Strawberry shortcake - one of summer's joys. We made vanilla pound cake, adding just enough lemon to give it some zing, It isn't quite as nice with strawberries as hot milk sponge cake, but it definitely works in a pinch. Even my husband, who grew up with Bisquick biscuits for strawberry shortcake, enjoyed the pound cake.... Continue Reading →
I completely support giving kids reasons for why we believe things and do things. My own children are quite inquisitive and want to understand the reasons for things. However, reasons (noun) are not the same as reasoning (verb). When we reason with someone, it is with the express intent to convince them that our position... Continue Reading →
The concept of compromise sounds great on the surface. No one is getting their way. The word would almost have you believe that since neither party involved is getting exactly what they want, both parties are working together, therefore creating a win/win situation. And, that is the point at which you would be wrong. It's... Continue Reading →
Making our own vanilla extract has been on our to do list for quite a while. Last month I realized that if we were going to make homemade vanilla in time to give some away as gifts, we needed to get started. I ordered our vanilla beans and amber bottles through a Frontier coop. With... Continue Reading →
Focusing on negativity yields more negativity. There is nothing that brings a party down more than a negative person. When we focus on negative aspects of our children's behavior, it keeps the focus on negativity. If we, instead, focus on positive solutions, parents and children can work together to find ways to solve problems.
Discipline is not a technique to be applied to others. Discipline is a life-long journey of self-discipline, discovery, and learning.
This post is part of the Carnival of Authentic Parenting hosted by mamapoekie. July's theme is summer holidays. As a family of introverts, we need home days. We crave home days. When we don't have them, everyone goes berserk. Not quite, but everyone is stressed and irritable and life doesn't move along very smoothly. In June we... Continue Reading →
If we want our children to be disciplined, we must first focus on ourselves. We cannot help our children to learn self-discipline if we, ourselves, do not have it.
Many parents believe that cooperating and problem solving with their children takes more time than more authoritarian parenting methods. However, this is actually the opposite of the truth. Many conflicts only take a few minutes to resolve when working with all parties. Problems which take longer to solve usually stay solved when cooperative solutions are... Continue Reading →
Children, like adults, don't always say what they mean. Parents sometimes have to use investigative techniques in order to decipher the code their child is telling them. Active listening is an excellent way to open a dialogue with one's children in order to understand what their true thoughts and feelings are.
living peacefully with children 