Category Archive:
Great parenting tips

Put First Things First

put first things first

In his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey tells us that time management is a misnomer. Our challenge is not to manage time but to manage ourselves. Our focus should be on enhancing relationships and accomplishing results instead of focusing on things and time. Covey says that our activities can be […]


Engaging Cooperation

Engaging Cooperation

When we get into a hurry to have something done, we often offer a reward to the person who gets the job done first. Years ago, I read about a sales organization that had restructured its reward system. In the past the company had always given a trip to their top three salespeople. Historically there […]


Teaching Children to Love

teaching children to love

The purpose of the adult of the species, any species, is to ensure the success of the next generation. From bees to bears, from hyenas to humans, every adult’s job is to provide for the young. Someone did it for us. Now it is our turn to give back, ideally giving more than we were […]


Remember Happy Times with Family Pictures

remember happy times with family pictures

Max was hosting a Christmas party in his new home. Recently married, this was Max’s first gathering of friends since both of his parents had died. Max’s mother and father had always hosted an open house, and Max wanted to continue the tradition. Upon our arrival, Max gave us a tour of his new home. […]


Be Proactive and Choose How You’ll Parent

Be Proactive and Choose How you'll Parent

“If I have to go to another staff meeting and hear about being proactive, I might react negatively,” Ann said as she took off her coat at the coffee shop. “Enough about me. Tell me what you’ve been writing.” I laughed. Ann probably didn’t want to hear about this column, but her comments strengthened my […]


Teaching Children to Be Polite

Teaching Children To Be Polite

“True politeness is the spontaneous movement of a good heart and an observing mind. Benevolence will teach us tenderness towards the feelings of others, and habits of observation will enable us to judge promptly and easily what those feelings are.” Lydia Marie Child, The Mother’s Book, published 1831 Until the age of six, we are […]