I Always Feel Like Somebody’s Watching Me My baby won’t stop staring at me. This isn’t literally true, but it feels like it. You see, Vincent and I (Laura) gifted ourselves a canvas photo of our son Jesse for Christmas. When we decided on size, we went a little...
Family
We discuss all things about raising a family.
Children Need To Learn Respect
In our culture, I (Vincent) am noticing a lack of respect, especially in children. This is alarmingly since disrespectful children will become disrespectful teenagers, and then disrespectful young adults. Our American culture is trending toward de-emphasizing this respect for adults or humans in general. We are abandoning our methods...
Eleven Ways Parents Sabotage Their Kids’ Future & How To Stop
It’s almost a daily occurrence; I hear “My child will not do his homework! I have to sit on him to get it done!” Another variation of this is, “She is great at school, but when she’s home…that’s a different story!” These days, parents are on high...
Five Things Your Kids Need To See You Do
Selfishness and entitlement seem to have become a prominent character trait of many children AND adults today. As a therapist, I believe some of this results from misplaced priorities in parenting, and even in trying to shield our children from perceived harm. Character development starts...
Cutting And Teens: There Is Hope
Tiny beads of blood rose on the inside of Jenna’s forearm as she drew the razor blade up her arm. Her mind was filled with a blank silence, as she savored the numbness. “Everything is quiet now, everything is right” she rationalized. Her mother’s voice calls from downstairs and...
National Stress-Free Family Holidays Month: Lessons Learned From “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation”
Clark W. Griswold “loses it” at the end of the movie, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Weeks of preparing for the perfect Christmas is foiled by a squirrel in the Christmas tree, difficult family members, and the expectation that he would receive a Christmas bonus that would pay...
Runaway Awareness Month
It is one o’clock in the morning and your fifteen year old daughter is nowhere to be found. You are in a helpless panic. You have been fighting for the last few months, come to think of it, maybe it all started when she hit puberty, but lately she...
5 Things Your Child Needs More Than College
As I (Laura) type the title of this article, I can preemptively feel a collective gasp of disbelief from my readers followed by questions such as “What on earth is she thinking?” I feel led to write about this because I see it in my practice. I work with...
A Word About Pregnancy/Infant Loss Awareness Month
Stashed inside my husband’s family bible are three ultrasound pictures. Inside our bathroom cabinet are two positive pregnancy tests. My baby matters. What should have been a happy day when we got to see the baby’s heartbeat was a day when we didn’t. I remember shivering in...
Hold the Phone! Five Alternatives To Smart Phone Use And a More Satisfying Life
Are you finding your life increasingly dissatisfying? If so, how would you compare your satisfaction with life prior to having a smart phone? 1.) Have a meal tech-free. Remember the days when families actually sat together, around a table, dining and talking about their day? There was face-to-face human connection. Having...