Perspectives in Parenting

Teaching children manners, beyond the simple please and thank you, can be challenging. It requires constant reminders, and steady reinforcement on what proper manners look like. Telling them once and expecting it to stick just isn’t enough. It is key to praise them when they use their manners properly. Children are watching and paying attention all the time, so it is crucial to practice the behavior you want them to mimic. You can’t expect your children to have good manners if you aren’t being a good role model for them. Use your manners There are several manners that I view as important for my children to learn, once they master basic etiquette like please, thank you, sir, and ma’am. Telling someone “My...

So, I actually don't think of this as a to-do list. I think of it as a “remember the big picture” list. I have a bad habit of staying in love with my calendar and relishing in checking off tasks. If this sounds familiar, read on. This list helps me remember the big picture of being a mom, a daughter, a friend, and a professional. I encourage you to make something like it of your own! Reach Out to a Prominent Contact A lot of people do this in a very unnatural way. They reach out to someone occasionally so they do not come out of the blue when they need a reference in the future. I only do this...

Some of the best insight comes from asking for input from people in our lives who have been there, done that. Looking to seasoned moms for help can be a real asset to first-time moms. But what happens when the advice is offered by a total stranger? What happens if we set out to complete a simple task, and instead we find ourselves sparring with a self-appointed parental coach on the proper way to discipline our children? Is this really helpful? Regardless of the motive behind it, unsolicited parental advice from total strangers is met more with defense than gratitude. The messenger will often find, whether they had good intentions or not, that this is rarely a welcomed or appreciated gesture in...

I’m dropping time management advice from some of my single mom friends below. Fun fact: I had to remind most of these ladies to text me back two or three times. I guess you can take that as a lesson itself: Prioritize what actually matters ???? Also, something I’ve learned about time management is to acknowledge where you thrive. Don’t get bogged down by not waking up way before your kids, not keeping an Insta-worthy planner, not meditating, or anything else you’ve seen in an infographic online. I tried to keep a perfect planner book and workout before the sun came up all through college. I learned that I strived better with a calendar on my phone that I could change...

Thanks to the time machine that is Facebook Memories, I recently ran across a pointed rant I posted some six years ago. While there are so many posts I see that make me cringe and wonder what I could possibly have been thinking, this one serves as a reminder of my mission as a mother. My oldest daughter was almost eight years old and dabbling in dance classes as most girls her age. It was the most exciting class of the year where the costumes for the upcoming recital were passed out and tried on. That year for their tap number they were performing to a snazzy Taylor Swift song and wearing a “nerd” costume complete with argyle print and...