Kiddy Parenting Guides: 10/09/05

Sunday, October 09, 2005

Parenting Strategies That Produce Healthy Children

Parenting strategies can help produce energetic, intelligent, and positive children.

Many parents who research and then apply proven parenting strategies have found that they are quite effective at helping them raise their children.

While I’m not a parent yet myself, I can tell you that by observing my parents, and other successful parents, I can see that there are shared parenting strategies that are being used.

Many of these parenting strategies can be attributed to common sense, or tradition, but I can assure you that they as effective as any parenting strategies produced by thousand dollar an hour experts.

Here are some of the parenting strategies that I have observed successful parents using:

1. Spend time talking to your children. The conversation might seem one sided, but your kids will definitely be listening, and learning.

2. Engage your children in creative activities. When children are engaged in creative activities they will be igniting their desire for learning. This desire can lead your children to a successful life.

3. Let your children build. Games and activities that allow children to build seem to lead to a sense of accomplishment in children. This sense of accomplishment will lead them to want to continue doing productive activities that give them a sense of accomplishment.

4. Avoid negative topics, stories, and events. There is enough time for children to learn the realities of life. As a parent you can help your child develop a positive attitude by only exposing him or her to positive ideas.

Donny Lowy has launched a resource for parenting strategies,

Walk in the Clouds: Baby's Tenth Month Guide

Haven't you been eyeing that handycam in the shop ever-since your bundle of joy came into existence? Well, if you haven't succumbed to that temptation yet, it's perhaps time to do so. Your baby's tenth month is the perfect time to enjoy and treasure his first solo-steps into freedom!

Walking the mile

Your ten month-old baby can crawl fast enough to make you breathless as you follow him. This is the time your sweetie will attempt to stand on his own two little feet! He can cruise along short distances holding to furniture on his way.

Most ten-month old babies can wave a good-bye (sometimes at the most inappropriate occasion!) and say 'mama', 'dada' (now to the right persons!) and a few other words. Many babies may respond to their name and indicate their needs with gestures or words rather than the usual wails.

Bed-time bliss and blues

Your active ten month-old baby may resist bedtime and refuse to go to sleep! Establish a calm, comforting and dependable bedtime routine so that your baby knows and anticipates what will happen every night. It could be a relaxing bath, a story session, or a lullaby. You can give your ten month-old baby a stuffed toy or a soft blanket to make her feel snug and secure. Place her on the bed when he is still sleepy, and let her learn to put herself to sleep.

Diet delight

Familiarize your ten month-old baby to a variety of foods to encourage good eating habits later on in life. Finger foods like toast, bread, raw /steamed vegetables and fruits or cooked chicken pieces will help improve his grip and co-ordination. Introduce fruit juices, cheese and yogurt in small quantities. With enough practice, some babies will be able to drink from a cup too.

It is advisable to continue breastfeeding till your child is about one year old, but you can gradually reduce the number of breastfeeds and introduce baby formula in a bottle. Weaning might be a breeze if your baby loves other foods, but with some babies it can be quite a challenge.

Daddy's girl!

Baby was mama's girl all these months? Well, now you will notice, by baby's tenth month, she pays more attention to daddy. This is the time to develop a relationship and intensify your bonding with her, a bond that will stay for life. Play 'piggy back' with her or bounce her on your knees! She will enjoy it and your home will echo with her innocent laughter!

Mom can let dad give baby a bath, dress her up and entertain her in his own way. Do not burden your spouse with instructions. Remember that you learned while on the job. He will too.

Ignore the twinge of sadness you might feel watching his 'baby-days' rush past and his dependence on you melting away. Instead rejoice the budding independence of your ten month-old baby and cherish it for life!

* About the author *

This article has been provided by ParentingSurvivalGuide.com.

Copyright 2005 ParentingSurvivalGuide.com, all rights reserved.

Parenting Skills - Five Ways To Turbo-Boost Your Confidence

The 'phone conversation had nothing at all to do with parenting - but it made me think . . .

"Hello, Eastbank Football Club. Can I help you?"
"Good morning, may I speak with the Assistant Coach,
please?"
"Oh, I'm sorry. He's still on vacation."
"I see. Is anyone on the coaching staff there?"
"No, they're all away right now. The club's closed for
another week yet. I'm only the Groundsman."
"Well, thanks anyway. And hey, why say you're only
the Groundsman? If it wasn't for you, there wouldn't be a
football club. They'd have nowhere to play!"
(Pause)
"Yeah, I'd never really thought of it like that.
(Laughter)
Thanks a lot, pal, you've made my day!"

So often we do ourselves down, don't we? We devalue our own contribution or service. "I'm only a shop assistant!" "I'm only a . . . " (fill in the blank!) Sometimes we even hear women say: "I'm just a housewife"!

Confidence and self-esteem are often in short supply these days. And nowhere more so than in PARENTING!

Even those who are superbly confident in their work or social situations, often teeter on the edge when it comes to their parenting skills.

Why?

Is it something to do with the breakdown in old-fashioned values and concepts of authority; the widening gulf between kids and their parents; the dangers we as parents are so acutely aware of, but which are casually dismissed by our kids?

Whatever the causes, there's a lot you can do to improve things.

Step 1 Dr Norman Vincent Peale, author of The Power Of Positive Thinking, used to advise people to sit down and write out a list of all their assets and abilities.

But Dr Peale's next suggestion is crucial. Once the list of assets and abilities has been written, he tells us to raise the stakes. Simply BELIEVE that you are at the very least 10% better than you think. It's now widely acknowledged in modern psychology that you'll still be way off the mark! So have faith. You're better than you think.

Step 2 Do some study. You probably weren't taught parenting skills at school or college, yet parenting is the most vital contribution to society. There are lots of books, courses, tapes, CDs and videos on parenting. No excuses! Grab some and get busy. Knowledge and insight bring confidence. Whatever stage you're at, you can improve yourself.

Step 3 Learn to temper your reaction in stressful parenting situations. Easier said than done! But you can make a conscious effort to stay calm and remind yourself of Dr Peale's advice (You're more capable than you think you are!), and you can put into practice what you've been studying about family dynamics.

Step 4 Develop yourself in some way. Yes, remember those piano lessons you once took, or that art class you attended? Interests like these are great stress relievers and they build self-confidence - which is vital for parenting. If you feel you're already confident in other matters, but it's only in parenting you feel a lack, why not take up some activity with your kids? Learning together brings you together, and can be great fun!

Step 5 Finally, resist any temptation to go it alone. Nature intended us to be social creatures. Seek advice from grandparents, relatives, friends. Overcome your pride. Discuss your parenting challenges with others and draw on the communal strength. And d'you know what? You'll find you're not alone. Let's work on parenting together, as a community.

Confident parents raise confident kids.

Take action now. If you do nothing, you can look forward to more of the same: worry, tension, ill-feeling etc etc.

Zap these negative trends once and for all. To give yourself a real boost, check out my website. There you'll find lots more to help you and your kids live life to the full.