In the first two blogs, I talked about some of my childrens' cussing behaviors and some fun ideas we've tried for consequences.

Above all, regardless of the method you use to consequence a child with a colorful vocabulary, remember to have a positive... more

For part one: Ideas for Parenting a Child Who Likes To Swear

Another thing we do with some regularity in consequencing for cuss words is writing. I generally use this, not for the child who swears a LOT, but for one who is perhaps slipping and forgetting that it isn’t an encouraged activity around here. If they use the word, I figured that they like the word. If they like the word, then they probably want to spend time with the... more

On the foster care blog today, Lanette talked about dealing with a child's cussing behavior. As both a foster and an adoptive mom to many older children, all with emotional/behavioral disorders (and/or mental illness), I thought I'd mention a couple of examples from my own parenting and describe a little of how we deal with the problem and still keep some fun in parenting.

About 3yrs ago, we fostered a little 11yr cutie. We refer to her sometimes... more

The fun quote above is from my 13yr old daughter - describing her 14yr old sister to a friend. The rest of this blog is directly from this adorable 14year old...these are her ideas about consequences for poor behavior.

(For background, this cutie was adopted by us almost 1yr ago. She came to our family because of her severe behaviors in her first adoptive family. She has tested. She's not done testing yet. But she sure is doing a lot better than she was!! The girl is no stranger to the "consequence"!)

I could talk about... more

A few weeks ago I caught the tail end of a Today show interview about making spanking illegal for children ages three & under in a certain state ( I think it was Californa). The National Effective parenting initiative along with politicians were pushing to make this a new legislation. When doing some research on this it seems that other countries already have an anti spanking law in place. Boston was trying to pass a bill that would make putting hot sauce or soap in your child’s mouth Illegal as well as... more

John & I were at the mall play area a while back and we noticed a trend with a good number of parents. I don’t know the name for it but I have dubbed it Helicopter parenting. I am noticing it more and more lately. The Parent or Parents in question hovers near that child, over the child ready to swoop and assist when needed. They look like they are always on guard. They would be there to help with something, to encourage and to stop a fall out with another child. This is a very attentive parent offering much assistance & praise, a little... more

We have been home eight months now and until this past month our daughter age two has always slept in her own crib. She naps in her crib and sleeps in her crib through the night. Despite a rocky first few nights home thanks to jet lag she has never had any problems sleeping. She is known to fight her nap on occasion but she sleeps well at night. I remember bringing her into bed with us those first weeks home, willing to try anything to get some sleep. I was all for trying co-sleeping in those weeks home. I assumed I would co-sleep for a little... more

I’m a newbie to the attachment-parenting world. While I don’t do every thing suggested. I don’t wear my child, because she is darn heavy. However the whole wearing her idea really appeals to me. Every time I see a Mom carrying her child in a sling, I yearn to carry my girl like that. She is 29 lbs. I even saw this new toddler hip seat contraption and I was tempted to buy it. I tried to carry her in Russia a traditional baby carrier contraption, she was only 19 lbs then but the straps... more

I’m an older Mom, I’m not one of those women who planned it to be this way, and I did not put off having children for my career. (Not that there is anything wrong with that) I have been trying to become a parent for a very long time. I just so happened that I was meant to be an older mom. The more I surround myself with other stay at home Moms, most who are much younger than me. The more I realize how “ Old school” my parenting style is.

I realize that I have a no-nonsense, perhaps more strict attitude that some ( emphasis on some... more

Many people offer me parenting advice, from the stranger at the library to well meaning family members it seems everyone has thoughts on how to raise my child. It was at our daughters “Welcome Home” party that I was first told that I was over protective and that I needed to relax. My daughter was just home a few months and showing signs of anxiety. I was being responsive and practicing attachment parenting.

It’s hard to explain to people that a child who has lived in an orphanage and a homegrown child need to be parented differently.... more