The boy was hard at work with his scissors, tape, and glue. He had spent his entire free period in kindergarten working on his creation. When his teachers asked him what he had been working on so hard, he held up his paper whip and paper hat. “I want to be Indiana Jones and we…
“But Dad, I really want it!” whined the little boy. The tears began to well up as the father told his son that he could not have the toy. The little boy responded by yelling, “You never get me anything I want!” As illustrated above, it is natural for young children to get upset when…
The thought of going back to work after having a baby is a very difficult one for working mothers. One of the major concerns for many mothers is finding appropriate daycare for their baby. The challenge of finding daycare does not stop in infancy as mothers of school-age children have a similar challenge. They need…
Ask children what their families do during the holidays and there are a chorus of answers of favorite holiday traditions. One might talk about how Grandma makes her pinwheel cookies that she only bakes during the holidays. Another might talk about the “Elf on a Shelf”, that comes to visit right after Thanksgiving in order…
The hardwood floor echoed with the sound of the five-year-olds’ feet as he scurried to his parents’ bedroom. He opened the door and went to wake up his mother. “The monsters are going to get me,” he said wide-eyed and trembling. His mother responded, “Hop in bed. There are no monsters here.” The boy quickly…
The excitement becomes palatable as the children head up to their bedrooms waiting for Christmas morning to arrive. Presents can already be seen under the Christmas tree with the promise of more arriving with Santa Claus during the night. As the morning breaks, children clamor out of their beds and wake their parents in order…
It is the end of a long day and a father is just tucking in his son for the night when the son decides it is the perfect time to talk about his day. Recognizing this as a stall tactic, the father cuts off his son and says, “I am sure you had an interesting…
A couple of children are playing together in the living room when their mother decides to do a couple of quick chores in the kitchen. A few minutes into doing the dishes, one child is angry and screaming that his brother took his toy. The other child comes into the kitchen shortly afterward crying because…
“You can contact me whenever you need to and I can call if there are any emergencies or if I need a ride home,” rationalized the girl. Seeing that the approach was not gaining any traction with her parents, the girl switched course to pleading. “Please! All of my friends have one and I will…
There is a feeling of pride that wells up in all parents when they see their children giving something of theirs to another person. It is all the more poignant when children are giving something that they greatly value and reflects a significant sacrifice on their part. Young children are often looking for ways to…
“Everything that I do ends up being bad!” choked out the girl in between sobs. “There, there”, said her mother, “not everything was bad today.” “It was too! Bad things always happen to me”, sobbed the girl. Many parents have had a similar exchange with their children. Most of the time, children are resilient and…
The daffodils are starting to peek out of the ground and there is a sense of an end to a long winter. Spring is finally appearing and it is time for spring cleaning in many households. It is also a great time of year to introduce children to the idea of household chores. Household chores…