Parenting

Like many guys, I spend most of the workweek away from my kids, Samantha, 6, and Mia, 4, and it's hard not to feel like I'm missing out. We see each other in the blur of mornings and the circus of afternoons, so when Saturday comes, I commence my mis...

Like many guys, I spend most of the workweek away ...

When my dad was 5 years old, his father died and his mom was forced to take a job that required her to travel. It was the middle of the Great Depression, and she was lucky to get work at all. As a newly single parent suddenly thrust into the working ...

When my dad was 5 years old, his father died and h...

It's right before bedtime and Sylvia is about to flip out about something - that a page of her picture book is "broken" (read: torn, by her, days before) and that she can't have three more handfuls of popcorn after we said "one more." Before I have a...

It's right before bedtime and Sylvia is about to f...

Every day, attractive women come by my office to chat. Breast health is a common topic. We also look at pictures of naked bottoms and pick the best one. On a really good day, I'll receive a box of yogurt puffs to sample. Based on this description, so...

Every day, attractive women come by my office to c...

The 411: While her most serious transgression has been her involvement in a kidnapping and extortion plot (she also faced a cocaine-possession charge), the drama doesn't end there. She was the catalyst for almost every fight, hair-pull, and table-thr...

The 411: While her most serious transgression has ...

by Ron L. Deal Improving your relationship with stepchildren is one of the greatest challenges of forming a stepfamily. Use the following suggestions to help you to be intentional about slowly building your relationships: 1. Do not expect that you o...

by Ron L. Deal Improving your relationship with st...

by Ron L. Deal Children in blended families often experience multiple losses: from the death of a parent or death of their family through divorce, to the economic changes of living in a single parent home, to the emotional loyalty conflicts they face...

by Ron L. Deal Children in blended families often ...

by Ron L. Deal “How tall is it?” I ignorantly asked a Kenyan missionary. “Mount Kilimanjaro is over 19,000 feet tall,” he smiled. “It’s big!” No kidding, I thought. I could see the outline of the tallest mountain in Africa from my third-floor Nairob...

by Ron L. Deal “How tall is it?” I ignorantly aske...

by Ron L. Deal Emotional attachment, trust, and love are what open the door to influence in parenting. Once that is established, an adult—foster parent, grandparent, adoptive parent, or stepparent—can lead and discipline a child. Said another way, th...

by Ron L. Deal Emotional attachment, trust, and lo...

by Dennis and Barbara Rainey How can you best create a loving relationship between brothers who are three years apart in age? Barbara: We have really worked hard on this with our two boys, who are very different. Their interests are different, their...

by Dennis and Barbara Rainey How can you best crea...

by Randy Stinson Before the industrial revolution, it was common for men to spend much of their day in the company of their sons — either on the family farm or in the family business. In those settings, dads could teach their sons practical lessons a...

by Randy Stinson Before the industrial revolution,...

by Dennis and Barbara Rainey Does my presence as a father really make a difference in my son's life? Dennis: Yes it does. In fact, a father's involvement in the family is a key social issue today. It's a much bigger deal than, for example, the natio...

by Dennis and Barbara Rainey Does my presence as a...

by Kay Wills Wyma Driving down Preston Road, I was dutifully transporting children to school with my then-14-year-old son sitting shotgun, when I learned how this kid defines the American Dream. As is typical of this particular area in Dallas, we we...

by Kay Wills Wyma Driving down Preston Road, I wa...

by Sabrina Beasley My sister-in-law Jerra wanted to teach her daughter, Natalie, to say, “yes, Ma’am” and “no Ma’am” when speaking to adults, but for some reason Jerra couldn't get her to stop saying “yep” and “nope.” When it came down to disciplinar...

by Sabrina Beasley My sister-in-law Jerra wanted t...

by Susan Yates Several years ago, we began construction on a new church building. In the beginning, the workmen dug a big pit in the ground and then they began to pour footings. Footings are cement piers upon which the entire building rests. They are...

by Susan Yates Several years ago, we began constru...

by Dennis and Barbara Rainey We will never forget that incredible moment when our daughter Ashley was born. The doctor cleaned her up and handed her to us. Dennis recalls that he wanted to blurt out, “Thanks for the gift, but where are the instructio...

by Dennis and Barbara Rainey We will never forget ...

by Dennis and Barbara Rainey Do you ever feel like your brain might explode if you have to remember one more thing? It’s no wonder—we’ve got a lot to remember! Passwords to access different websites. A code for voicemail. A PIN for the ATM at your b...

by Dennis and Barbara Rainey Do you ever feel lik...

Our children learn their behavior by watching ours. If we say please and thank you, they learn to do it too (in time). If we treat other people politely, they'll do the same thing. If we smoke crack cocaine before breakfast, they'll think that's norm...

Our children learn their behavior by watching ours...

When you tell a child that they are naughty, selfish, lazy, fat, stupid, rude, pushy, careless or anything else, you label them. And if they believe that label (and why shouldn't they -- they're trained to believe what we tell them), they will start ...

When you tell a child that they are naughty, selfi...

Okay, so you've had a fight with your child. Maybe you handled it well, or maybe not (you're only human). But you're a Rules parent anyhow, so it can't have been that bad. Your child, on the other hand, was well out of order and sent to her room.What...

Okay, so you've had a fight with your child. Maybe...

One of the things that should be coming through by now is that the way we behave is the strongest model our kids have for their own behavior. We've said that if you don't want them to lose their temper, you mustn't lose yours, and if you want them to...

One of the things that should be coming through by...