f I were to tell you, dear Reader, that this assignment comes from my editor who secretly longs to be best friends with his mother after several years of virulent distancing followed by periods of detente, you would tell me,…
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This is a hard thing for some and an easy thing for others. I have five children, and each one is so different, that each friendship opportunity was vastly different. Four of them are boys – two of those are…
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Most of what I have read about the subject of getting your “grown children” to be your “friends” has been larded with the personal problems of the families of the writers of such articles. If your kids don’t LIKE you…
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For over ten years, studies have consistently shown that student’s grades are better when families have dinner together around the table at home. This is not an easy feat in today’s hectic world. With long work hours, long commutes, after-school…
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I read once “If you want to be a happy mom, then you first need to love yourself. No matter what the day brings, make sure you take at least 15 minutes for yourself somewhere in it.” My immediate thought…
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Each child that comes into the world is unique and has a different way of interacting with his/her world. Just like adults, children have various dispositions and personality traits. Unlike adults, a child is an ongoing “work in progress,” and…
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The solution can be summarized in just a few words, “Be there for your children.” “What does that mean?” you may ask. How can a parent be there for them when the parent is at work and the child is…
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The traditional family structure is ever changing. This change has also brought on more responsibility outside the home and less time spent with your loved ones. Less and less we see the family as individuals and not as one unit,…
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If you are able to take care of a loved one at home, I would highly recommend it. Our parents raised us and at one time or another we will have to take care of them. Our situation reverses when…
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The significance and importance of family bonding is immeasurable. While I can’t spout off statistics comparing the success rates in life of those children who maintain good relationships with their immediate family compared to those who don’t, it isn’t hard…
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After the teen years have ended and childhood seems like all but a fading memory to be cherished for years to come, your children will move forward with their lives into the realm of adulthood. While this is part of…
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Taking care of an elderly parent and caring for your own children is no easy feat. Imagine though, taking care of your elderly grandparent while raising your own teenagers, and your four-year old niece. The lines can become somewhat blurred…
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Being 51 is no joke! It is at this age that you experience menopausal syndromes, migraines and hot flushes! Then added to that another stressful factor coming into your life amidst those “growing old” pains – two dependent aging parents…
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One of the good things about a question like this is that no two people will answer it in the same way. That’s good because so many times, all of us find ourselves in situations that feel somewhat different from…
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Everyone is busy these days. Adults are not the only ones who need daily planners, or their technological equivalent. Kids use them as well, so as to manage their school, sports and church events. With all that is going on,…
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Everyone should strive to establish and maintain healthy family relationships. Most of us have had the feeling that the world is going backwards, that humans as a race are not progressing. Perhaps, if we start improving personal relationships, we can…
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There are myriad problems facing senior citizens. To understand these needs and prioritize them, there are a few basics to cover. What age constitutes a senior citizen? The AARP allows people to join at age 50. Social Security has traditionally…
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“One less Christmas card this year…”. While we are generally living longer (and arguably better), the downside of this is that each person runs the risk of ending up lonely and clinically depressed. Many seniors can be heard saying, “All…
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It just kinda creeps upon you and positions itself as the trunk of your body- in between. There you are- faced with decisions which you wish would never have to exist, but knowing that they have to be made. Your…
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A vivid memory I have as a child was a statement my dad made one evening during an argument with his wife, my mother. He uprooted the coffee table and stormed out of the house. But before he did, he…
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I have become closer with my sister in the last couple of years. We were three sisters. I was closest with my older sister, simply because we were only eighteen months apart in age. I idolized my big sister and…
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How To Reconnect With Someone You Love That Has A Disconnect When someone that you love suffers from an impairment such as Dementia, it unfortunately causes a disconnection in many ways. Our loved one changes in so many ways, causing…
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Just today at lunch one of my co-workers was talking about how much trouble she had with her children while she took them to Wal Mart. She has young children and I never miss the opportunity to tell her to…
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Long-Term Care: Are You Prepared? The need for long-term care could possibly be the biggest threat to most Americans’ wealth, topping inflation, recession, real estate or other investment-related dangers. A middle class American family faced with a long-term care situation…
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If your mum and dad are sweet little old grey-haired folks who are going to have a healthy active old age before slipping away peacefully in their sleep then go-ahead and move them in. If you think reality may be…
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When my mother was in the sandwich; trapped between the needs of her aging parents and her adult children I really didn’t understand her problems. I thought of myself as her child, therefore I should come first. My mother felt…
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Epic Tug o’ War I cherish my used-to-be-blue Brooks Brothers button-down-collar shirt, the one I bought for my first job interview, getting it instead of those wide-oval tires I’d been eying since I left the frat house and went in…
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Abuse of any type at any age is unacceptable and should not be tolerated! As a survivor of physical, emotion and sexual child abuse my personal feeling is that it’s much worse for a child than an adult. But in…
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Peace of mind – Selecting Assisted living facility for your loved one, or yourself. When the daunting task of finding an assisted living facility presents itself, here are a few tips that may save someone a bit of pain and…
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God bless her soul, my mother just made 82 on October 22nd. She was born in 1925. She is still very active but she feels vulnerable. Even though she still drives and we still require that she participate in the…
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