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How to Let Kids Be Kids
By Judith Newman
... There's a good chance that your child is, right now, making his own Harry Potter broomstick out of a stick he found in the backyard ... and he might prefer it to the pricey vibrating plastic version you were thinking of buying him. Childhood experts and those who have studied the stressed-out are weighing in on the ways we can help our children reclaim simpler pleasures.
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TheOnlineMom.com offers parents and consumers a guide to the top-rated, age-appropriate, kid-tested and parent-approved tech toys and gifts.
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Teach Your Kid Confidence - from Birth
By Cynthia Ramnarace
Even Babies Can Be Confident. What can you do when your child is an infant to help him develop the confidence to "try, try again"?
Create a predictable routine. When your baby knows that after having his bath he'll be fed and then go to bed, he doesn't have to worry about what's going to happen next. Instead, his mind is free to focus on mastering new skills, such as how to get his belly up off the floor so he can crawl.
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Single Mom Dating Tips
Ms. Single Mama advises on How to meet men as a single mom and date them, The good stuff: falling in love as a single mom, The not-so-good stuff: breaking up as a single mom.
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Directory of Financial Aids for Women 2007-2009
It's been more than 30 years since the first edition of the Directory of Financial Aids for women was first published in 1977. In the years since then, the directory has tripled in size, quadrupled in access, increased in detail, and expanded in scope. The 2009-2011 edition identifies billions of dollars in financial aid and funding that has been set aside primarily or exclusively for women. This is more money than has ever been available before!
Cutting Grocery Costs without Cutting Nutrition
Simple, healthy, and affordable ways to weather the rising price of food
Karen Collins, R.D., American Institute of Cancer Research
Grocery prices are projected to increase again in 2008 – that’s following 2007’s highest annual increase in 17 years. But surviving these tough economic times doesn’t have to mean sacrificing good nutrition. Some simple strategies can help you cut food costs and eat more healthfully, too.
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Got a Cute Baby Pic? Free Entry! New $2500 Winner Every Month
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by Laura Fortgang,
author of The Little Book on Meaning
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It's long been assumed that motherhood brings meaning to our lives. We guide, love, nurture and support our offspring and sometimes feel appreciated in return -- all elements that can fuel our connectedness and satisfaction in the world. It's easy to find meaningful moments as a mom, but it's when things are tough that it seems we don't know how to interpret what meaning is. What if the greatest reward and meaning of being a mother is the growth our children force us to do?
Being a parent is a very hard job no matter how you slice it, but to further the true blessing that children are is to work equally hard on being conscious and mindful of the growth our kids call forth in us. Perhaps your patience needs work or your critical side needs to be quieted or you need to learn compassion or you could stand to give up some perfectionism. Parenting in a kind and loving way can only come if we face these issues in ourselves. Maybe this is the true meaning behind being in relationship with these souls.
There is no greater hot button for me than feeling rendered irrelevant or ineffective. Not being able to calm and fussy baby or now, a pre-teen who is convinced they are unpopular and therefore unworthy of living are circumstances that can set me off into an irrational frustration that usually results in an ugly scene. I might yell or let something come out of my mouth that is less than constructive. Shame follows instantly but it has taken years to massage this issue into a submissive state where I can stay reasonably conscious and restrain from acting out of a lower consciousness. (i.e. dysfunctional behavior)
I know better. I teach people how to communicate more effectively, I teach spiritual concepts, I have practiced yoga and meditation. Why is this still hard? Because this is the real work. These children (I have a total of three) make me face my own demons, my own feelings of helplessness or unworthiness. It is only as I work through them that I can really be free and present for them. It is only through their presence refining me, the grain sand in the oyster, that a pearl will emerge. A pearl that brightens things for everyone once the work is done.
Don't get me wrong, it's not about mom being perfect before she can parent. It's about the path that dishes out its bumps and makes us better because of them. Our children are part of those bumps. Their problems are our problems, their personalities hand picked to iron out the wrinkles in our being, their triumphs ours to hope we had something to do with.
Each of my children shines a spotlight on the places where my capacity for love can stand to grow. Of course, they are all talented and beautiful and I love them more than anything, but they also grow me. And growth is often painful or at least uncomfortable. They are here FOR us -- to grow us -- they don't come to us to just be lovely adornments to our life who exist to make us happy.
My fussy baby/pre-teen is very sensitive and TLC from mom is often not effective. I am still working on the patience and bandwidth needed to find an entry to his psyche that allows comfort and connection. It comes often but it's an unpredictable series of attempts through the maze of his wiring to open him back to breathing at ease with the flow of life. It's work and it's a testament to love that we hang in there together to get back to it.
My middle child can be petulant and needs to be right at all costs. ARGH! Despite being beautiful, caring and talented in many creative ways, her resistance is a common stumbling block to discipline, cooperation and negotiation. Our relationship causes me to be confronted with my own need to be right. It took me a couple of years to learn that a power struggle was not going to be the answer.
I had to give up the fight to be right and learn not to be hooked by the pull of that game. I found a way to stay above the fray like a mature adult should (if they didn't have their own wounds) and guide her to her own answers that often show her how very mistaken her logic is! Of course, I don't gloat but I have finally learned to unhook from the drama that she is so good at creating.
My youngest has introduced me to the world of having a child with special needs. He's had a seizure disorder and we've entered the world of special education. After four years, we have suddenly gone into remission and are hoping to be pronounced cured soon. The growth being asked of me through this child has been about trusting my judgment before that of experts and advocating for my child medically and education-wise. He has grown me into a warrior. Not a barbaric warrior, but rather a force to reckoned with who will draw on whatever strength I may not have even known I had to do right by him. Despite doubt, worry and sleepless nights, the challenge has been to remain mentally strong enough to keep looking for solutions and believe in my son's ability to heal. Trying to stay in love instead of in fear. This has been part of my personal journey and what I work with clients on and here, it has been tested more and more.
Meaningful connections as mothers? Certainly! Always a sunny, easy ride? Hardly ever! Our children are in reality ministers to our soul's growth. They have a higher calling then whatever their careers turn out to be. We have to let our little ministers to their very big work. Even if we, their mothers, are the greatest work they came to transform.
©2009 Laura Fortgang, author of The Little Book on Meaning
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About Author:
Laura Fortgang, author of The Little Book on Meaning, is a nationally renowned speaker and life coach, helping individuals, small businesses, and corporations forge new directions and weather change. A contributing editor for Redbook magazine with a regular feature called "Live Your Dreams," Laura recently became ordained as an Interfaith Minister. She lives in Montclair, New Jersey.
Learn more about The Little Book on Meaning
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9 Cash-Saving Tips That Pay Big Bucks
complaintsboard.com
The expression "a penny saved is a penny earned" doesn't cut it these days. But saving a few dollars here and there can add up...
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more...
Try out these Thanksgiving recipes from tasteofhome
You May Have Too Much Debt But You Also Have Options
How Life Works
If you feel like you're in over your head with personal debt, you're not alone. Millions of Americans have become overextended, many as a result of easy credit and the recessions. Credit cards, medical bills, personal loans and raising interest rates do not make a good financial mix.
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Suze Orman's Recession Rescue Plan - helps you survive in times of financial crisis
OPRAH.com
Do you know what your family would do if you lost your job - or worse, your home? Financial expert Suze Orman is ready to help you
devise a recession rescue plan to survive - and possibly thrive - during this deepening financial crisis...
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Could fat babies mean fat toddlers?
A new study from Harvard Medical School found that babies who gained weight quickly had a sharply higher risk of obesity. The study
followed close to 600 babies and found those in the top quarter of weight for their length at 6 months had a 40 percent higher risk of
obesity by age 3 than smaller babies.
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more...
The 10-Ingredient Shopping Trip
By Tara Parker-Pope and Mark Bittman
... In his latest “How to Cook Everything” segment on the Today Show, New York Times food writer Mark Bittman makes it
surprisingly easy to cook a week’s worth of dinners with just a 10-ingredient shopping trip.
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more...
Finding last-minute tuition money
There's still time to find funds for this semester's college tuition. But you'll have to move quickly.
By Gerri Willis
It's only a couple of weeks or even days until school begins. And if you don't think you'll be able to get a handle on your college
tuition bill, here with your guide to last minute money.
read more...
Short-term Payday Loans
econ4u.org
...Which are more expensive, late fees or short-term loans?...
A short-term payday loan can be a better option than overdraft fees, reconnect fees, late payment fees or a damaged credit rating when
the loan is repaid promptly. However, these loans are not suited for longer repayment periods...
Being realistic about budgeting can help avoid the need for short-term borrowing.
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Your Just-in-Case Emergency Plan
by RealSimple
Who do you call if you can't make it home in time to meet the kids' bus? Who do
you trust to take in your mail when you're on vacation? Who do you trust with
the extra set of keys to your house?
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more...
How to save $10,000 in 2009
By Liz Pulliam Weston
If you were hoping for a list of small tweaks you could make in your spending to save $10,000 a year, sorry. The reality is that
$10,000 is a lot of money. And saving big money usually means making big changes in the areas where we spend the most, such as:
Housing, Transportation, Food.
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more...
The Super, Sexy, Single Mom on a Budget
by Renee Rayles
A quick reference guide designed for the busy, single mom who has
little time to read while running the mom taxi, cooking dinner, helping with homework, and trying to fit in a date night every now and
then.
32 and Counting? Finding Your Happily Ever After Today
by Gi Gi
The author talks about the struggles a single mom goes through and the discovery that you can have HEAT (Happily Ever After Today) just
as you are, being single, taking care of your kids...
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Single Mothers &
Male Role-Models / Mentors
Single mothers carry an enormous load of responsibility, especially those having sole and/or primary custody of minor children. They
nourish, they nurture, they teach, they discipline, they shelter, they protect, and they provide… all without the assistance of another
equally-invested adult.
read more...
Your 5-minute guide to protecting your identity
20 steps to protect yourself from identity theft, and seven ways to clean up things if you become a victim.
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TheOnlineMom.com offers parents and consumers a guide to the top-rated, age-appropriate, kid-tested and parent-approved tech toys and gifts.
read more...
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw
by Jeff Kinney
For those wondering why tween boys don’t read very much, the answer is that more books aren’t like this...
read more...
The best financial advice ever
Prince Charming isn't coming. Live like a college student...
By Liz Pulliam Weston
If you're doing well financially, chances are you had help.
... If you're not doing well financially, maybe you're finally ready to hear some advice that could make all the difference.
read more...
Find 7 More Hours in a Day
From O, The Oprah Magazine
• Handle things once
• Don't listen to the news first thing in the morning
• Make good use of waiting time
• Think "half-time"
• Be decisive and move on
• Lighten up on your cleaning standards
• Write it down
• Turn off technology during your high-energy time
• Monitor time-sapping addictions
read more...
The Single Moms Little Book of Wisdom: 42 Tidbits of Wisdom To Help You Survive, Succeed and Stay Strong
by Cassandra Mack
Provides insight and encouragement for women who are parenting without a partner or who feel like they are.
This concise yet comprehensive book will motivate you to pursue your goals and
fulfill your dreams. It will provide you with reassurance as you walk the path
of single motherhood and offer survival tips and success principles that are
necessary to succeed, survive and stay strong.
read more...
Tips on How to Take Care of Yourself During a Global Crisis
by complaintsboard.com
During these last few months, the stress levels have been on the rise, from people struggling with finances, to the banking stresses, to the swine flu projected pandemic. There is a lot of uncertainty, a lot of unnecessary panic, and a lot of overall fear...
For one thing, with the information overload that is being thrown in every which direction except straight leaves you wondering what is the truth, and what is not? ...
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Miss Manners
Minimalism is the cutting edge now. My decorator calls it Dorm Chic. Wait, you'll see, everyone will have this look in a year or two. And then maybe I'll go out and get myself some overstuffed chairs." ...
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10 Bad Habits That Lead to Debt Disaster
Little things add up fast. Learn from these mistakes and try these tips to start paying off your debt.
Sometimes the only way to stop a snowballing problem is to go back to the top of the hill and find out what started it. If you're up to your eyeballs in credit card debt, take a step back and recount your money missteps.
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7 Secrets to Raising a Happy Child
What Makes a Child Happy?
We all want the same things for our kids. We want them to grow up to love and be
loved, to follow their dreams, to find success. Mostly, though, we want them to
be happy. But just how much control do we have over our children's happiness?
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Do You Want To Know How Your Nanny Is Doing Her Job?
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We want to introduce to HowsMyNanny.com, a web service started in the Fall of 2006 by Jill Starishevsk, a nine-year veteran of a District Attorney’s Office in New York City who works in the Child Abuse and Sex Crimes Bureau. While on maternity leave of her second child, she developed this website.
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read more...
Alcohol Prevention Web Site for Middle School Students
The Cool Spot Helps Young Teens Resist Peer Pressure and Alcohol
Bethesda, MD – A new version of The Cool Spot, a youth alcohol prevention Web site, launched this week. The site, aimed at 11- to 13-year-olds, was created by The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
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American Idol- The Phenomenon Continues
AMERICAN IDOL returns for the much-anticipated eighth season...
Hosted by Ryan Seacrest, the No. 1 hit series empowers contestants and viewers to share their voice in deciding who will be America's next singing superstar. This season promises to be one of the best yet with new talent, a new judge and plenty of surprises along the way.
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