A Father’s Day Tribute to the Fathers I Have Known

Posted on June 19, 2011 by viviankirkfield

To my own father: We both loved Saturday mornings when we watched TV together…Tarzan and Ramar of the Jungle. Walking to the little grocery store on Sunday to buy Thomas’ English muffins to have with breakfast…you always bought me a Charlotte Russe…if I close my eyes now, I can see the mound of whipped cream topped with a cherry. Going to the park across the street with you and my best friend, Jane, and her father…eagerly running ahead to grab swings next to each other so both proud papas could push us so high, we were almost parallel with the top bar. And bowling together as a father/daughter team when I was in college…winning the little trophy that was awarded to the highest scorers…we were both so proud!

To my husband: You were always there for all three of our children, especially when they were troubled…or in trouble. You never scolded at those times…you supported them 100% and let them know that you loved them. You encouraged them to follow their dreams and worked hard to provide for them. When our oldest son was a toddler, you took a second job to supplement your teacher’s income…after working all day; you had a hurried dinner and then worked at a convenience store till midnight. When you had your first heart attack at age 36, our three children were all under 10 years old and I know you thought you would never live to see them grow up. But you persevered and, even though you had your third heart attack a month before our daughter’s wedding, you flew half-way across the country so you could walk her down the aisle and give her away. I know how proud you were then…that was in 2002…and last week you gave her son his first fishing lesson.

To my oldest son: As a SAHD, you constantly impress me with your loving yet firm approach to parenting. Your twins are almost six years old already and you’ve supported them in their varied interests in every stage of their development. They are bright, loving, caring and funny and a joy to be with and I am proud of the father that you are to them.

To my son-in-law: There is a lot of talk about being a “hands-on” parent…we expect it of moms…but often dads are busy with work and they don’t care to spend their spare time with their little ones. You have been there as an equal partner raising your son…what a team you and our daughter make! Jeremy has a wonderful role model in you…you are a wonderful father and the bond you are establishing now will last a life-time!

The past two Saturdays, I’ve met quite a few fathers…last week at the PBS Kids Fun Fest in Acacia Park and yesterday at Monument’s Summer Soul-Stice. I’ve been really impressed with how many dads accompany their families…after all, they could be home watching a ball game or taking a nap. 🙂

Seriously though, to be in your child’s memories tomorrow, you need to be in their lives today. Dads and moms strengthen the parent-child connection when they spend “quality” time with their little ones.

I hope you’ll visit my website and check out Show Me How! It’s really a great book for families who are looking for things to do with their kids.

It’s an activity book…100 simple craft projects, 100 easy recipes, 100 picture book suggestions and summaries.
It’s a memory book…every other page has a lined area where parents can record important highlights or how a book or activity helped solve a problem the child was having.
It’s a parenting guide…100 tips on building a positive self-image along with an hour-by-hour sample plan for your day.

You can’t get much of real value these days for $22.50…that’s a saving of 50% off the cover price. Start your summer off with a plan of activities…the school bells will be ringing before you know it.

Are Children Putting a Strain on Your Marriage?

Posted on May 29, 2011 by viviankirkfield

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A recent study of couples found that 90% were less happy with their marriage once they became parents.

90%…THAT IS REALLY SCARY!

Here are some of the possible reasons for the lack of satisfaction in these marriages.

Lack of sleep
Fragmented attention
Strained finances
Disagreement over how to raise the children
Any or all of the above

What can couples do to reverse this trend?

1. Spend time together…just the two of you…to keep the romance alive. It can be a walk in the park, a night out or just a quick lunch while the kids are in school.

2. Spend time alone…to remember who you are…you are not just a mom or dad or husband or wife. Go for a solitary walk, take a relaxing bubble bath when no one else is home or sign up for an adult education class that meets once a week.

3. Spend time touching each other…and I’m not talking about sexual foreplay…as enjoyable as that may be. 🙂 It is so important to reach out and express your love by holding hands, remembering to give a loving caress on head or cheek as you pass by and making eye contact…your eyes are the windows of your soul.

Paying attention to these three things will go a long way towards keeping the flame alive and the relationship fresh.

There will be an added benefit as well…children tend to model themselves after their parents. Parents who are loving and respectful of each other are great role models for their children.

Is the question of how to fill all those summer hours of children home and nothing to do also putting a strain on you? Head over to my website and purchase a copy of Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking, NOW ON SALE FOR 50% OFF THE COVER PRICE. Filled with 100’s of simple inexpensive craft projects, cooking activities and picture book story suggestions and summaries, this award-winning book for parents and teachers does all the planning for you and will keep you and your kids busy and happy all summer long and beyond!

Dollar Store Madness: Where’s Miss Vivian?

Posted on May 21, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Ad for St. Joachim Dollar Store, Boston. From:...

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I took the day off from work today.

I had several vacation days left that needed to be used before May 22.

I thought about turning over and going back to sleep, but then I would feel that I had “wasted” the day.

One of the most important things on my to-do list was to get over to one of our local dollars store to grab some stuff for the upcoming Rocky Mountain PBS Kids Fun Fest on June 11.

The dollar stores are a take-off on the old discount stores like Woolworth’s 5 & 10 and John’s Bargain Stores. I remember fondly many afternoons spent combing the aisles in John’s Bargain Stores in New York City as a young girl…colorful scarves, pencils with fancy erasers, costume jewelry and more!

A plastic tablecloth and items for the bag of craft supplies giveaway were on the top of the list. After walking up and down the aisles several times and asking one of the women who worked there, I came away with 3 bags of stuff, most of which wasn’t on my list. Dollar stores are like that. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a lime green tablecloth, so I settled for red…but now that I think about it, I should have chosen the yellow. And they didn’t have the glue sticks or safety scissors they had last time. So I will probably have to go back tomorrow or head over to a different dollar store location to see if their shelves have what I need.

Do you shop at dollar stores? Are we really getting a bargain or does it just feel that way because everything is a dollar? I don’t know…maybe the same item is 50 cents at a regular store. 🙂

I wanted to pass along a wonderful post by blogger Kathryn of Kid Culture. She writes about a topic near and dear to my heart: Self-Esteem and Respecting Others and gives parents some great tips.

We all want our children to grow up with a positive self-image. There are many things we can do to ensure that…one of the most important is to spend positive time with them. Open Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking to any page and you will find a summary of a great picture book to read to your preschooler, a gentle parenting tip to help you use the story to build self-esteem, an easy eco-friendly craft and a simple healthful cooking activity. This great resource can definitely be a life-saver for busy parents. Grab a copy during our half-price sale and you will be ready for the long hot summer days!