Category Archives: Parenting

Preventing Sports Concussions Among Children…Some Ways To Help

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I see those positives. Yet if it were my call, those millions would be playing touch football instead. Many would be learning the fundamentals of tackling and other football skills. But they would not be playing tackle football until they turned 14.

via Preventing Sports Concussions Among Children | CSH Greenwich Middle School Parent Blog.

 

This is a statement made by

Robert C. Cantu, a clinical professor in the department of neurosurgery and a co-director of the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy at the Boston University School of Medicine, is a co-author with Mark Hyman of the new book “Concussions and Our Kids.”

After reading this blog post from a parent blog at Greenwhich Middle School, I could not help but agree with Dr. Cantu from a medical point of view.

It seems to me, many parents do not realize, their children are not just small versions of adults. Fact: children are still growing and their bodies are not strong enough for contact sports until around age 14.

So why do I see so many “little” kids playing soccer all over our town…where many of the parents are in fact doctors…shouldn’t they know better??? I would think so!

Why is it that sports play such an important role in our lives even when the statistics show that injuries in childhood can have long lasting effects later on in life?

Shouldn’t parents be advocating for stricter playing rules for contact sports that are played by children younger than fourteen years old?

How do we as parents and grandparents call for rule changes for contact sports,  given all we now know about sports injuries in childhood?

Concussions are serious and traumatic encephalopathy is not something to be taken lightly.

Even broke bones can be much more serious in childhood because the growth plates can be injured causing a much more complicated healing process.

Schools, sports groups and parents should be aware of the seriousness of contact sports injuries.

Maybe when insurance companies and sports groups realize this is as a new area of  culpability, things will change and kids will not be put at risk. Risks that children, themselves are unaware of…after all if kid’s  parents encourage these sports, they should be safe to play…right???

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Dr.

Should your nanny homeschool your kids?

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10 Reasons to Consider Having Your Nanny Homeschool Your Children | Nanny Jobs.

Did you ever consider “homeschooling ” your children?

I never did but my girls are older now and well out of high school and college.

Back in the day…homeschooling in our little town was mostly done by moms that were a little “weird” when it came to their kids. I cannot even explain what a “little weird” means since I admit, I never got to really know any of these moms or their ideas about education.

In hindsight, perhaps I should have…but, I never was that patient to even consider “homeschooling”.

However as a grandmother, I am realizing that there are definitely some reasons and benefits to homeschooling your kids.

Today while reading, I came across this article which touts some reasons to actually consider having your “nanny” homeschool your kids. Now, that is a concept that I could have grasped when my kids were school age, since it would not have been me doing all the work 24/7 with my girls.

What about you?

Would you consider hiring a nanny who could also homeschool your children if you could afford the costs?

There are some good reasons why homeschooling might be appropriate for your child…do you have a child that fits into one of these categories where homeschooling would be beneficial?

  • victim of bullying
  • special needs
  • behavior problems

I would love to hear your opinions even if you don’t have kids…what do you think about this concept?

Teaching Your Kids to Fight …another look!

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I recently wrote a post about teaching kids to fight…I was not referring to “roughhousing”.

But since writing that post…one of my readers sent me a link http://psychcentral.com/lib/2011/6-benefits-of-roughhousing-for-kids/, which is very interesting information about “roughhousing” and its importance in a child’s growth and development.

I do not think that what I witnessed in the park was “roughhousing”, which is why I chose to intervene. I am also not convinced that if it was just “roughhousing” that the park was the proper venue, given all the younger children that were witnessing these two boys “fighting” and kicking each other.

Again….what do you think?

Do you encourage roughhousing?

Whooping Cough…A Tragic Story… Shot by Shot

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NOTEWORTHY WEDNESDAY!

In early January, we noticed Brady was coming down with a cold.  But when his fever spiked to 104, we had to rush to the ER for a whole bunch of tests.  But after a while, they sent us all back home. After a scare like that, I started to send out Facebook posts to keep our friends and family updated on how Brady was doing.

via Brady’s Story | Shot by Shot.

If you have read this blog for awhile you then know that I recommend giving the full complement of vaccines to your children.

This story is something you, as a  parent, should read if you are thinking about not vaccinating your children.

The reason there has been so little incidence of pertussis is that the last generation has been vaccinated against this deadly illness. But currently children who are not vaccinated are at risk of contracting pertussis…”whooping cough”.

“Whooping cough” is a horrible disease and death from pertussis is equally horrible and uncomfortable since it seems that a child dies from suffocation or not being able to breathe and get enough oxygen into their tiny body.

I have witnessed children dying…it is one of the most emotionally painful things that I have done in my career as a nurse. To stand by and know that there is nothing more that medicine can do to prevent a child from dying is excruciatingly frustrating and sad.  To watch a family witness the death of their child is more painful than words can ever describe.

If you are questioning whether or not to vaccinate your children, please read Brady’s story. Do legitimate research and stay away from celebrity opinions because they are just that opinions…find a doctor that you trust and listen to him/her.

Resources:

Infections, Immunization, Vaccines 

Vaccinations for Children, Why and When.

Related Posts:

Vaccine Controversy….History Repeats Itself

Whooping Cough

Toast Tuesday…

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“Fostering Self-Directed Play: ten tips to help pre-schoolers entertain themselves “| Loving Earth, Mama!.

It is Tuesday…and I like to recommend a blog once a week. Today, I found “Loving Earth, Mama”.

Motherhood is a journey, a fun if challenging ride – won’t you join me on mine?

I never considered myself an “earth” mother but as a grandmother I am reading more and more about parenting styles…there are so many styles and the differences are sometimes so slight that at this point they are all melding together in my head. This melding is not a bad thing. In fact, I rather think that it is the way it should be. I find when I get fanatic about any one thing I soon get tired of it and close myself off to so many other good things. For me balance is key. It isn’t easy but I prefer it.

I hope you enjoy “Loving Earth Mama” and don’t let the name push you away…it is like judging a book by its cover but in the age of technology we often do not even see the book cover any more.

Teaching your kid to fight…would you do this?

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Yesterday, I witnessed a very disturbing scene in an urban playground.

It was a beautiful fall afternoon in Chicago, at a playground nestled among the skyscrapers near Millennium park.

Our extended family was there with the youngest among them, a 2 year old little boy and 4 year old little girl. Both, fortunately, remained oblivious to the inappropriate activity encouraged by the parents and nanny of two seemingly unrelated boys.

The young boys seemed to be around 7 or 8 years old…one was several inches shorter than the other but they were evenly built….they were “duking it out” in the middle of the playground.

At first the other “parents” yelled at them to “cut it out” and “stop”, but the boys seemed intent on throwing punches and kicks to the body and groin paying no attention to the bystanders.

I watched somewhat in horror…especially when I noticed one boy’s parents watching and encouraging their son in this activity. They were not phased by any of the other parents’ comments.

I realized the taller boy was there with a nanny and toddler sister when he ran to his sister’s stroller to grab his sword out of its sheath. The nanny quickly took it away but sent him back into the “ring”. This was probably the only appropriate adult behaviour that I witnessed.

Finally…I could not contain myself as I watched this scene unfold and I approached the dad…

“Do you speak English?”…I asked.

He mumbled…that he did. I then told him, that what he was doing was inappropriate and that other children in the playground should not be made to witness this…his response was …”then don”t watch”…I then said that we could not help but witness the fighting, and this was a “playground” where we teach our children not to fight.

At that point, I walked away and approached the nanny, who was also just watching from another vantage point…I essentially told her the same thing and said that it was shameful of her to encourage this activity.

The nanny gathered the boy fighter and little girl and quickly left the playground…then other couple hung around watching their son play nicely with some other kids on the playground equipment .

I am still processing this scene and wondering if what I did really mattered…no other parents stood up to this man…did this mean that they were not appalled or was it urban apathy and “don’t get involved” that was playing in their heads?

I will never know for sure…but what I do know is that I basically stood alone facing this dad…speaking my mind…and I would probably do it over again.

What would you have done if you witnessed an activity like this at a playground?

I felt like I was watching a “dog fight”…and I had a flashback of an episode of “Law and Order SVU” where a child died of a ruptured spleen under suspicious conditions.

It was later found that the young boy was encouraged to fight by his dad and there were other dads, who brought their boys to a group at night in a park and set them free to fight…it was a disgusting show… but now I realize it seems that it is all too real.

 

“Toast Tuesday”

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Parenting

 

I’m not expecting people to never be offended by anything I say. But I am asking people to respect my right to have an opinion on a topic and not equate it to judging people who have different opinions on that topic. I may think they made bad choices, I may think they could have done things differently, I may think I made a better choice. But it doesn’t mean I think they are bad parents or bad human beings.

via “Don’t Judge Me” | PhD in Parenting.

 

PhD in Parenting is by far my favorite blog for so many different reasons and it is not because I agree with everything that Annie posts.

Annie has integrity and intelligence. She writes about many issues some controversial and some not so much. Annie is a journalist who inspires me.

After reading her articles, I always have something to think about as a parent, grandparent and as a fellow human being in this complex universe.

Above is one of my favorite posts from PhD in Parenting. I hope you enjoy it.

 

Locker Room Etiquette…

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This post is from the archives… What do you think?

 

Noteworthy Wednesday!

via: Flickr: Heather Poole

I went swimming at the Y.M.C.A. Later, in the men’s locker room, a father walked in with his daughter. Occasionally, this happens with babies or toddlers, but the girl was 7 or 8. He put her in a shower stall while he showered, and left her there while he shaved and flossed. Then he brought her to the lockers, where they changed. I was appalled. What do you make of this?

via Too Old for the Men’s Locker Room – Social Q’s – NYTimes.com.

This question appeared in the Sunday NYTimes and it truly raised questions for me.

I have often thought about this dilemma especially when I see kids out for the day with their dads.

Interestingly, I don’t always think about this when I see kids with their moms!

But  back to dad and the “Y” locker room. This scene raises concerns for me…granted, I have not visited a men’s locker room but the women’s locker room is certainly an experience. Some women walk around naked, others cover-up as best they can…they usually do not spend any unnecessary time in the locker room…shower, change, pack up and leave. When young children are with their moms, from my observations, they get changed and leave in fairly short order most of the time.

For me, it seems this dad took entirely too much time while his daughter was hanging out in the men’s locker room.

My own “yuk” feeling is coming to the surface here. Exposing children to other naked adults, personally, makes me uncomfortable. I would have to think of another way of doing my toilette if I were in a similar situation.

  • What do you do when your opposite-sex child has to use a public restroom?
  • At what age should children be allowed to use the public restroom by themselves?
  • What public restrooms would make you think twice about letting your child use it without accompaniment?
  • More importantly…what do you teach them ahead of time to “protect” them.?
  • Do you teach your boys the same as you teach your girls?
  • Is this more of a “Dad Dilemma” than a “Mom Moment”?

Like I said, I used the “YUK” feeling factor to help me in these situations.

My feeling is by 7 or 8 years of age many kids have been in some type of locker room situation at school but “Y” locker rooms of the opposite sex seem to be an altogether different story.

It would be interesting to hear other responses to this issue and how parents deal with this common life situation.

What are you doing for Grandparents Day!

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Happy Grandparents Day!

I came across this blog post about grandparent bonding and it reminded me that today is Grandparents Day!

Fortunately for us, everyday is grandparents day in our house!

I really believe that it is the responsibility of the grandparents to remain as close as they can with their grandchildren.

By that, I mean staying in touch, making phone calls and planning visits.

I have witnessed families where grandparents feel they should be “kowtowed” to, in my opinion this does nothing to encourage a loving, supportive relationship between grandparent and grandchild.

So if you are a grandparent ….today is a day to celebrate.

Do this anyway you wish but include your grandchildren in your own special way!

“Week in Review” from ParentingintheLoop

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Tantrum discussions are trending…but then when aren’t they trending online somewhere in the parenting/grandparenting sphere?

Here are my picks this week.

I hope you all have a wonderful Labor Day Weekend…we are trying to capture some last rays of the summer, leaving our footprints in the sand and making memories to last us through the coming Fall and Winter.

The study, led by  Lauren Wakschlag, Ph.D., also debunked the common belief that temper tantrums are rampant among young children. Although temper tantrums among preschoolers are common, they are not particularly frequent, the research shows. Less than 10 percent of young children have a daily tantrum. That pattern is similar for girls and boys, poor and non-poor children, and Hispanic, white, and African-American children.The study found key differences between “typical” tantrums and “atypical” tantrums.

Very interesting information regarding typical and atypical tantrums, if you have a question about your preschooler’s meltdowns you might want to check out this new information from Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

This post from Core Parenting, discusses how to deal with a tantrum with emotional competence. Agree or disagree it just might help get you through the next toddler/preschooler meltdown.

So the next time your child has big emotion, change the way you think and see and respond in the moment. Change your thoughts from “Oh no, not again!” to “Yes! Another opportunity to practice emotional competence!” Take a deep breath and be amazed at the hard work your child is doing. Learning about emotions is difficult, engaging work. Be there, by their side.