Family by God&#039;s Design

Parents, Don’t Give In to These Self-Defeating Thoughts

How a parent thinks will influence how they parent. Here are six statements I hear from parents that interfere with effective parenting. “I know my kids better than they know themselves.” Good parents do know their children well. They learn when their children need to rest. They can tell when their children are hungry or...

boundaries discipline family intimacy parent child relationship parenting parenting myths permissive

December 3, 2017

Denzel Washington’s Wisdom on Fatherhood

Denzel Washington’s most recent movie is Roman J. Israel, Esq, a film about a lawyer, the law and America’s justice system. I haven’t seen the movie yet, but I –have enjoyed hearing Denzel Washington’s quotes about fatherhood during interviews about the movie. Here is the quote getting a lot of notice. “It starts in the...

father involvement parent child relationship

November 28, 2017

A Mother-Daughter Relationship Boost

Watching my daughters grow up I noticed times when their relationship with their mother needed a boost. You know the times—stressful times, times when everyone seems to be on edge. It happens to everyone. Unfortunately, I didn’t know how to give them that boost. Now, thanks to research completed at the University of Illinois, we...

Celebration Family Shepherds

daughter emotional health intimacy mother parent child relationship

October 30, 2017

Raising Respectful Children (A Self-Examination)

Raising respectful children is a goal for every parent. We begin to teach them to respect by demanding they respect us or forcing them to show respect to others. But, I have to wonder. Is that really the best way to start teaching respect? Do children learn to respect when we demand they respect us?...

competence healthy development moral development parent child relationship respect

October 7, 2017

Mundane Opportunities for Quality Time

Every parent knows the need to spend quality time with their children. It seems almost trite to even say it. But, in this fast paced age, how can we spend quality time with our children? In the midst of school, work, sports, dance, music lessons, and the myriad other activities of life, how do we...

chores family intimacy parent child relationship time

October 2, 2017

Defeat the One-Word Answer

Have you noticed your children’s superpower? It’s the superpower of giving one-word answers. How was your day? “Alright.” What did you do today? “Nothing.” Where you been? “Nowhere.” Where you going? “I don’t know.” (I know, this one is actually three words but is still fits into his superpower of giving an answer with no...

connection family intimacy listen parent child relationship

September 11, 2017

An Environmental Concern Hits Close to Home

We hear a lot about the environment these days. Just do a google search on “environmental concerns” and around 12,900,000 links come up in a mere .87 seconds. We worry about the polar bears’ habitat, the impact of wasting water and not recycling, and the consequences of global climate change on nature’s backdrop. These are...

challenge emotional health family intimacy healthy development parent child relationship parenting safety security

July 1, 2017

4 Tips for Raising a Violent Narcissist…OR NOT!!

Have you ever wondered how to create a self-absorbed, entitled, child who becomes violent when they don’t get their way? Probably not. I mean, who wants their child to become a violent narcissist. But, you might raise an entitled violent child unintentionally, by accident, if you don’t watch out. Dr. Calvete and her team of...

communication family intimacy healthy development intimacy limits parent child relationship parenting

June 19, 2017

Are You a Hardy Parent?

“What’s it like to be a parent: It’s one of the hardest things you’ll ever do but in exchange it teaches you the meaning of unconditional love”-Nicholas Sparks. I like that quote. It’s very true. Parenting is hard work and it does teach you unconditional love. Although parenting is “one of the hardest things you’ll...