Every year, parents are faced with the task of planning summer activities for their children. Some leave promptly after school ends and spend two to eight weeks at summer camps across the country. Other children balance day camps with mini vacations. For some families, the perfect summer is one of minimal planned activities where children are left to frolic in the backyard, spend days at the museums and movies and reconnect with family and their imaginations. Every family has a unique vision of the ideal summer. Share your thoughts on how you give your children adequate down time without them…
It’s 11p.m. and your three-year old has slipped into your bed for the third night this week. You pull him close and tuck him in enjoying the sound of his light breathing and smell of his freshly shampooed hair. Your spouse scowls and grumbles something about babying the child and having him in bed for the rest of his natural life. We love our children and our partners, but we don’t always see eye to eye on parenting philosophies and styles. How does one manage that conflict in a relationship? What happens when that relationship does not enjoy the security of till death do us part and you’re…
There are lots of "grown up" conversations we as parents have to have with our kids, The birds and bees conversation, the no drugs conversation, the “pet dying” conversation...I could go on. This week, after my husband and I put our 6 year old to bed, we relaxed in front of the television and like many people all over the world were stunned with the breaking news of the death of Osama bin Laden. We sat there and watched the news coverage on multiple stations, while reading our Facebook and Twitter feeds and soaking in the news until 2 a.m. The next morning, we all woke up and went through our…
This week brings us a great opportunity to explore different ways in which parents in interfaith families balance the traditions and lessons of two religions and cultures. Every fall, Thanksgiving and Diwali share the season; the winter months bring the stories of Hanukkah and Christmas and now the spring has offered us Easter and Passover. Many families have figured out how to preserve the religious beliefs and traditions of each parent while others struggle to find ways to share their differences with their children. For many, in addition to the common goal of raising happy, resilient…
Parents line up at local schools to pick up their children because the buses won’t get them home in time to make karate, Mandarin, riding or whatever the activity of the day is. As parents, we want nothing more than to raise happy, healthy, well-adjusted kids. We want to provide our children with opportunities and experiences that perhaps we did not enjoy. However, it is sometimes extremely difficult to draw the line between what's good enough versus too-much-of-a good thing. From the clothes, electronics and material things we purchase for our children to the activities we sign them up…
We all have pretty simple goals as parents. They may differ slightly from family to family, but they usually include our basic desire to love, nourish and protect our children. So when one of our young ones comes home the victim of a bully, the mama bear in us all emerges. From the preschool sandbox to the high school world of cyber play, our children will be exposed to bullies throughout their school-aged lives. They will either be the victim, the bully or the bystander who wonders what to do in the situation. From a very young age, we teach our children to share and play nice, to…
After a great coffee on Monday with a group of local moms, I was all set to discuss homework this week. However, in light of the recent events in Japan, it all seems inconsequential. A couple of weeks ago, we shared our thoughts and insight on grieving and loss - particularly how to help our children through the inevitable finality of death. It was very helpful to hear so many perspectives. This week, many of us are trying to figure out how to interpret the news from Japan to our very young children while parents of older children are faced with a lesson from within a tragedy. We …
During the first-ever Patch "Moms Meetup," held Monday morning at Noka Joe's in Katonah, local moms from Lewisboro to Mt. Kisco shared ideas for future MomsTalk stories—but wanted to include Dads and caregivers or anyone who has a stake in raising children. "Lots of Dads have been checking in and we could all benefit from different perspectives on these topics," said Maria Colaco, Chappaqua-Mt. Kisco Patch moms council member/facilitator. So just like that, we're changing the name from Moms Talk to Parents Talk. In addition to changing the name, moms were interested in having people know …
Just a generation ago, kids came home from school, ate a snack and headed to the neighbor’s or the park for a game of pick-up. There were no parents, coaches or officials keeping score, making rules or organizing playoff brackets. Of course, these kids all knew the score, but they played because it was fun not for a trophy or scholarship. Our kids, on the other hand, start training and lessons in organized sports in preschool. By the time they’re eight, they can find themselves on a “travel” team wearing a personalized jersey and going for the gold. With the prominence of competitive …
The day will come when your child will lose a family member or beloved pet. As parents, we are faced with the difficult task of explaining the finality of death and helping our children understand how to cope with loss in their young lives. Older school-aged children may be better equipped developmentally to understand life and death and the permanence of the latter. Preschool children are often confused by the physical absence of the deceased and often think they might just return one day. We grapple with how much information is enough, how much is too much. We wonder if we should guide …
Last week at a local restaurant, my husband and I watched in amazement as a family of four sat down to dinner. Within five minutes, only two of the four were sitting as the children began to climb over the booth, shout over the table and even get up and walk around the restaurant. I expected the parents to reel the children in when they started to sit and play on the floor, but the parents continued to talk as their children disturbed every neighboring table. I remember when going out to eat was a treat for the children in a family. It now appears to be a norm, and expectations for a …
Today’s teens and tweens prefer Facebook, texting and Skype as their means of communication. Gradeschoolers are joining Club Penguin—"Facebook Jr."I’m sure you’ve witnessed what I have seen all too often: a group of kids walking or sitting together texting friends or updating their Facebook statuses, completely oblivious to the group of friends with whom they’re sitting. What about a 5 p.m. carpool, where the interior of a dark car is full of kids whose faces are lit up by their iTouch's, DS's and other hand-held gaming devices? We all know the role Facebook played in President Obama’s …
We’ve all heard the old adage, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” But Jack’s mommy wants to ensure he knows all his letters and numbers and at least three sight words before Kindergarten. So today is a follow-up on our preschool story posted on Monday. We all want the best for our children, but when it’s time to choose a preschool, it is often unclear just what “best” is. We wonder if we should opt for the play-based nursery which offers a dress-up box, kitchen corner and various other fantasy areas where preschoolers learn through free play in small groups. Others may look …
