Healthy Teeth for Life – 7 Tips for Families with Kids

In his famous novel, Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes wrote, “Every tooth in a man’s head is more valuable than a diamond.” And that is so true; good dental health is an invaluable legacy that we can pass onto our children. I see the proof of it every time one of my children flashes a toothy grin or a dazzling smile.

Children brought up without good dental habits are often subject to frequent visits to their dentist later in life, whether it is for extra teeth whitening or other forms of cosmetic dentistry. Some children never visit a dentist until they reach school age, while others spend their entire childhood never stepping foot inside a dentist’s office.

Each of my children had their first visit to the dentist within a few weeks of cutting their …

5 Ways to Nurture Family Relationships Through Your Pets

Having a pet in our home is something that enriches our lives in many different ways. Pets in general provide us with a sense of physical as well as emotional well-being. When a pet joins your family, it is not hard for you to realize that a change occurs in the lives of you and your family members, and in most households, pets are treated as part of the family. At least that’s the case at our house.

The Pleasure of Bonding with Your Pet

It is easy to see that pets encourage love and compassion among human beings. Sometimes we tend to be too mechanical in our relationships with other people, and forget the value of them, but our animals do not. We can spend little or no time with our family and friends when …

The Top 3 Ways to Get Your Kids to Cook

As a parent, at times it can be nice to entertain the idea of the kids doing the cooking. Especially after having come home from a hard day at work it’s never very nice knowing that you have to cook a meal for your kids, especially if there’s a chance that they will be ungrateful for it.

Unfortunately, though, you can’t really leave the entire meal preparation to the children, at least not until they reach a certain age and are able to cook on their own. What you can do, however, is get your children involved in the process of meal preparation and teach them basic cooking skills.

The Benefits

Why do this, and what are the benefits for you? Here are some quick ways in which getting your kids to help cook can help you:

If your …

Eat, Play, Love — The Essentials of Infant Life

Most first-time parents have plenty of concerns to fill up their day (and those sleepless nights.) First, the basics–is my baby eating right? Eating enough? Is this BM the right color? More time is consumed playing detective when baby cries. Is this gas? Hunger? Does this fit the description of colic?

It is common for parents to spend most of the early weeks after birth discussing these issues with each other, with their own parents, with friends, with the friendly grocery store clerk (hey, anybody who will listen, right?), and with the baby’s pediatrician.

Somewhere in the midst of this cycle of worrying, sharing, questioning, and figuring out, parents often forget to set time aside for a very important but less-talked-about aspect of babyhood–play! In later months, babies will force the issue by reaching for, grabbing, and …

Teaching Our Children the Basics of Responsible Dog Ownership

At some point in every child’s life the inevitable question, “Can we get a dog?” will slip through their adorable little mouths. Likely this will come from watching a fun Disney movie with a cute talking dog, or a friend just showed off pictures of their new doggy. Regardless of what brought those words to the forefront of your child’s mind, you, the parent, need to decide if owning a dog is right for your family.

Growing up, I was the child who frequently begged for that doggy in the window, only to have all dreams shot down with one ‘no’ after another. So when my daughter asked for her first puppy, those painful memories came creeping in, likely impacting my reasoning for saying yes! But influenced or not, that yes came with an …

Planning Chores for Kids: When to Start

I grew up on a farm and chores were not something to be assigned, but rather, an every day part of life. Children in a farm family learn very early on, as my mother says, see what needs to be done and do it. The success or failure of the farm, and ultimately, the survival of the family, depends on everyone working together.

As a mom living in suburbia, though, I’m not always sure at what age to assign chores and which assignments to give. However, I’m learning that even very young children can contribute. I’ve noticed that my young kids, more than anything else, just want to be near me. If I’m dusting the furniture, all I have to do is give them a dust cloth and they’ll “help.” I finally bought a small, functional …