friends. You may
think that teens would not respond well to this idea,
but think again -- you just might be surprised.
Job
Shadowing:Valuable Job Experience for Teens
Teens
today gain their awareness of various professions from
the glorified images on television and movies. At the
moment, there is a rise in interest in forensics due
to the popularity of several shows depicting that career.
Teens have little sense about the true reality of job
choices. Do you like computers? Great! You'll be the
next Bill Gates.
The Easy
Way to Start a School Drama Club
You
don't need to have an extensive theatre background to create
a theatre group at your child’s school. All you need
to get started is enthusiasm, a few good books or websites
and, of course, this guideline.
Teen
Health & Wellness
Sleep
Tips for Teensl
