Have you laughed with your children lately?

Don’t you just love to hear a baby laugh?  When Alex was young, I called his giggling, chuckling and laughing, “Music to my ears.”  I decided that I didn’t want a day to go by without my hearing him laugh.  So, in a rare day when I couldn’t recall the laughter, I would tickle him at bedtime.  Just so that I could again hear that…Music to my ears. What about... 

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Parenting is more effective when you don’t laugh at your child’s behavior

  We can all appreciate how cute and funny it is to hear this little girl say she’s “going to kick his (monster’s) ass.”  What is not so funny is that she is being given a double message by her mother.  Her mother is laughing while telling her, “That’s not nice.”  Which do you think will have more impact…words or laughter?  I know kids say lots of... 

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Addiction to Video Games is Hazardous to Your Children’s Health!

Addiction to video games and the excessive use of video games was posted on CNN Health Chat today: Here’s what the article had to say about “addiction to video games”: When it comes to playing video games, it seems moderation is important to a child’s mental health. A new study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics finds excessive gaming may lead to depression, anxiety,... 

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Is Shaming Children ‘Superior’ Parenting?

                                                        The Wall Street Journal printed a book excerpt from the Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother this weekend, suggesting that Chinese mothers are “superior” to Western mothers because Chinese mothers’ solution to “substandard performance” is “always to excoriate,... 

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Parents Want to be Better Parents in 2011

Parenting Resolutions for the New Year Kids are From Krypton, Parents are from Pluto:  Radio Series Update:  January 6, 2011 With the start of the New Year, I have had many parents voice a desire to be a better parent in this New Year of 2011.  What do I say?  I tell them that they are already good parents!  If they weren’t, they wouldn’t care about doing it better! So, to help... 

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Family Bed Hurts Child Development

More than two is a crowd! Dear Dr. Vicki: We share a bed with our kids. We have a 7 yrs. old girl, a 3 yrs. old boy and a 1 yr. old boy. What bothers me is that our 3 yrs. old boy exhibits some sexual acts. Is it alright? We make love as discrete as possible but we are not sure if they had seen what we’ve done. Are the scenes such as love making seen by babies will register to their mind unconsciously?... 

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Ways to Change Your Children’s Behavior

This YouTube video has some great points, and I am frustrated that they call these suggestions “sneaky strategies.”  I don’t think they are sneaky at all…but rather good, effective ways of interacting and parenting your children!  However, as a child psychologist, I am totally opposed to one of their suggestions: the use of ‘reverse psychology.’ Basically, when... 

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Fill Your Time with Kids and Family

KIDS ARE FROM KRYPTON, PARENTS ARE FROM PLUTO:  Radio update Dec. 30, 2010:   A new year means a blank calendar.  WOW!  Just think of all the possibilities.  Look at all the blank days! You have the power, at this very moment, to determine what your new year will look like! As you think about filling in your calendar, do you have a feeling of enthusiasm and excitement?  Or of dread and resignation? ... 

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Happy New Year to You and Your Family

Welcome 2011 HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY!  Good-bye 20010—Hello 2011 Now is the time to reflect on the lessons of the past year, and yet put the past in the past.  The past is over.  There is nothing you can do about it.  But today, and every day, is a chance to write in your book called Opportunity, and fill in the blank pages with your own words—of ideas, dreams, goals and emotions. ... 

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HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL…

‘TWAS THE NIGHT OF THANKSGIVING ‘Twas the night of Thanksgiving, but I just couldn’t sleep. I tried counting backwards, I tried counting sheep. The leftovers beckoned–the dark meat and white, but I fought the temptation with all of my might. Tossing and turning with anticipation, the thought of a snack became infatuation. So, I raced to the kitchen, flung open the door and gazed... 

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