5 Surprising Ways to Get Your Kids Up and Moving

Is it potato chips and soda making kids obese? Maybe not! While a healthy diet is important, of course, new research by Dr. Asheley Cockerel Skinner of the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill) finds that “it is becoming increasingly obvious that the lack of physical exercise in children is the main culprit in the startling rise of childhood obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and all other types of preventable medical conditions.”

If you are sick of nagging and arguing about it, here are some sneaky ways to assure your kids move their bodies without focusing on it being “exercise.”

Build Connections, Community, Independence, ParentingElisabeth StittFebruary 7, 2018exercise, chores, connection, charityComment

Squeezing Both Quality Parenting Time and Quantity Parenting Time Out of Your Week

At the end of the day, family is about being together and feeling like a connected unit. With very little time in the week left over for parenting and family time, it is essential to be deliberate about the choices you make for your family--both by protecting the time you do have together and by making sure that time is quality time. Here are some tips on how to do that.

Build Connections, Community, Independence, Parenting, parenting, TrustElisabeth StittJanuary 23, 2018connection, community, bonding, family unity, family timeComment

Don't take your teen so personally!

Have you heard the cry of,
OMG, YOU ARE SO EMBARRASSING!

Has your young teen shifted from skipping down the street holding your hand to acting as if you have the plague? Such behavior is so teen-movie, situational-sitcom cliché we almost don't fully expect it to happen to us. But if your child is developing normally and as he needs to do, he will have that moment when he acts as if you are an alien creature he has never seen before.

Your frontal cortex is fully formed: You have the big picture and long-term perspective. That makes it your job to keep calm and parent on. Repeating the mantra, This is a stage, it will pass, and it has nothing to do with me personally, it will help.

The Thin Line I Found Between Being A Parent And Smothering The Kids

Tyler Jacobson, today's guest blogger who writes about the struggle to find the balance between protecting our kids without falling into helicopter parenting, is a proud father, husband, writer and outreach specialist with experience helping parents and organizations that help troubled teen boys. Tyler has focused on helping through honest advice and humor on modern day parenting, struggles in school, the impact of social media, addiction, mental disorders, and issues facing teenagers now. Follow Tyler on Twitter | Linkedin

11 teen suicides in 9 years. In one community. In my community.

11 teen suicides in 9 years. In one community. In my community.
How does that happen? Your first answer might be to blame the parents. Where were they? Didn't they know they were putting too much pressure on their son? Why didn't they do something?

But it's not that simple.

Are You Being Too Over Protective?

Sure, it is your job to protect your children? But are you being too over protective? And if you are, what is the cost of that to both your younger kids and to teens? And what can you do about being overprotective?

Say Yes When You Can, But Don't Be Afraid of Saying No

Most parents understand and are comfortable with this when it comes to safety. Your two year old may want to climb the wobbly ladder by himself but you know that the risk is too great, so you offer a compromise--she may climb it with you hanging on to him tightly or she may climb her toy slide by herself. He may not use the big knife to cut onions but he may use the plastic knife to cut bananas or to spread butter.

Chores for All Ages

There are many reasons to give kids chores (To see a comprehensive list, go HERE. Kids like to feel needed and capable. Chores help with both. When parents set up chores as “In our family we help each other,” kids see their work as being an important part of being a member of the family. Plus, kids like knowing they are able to do things on their own. They like being able to know that they were the one who made the living room sparkle or who saw to it that every family member had a sandwich ready to take in his lunch. When all the family members are contributing, it frees up time for family fun, and parents are less stressed. Parents have to get themselves ready for work. If the kids are making lunch for everyone while Mom and Dad are getting breakfast on the table, families end up having a few minutes to sit down and start the day together.

How Can You Keep Your Teen From Rebelling?

The first question to ask yourself, when considering how to keep your teen from rebelling, is what am I doing to help foster my kid’s independence and sense of autonomy?

How Did We Get to Where We Are with Playdates Today and 9 Tips for Structuring Them.

How did we get to where we are today?

The trend for highly supervised playdates grew over a lot of years, and there are some reasons that even if they change back, they won’t ever be quite the same.

What’s Wrong with the Modern Day Play Date?

Perhaps you grew up in the days before the playdate. As you went out the back door, letting it slam behind you, you shouted over your shoulder, “Mom, I’m going out.” Her “Be back by dinner time” drifted after you. You then found someone on the streets to play with. Or perhaps you went to a neighbor’s house and called in the door to a friend. Then the negotiations began. Did you want to climb trees? Shoot hoops? Create fairy villages in the shade of the bushes? (I seem to remember that my best friend and cross-the-street neighbor and I liked to do the same things but never seemed to want to do the same thing at the same time.)

Community, Independence, Letting go, ParentingElisabeth StittApril 24, 2017play, playdate, autonomy, independence, intrapersonal skillsComment

Separation Anxiety in Older Kids

Both as a teacher and as a camp counselor, I have dealt with plenty of separation anxiety in older kids.

In early elementary kids, it is still common to have a transition period as a child enters a new classroom. Even if the child was perfectly happy in the classroom next door the year before, he may spend the first couple of weeks crying in his new classroom. Intellectually, he knows he was happy the year before and will probably be happy again, but in between then and now, he has spent a lovely, long summer in the bosom of his family. For him separation anxiety is wrapped up in feeling uncomfortable with a new routine. Once he has cycled through the weekly schedule a couple of times and feels he knows his teacher, he is fine.

Shocking Quote from Sex Offender

"Show me a child who

knows nothing about sexuality,

and you've just introduced me

to my next victim."

How Can I Help My Daughter Study for 7th Grade Science?

Build Connections, Communication, Consistency, Independence, ParentingElisabeth StittJanuary 18, 2017studying, reading, homework, tests, parenting, supportComment

WHAT DO I DO WHEN MY CHILD....

Communication, Build Connections, Community, Confidence, Independence, Parenting stylesElisabeth StittDecember 12, 2016discipline, control, Choosing your battles, Middle school, empathy, family unity, family meetingsComment

My #1 Tip for Helping with College Admissions Essays (The younger your child, the more you need this!)

was an English teacher for 25 years and worked as a writing tutor on the side, often helping kids with their college app, including my own three children. That experience has given me my own perspective on the college admissions essay process.