Here’s the situation: You need your child to do something important -- finish her homework, clean his room, get dressed, mow the lawn, write thank-you notes, lie down for bed, whatever. You kindly ask your child to help out, and you get a strong “No” or “Not right now.” You … [Read more...] about How To Win Any Negotiation With Your Child
Family
Love You, Support You, Teach You
In our house, we teach three basic responsibilities that we, as parents, have to our kids: Love you Support you Teach you Ultimately, parenting really boils down to these three simple roles. First, we must Love our children with all of our hearts. No matter who … [Read more...] about Love You, Support You, Teach You
Missing the Kids’ Concert
Here I am, sitting in the DC airport, just 5 minutes from when the kids' winter piano recital is supposed to begin. I've been traveling Monday to Thursday this week, and haven't seen them except for 5 minutes of FaceTime last night. Feeling like a pretty crappy dad right … [Read more...] about Missing the Kids’ Concert
Lost in the Moment
I had a moment last weekend where time faded away, where I was completely lost in the moment. My son and I were running together through the woods, autumn New England leaves under our feet, dancing across the rough wooded terrain, talking and laughing and smiling the whole … [Read more...] about Lost in the Moment
“I Don’t Want To Die”
I had a troubling night last night, talking with my 7-year-old son about death. He couldn't fall asleep and couldn't get dying out of his head. Here were some of his comments (with full-on tears, of course): "I'm scared of dying" "I can't fall asleep because I'm scared … [Read more...] about “I Don’t Want To Die”