Tag Archives: parenting

Valentine’s Day 2013…The Many Faces of Love

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18

Valentine’s Day is a holiday that celebrates love. It began in honor of one or more early Christian saints named Valentinus. Valentine’s Day was first associated with romantic love by Chaucer when he wrote a poem in 1382 to honor the first anniversary of the engagement of King Richard II of England to Anne of Bohemia.

“For this was seynt on Volantynys day

When every bryd cometh there to chese his make.”

Back in college, I took a course on Chaucer and Old English…it was the only college course I ever dropped…but here’s a translation those two lines: “For this was sent on Valentine’s Day, When every bird comes there to choose his mate.”

By the 15th Century, lovers would give each other flowers, candy and cards (which were known as Valentines.

Valentine's Day,The Many Faces of Love,www.positiveparentalparticipation.com

Then there was Hallmark…and the rest is history!

Valentine’s Day celebrates many types of love. According to psychologist Elaine Hatfield, there are two main types of love: Compassionate Love and Passionate Love. Compassionate love features mutual respect, attachment, affection and trust. Passionate love is filled with intense emotions, sexual attraction, anxiety and affection. Ideally, passionate love, which is transitory and short-lived, turns into compassionate love, which is enduring and long-lasting.

C.S. Lewis, in The Four Loves, identifies four categories of love: Affection or storge which is fondness through familiarity, Friendship or philia which is the strong bond that exists between people who have a common interests, Romance or eros, which is being in love or loving someone and Unconditional Love or agape which is the love of caring regardless of the circumstances.

But what of a parent’s love for a child…what type of love is that?

Valentine's Day,The Many Faces of Love,www.positiveparentalparticipation.com

Last night, I watched one of the old Leave It To Beaver episodes and I witnessed the four loves described by C.S. Lewis.

In the show, little Beaver loses his lunch money several days in a row. His parents warn him that he will be in trouble if it happens again. His father gives him money to go to the barber shop to get a haircut, but when the little boy gets there, he realizes he has lost the money again. His older brother agrees to help him and, when this results in ‘the haircut from hell’, the boys try to fool their parents by wearing hats.

  1. Affection or fondness through familiarity: This is evident in the day to day interaction…Beaver’s brother is almost always willing to help him; Beaver’s mom and dad are caring and understanding.
  2. Friendship or strong bond that exists between people: Beaver’s mom, “Kids are more afraid of losing their parents’ love than of being punished.”
  3. Romance or loving someone passionately: Beaver’s dad, “The trouble with being a parent is that you love your kids so much, you scare the pants off them.”
  4. Unconditional love: Beaver’s brother, “You can come to parents with any problem and they will understand.”

Happy Valentine’s Day! What are your plans for today? If you have young children, have fun with them…why not go for a walk, play ball, sing a silly song, draw a picture together, read a book with them. SHOW them as well as TELL them that you love them…every day. It will make a positive impact on the rest of their lives.

www.positiveparentalparticipation.com

There is still time to nominate your favorite literacy organization to win the International Book Giving Day $25 donation…please leave a comment on my post. Tomorrow we will choose the winner with Random.org.

And if you have the time, you can take a look at the Valentine’s Day/International Book Giving Day YouTube video I made yesterday with author/educator Susan Case: SHOW THE LOVE: INTERNATIONAL BOOK GIVING DAY. We shared several picture books and crafts and ideas on helping kids celebrate Valentine’s Day and International Book Giving Day. Susan is giving away TWO copies of her fantastic Happy Mommies Handbook…don’t miss out…leave a comment on her blog post: http://kindergartenbasics.blogspot.com/2013/02/celebrate-international-book-giving-day.html

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Sunday Post: Black & White…or Do We Parent in Shades of Gray?

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Jake at Time after Time has a Sunday Post Challenge and every week he provides a theme…this week’s theme is BLACK AND WHITE

 

I always love to connect the Sunday Post theme to an aspect of parenting.

As parents, we have many choices to make.

Should we be strict or lenient?

Do we move to the city or the suburbs.

Will our children go to public or private schools…or should we homeschool?

But there are some things about parenting that are BLACK AND WHITE:

Parenting requires organizational skills…kids need routines.

Parenting requires communication skills….kids need you to listen to them.

Parenting requires compassion…kids need your love.

Parenting requires consistency…kids need rules that are enforced.

But setting rules does not means that everything is black and white.

Is stealing wrong?  What if your children were starving?

Is killing wrong?  What if someone is trying to kill you or your child?

Perhaps parenting is a journey in “Shades of Gray”.

Parenting requires participation…kids need your time.

Practice Positive Parental Participation and your child will have a head-start to a happy and successful life.

Spending quality time with your young children now will have a positive impact on their school performance.  It also helps them build stronger relationships later in life. 

To be in your children’s memories tomorrow, you need to be in their lives today.  Show Me How is the book that makes it easy and fun! 

Giving back is important to me.  Part of the proceeds of each copy sold is donated to several children’s organizations.

Schools are opening all over the country and we’d like to give a free copy of Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking to your favorite school or classroom.  Nominate your child’s school or other childcare facility in the Show Me How School Initiative by leaving a comment and telling us why you’d like them to have this book.  If you don’t have young children, but know people who do, please tell them about the free book their child’s school can receive!  At the end of September, we will be awarding a dozen books to the winning schools.

Last, but certainly not least, I just came back from a local SCBWI meeting…one of the members, children’s author Marty Banks, has a new book out on the market.  The Adventures of Tempest & Serena is a wonderful chapter book for readers ages 7 and up.  I’ll be reviewing the book here in a couple of days, but I wanted to give everyone a heads-up about the free download that is coming up next weekend.  I’ll post the correct URL when I do the review.  I think this is a book parents and grandparents will want to buy for holiday gifting!

Want more information about Jake’s Sunday Post?

 http://jakesprinters.wordpress.com/ 

And here are some other bloggers who are doing Jake’s Sunday Post…click on a link and travel around the world:

http://bodhisattvaintraining.wordpress.com/2012/08/18/sunday-post-black-white/

http://blueberriejournal.wordpress.com/2012/08/18/bw/

http://cyclingrandma.wordpress.com/2012/07/16/leonard-pitts-jr-s-freeman/

http://drieskewrites.wordpress.com/2012/08/18/black-white/

http://mariadesuede.wordpress.com/2012/08/18/une-competition-en-noir-et-blanc/

http://jullianeford.wordpress.com/2012/08/18/sunday-post-black-white/

http://shaanthz.wordpress.com/2012/08/18/sunday-post-black-white/

http://cobbies69.wordpress.com/2012/08/18/sunday-post-black-and-white/

http://jobryantnz.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/sunday-post-black-white/

http://nprimopiano.wordpress.com/2010/06/06/bw-stairs/

http://p0nky.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/sunday-post-black-white/

http://truthaboveallreligions.wordpress.com/2012/08/18/sunday-post-black-and-white/

http://imagesoftheheart.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/sunday-post-black-and-white/

http://imexcited.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/sunday-post-black-and-white/

http://lucidgypsy.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/sunday-post-black-and-white/

http://francineinretirement.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/sunday-post-black-and-white/

http://connieemeraldeyes.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/sunday-post-black-white/

http://cassiemeetsworld.com/photography/sunday-post-black-white/

http://pollysspace.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/sunday-post-black-and-white/

http://davidrwetzelphotography.wordpress.com/2012/08/19/sunday-post-black-and-white/

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Sunday Post: Close-Up: Simple Tips for First Day of School Anxiety

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18

Jake at Time after Time has a Sunday Post Challenge and every week he provides a theme…this week’s theme is CLOSE-UP.

I know I’ve used this photo before…but it personifies “CLOSE-UP” perfectly.

Do you practice attached parenting?  Are you a helicopter mom?  Have you encouraged your child’s independence?

No matter what type of parent you are, you may be experiencing some anxiety as you send your child off for the first day of school.

Many children also have concerns about school.  Will they like the teacher?  Will the other kids be nice?  Will they find their way around the maze of hallways and classrooms? (I get lost when I do school visits)  Will they ever see you again?

Here are five simple steps that will make the transition from home to school smoother.

1.    Have an upbeat, matter-of-fact, positive attitude about school.

2.    If your child has not been there yet, arrange for a visit before school starts.

3.    Connect with parents of other children in the class and have play dates with your child’s classmates…children feel more at ease when they see friendly faces in the classroom.

4.    If you don’t have a routine in place for bedtime and getting-ready-for-the-day-in-the-morning time, put them in place now.  Make it a habit to discuss plans for the next day in the evening and lay out clothes and anything else needed the night before.  When school starts, your child will be used to getting things ready and you won’t have that last minute rush in the morning to find the missing shoe or backpack.  Regarding bedtime, please make sure you are allowing plenty of time for your child to get ready (brush teeth, wash, lay out clothes and necessary items, story-time, etc.) and still be getting to bed at a reasonable hour.

5.    Make sure your child is eating a good breakfast in the morning…when school starts, this will be even more important.  My younger son loved pizza.  Some children might prefer eggs and toast, cereal with fruit and milk, French toast and bacon or pancakes with fruit toppings.  How about peanut butter and banana on whole wheat bread?

 

Many times, children who are fussy eaters become better eaters when you let them help out in the kitchen.  If you are looking for some simple child-friendly recipes, Show Me How! has one hundred of them and teams each cooking activity with a picture book suggestion and a quick and easy eco-friendly arts and crafts project.  You can order a copy on my website at less than 50% of the cover price.  The book is available for shipment to Canadian residents also!

Studies show that the quality time you spend with your young children now has a positive impact on their school performance.  This is a great opportunity to get a wonderful resource you can use on a daily basis, year after year.  Show Me How is an award-winning book endorsed by parents, teachers and national organizations such as the JDRF.  To be in your children’s memories tomorrow, you need to be in their lives today.  This is a book that makes it easy and fun to be in your children’s lives today!  Don’t put it off until tomorrow!

Another thing not to put off until tomorrow: if you’d like to nominate your child’s school or other childcare facility in the Show Me How School Initiative, please don’t forget to leave a comment with the school’s name.  If you don’t have young children, but know people who do, tell them about the free book their child’s school can receive!

Want more information about Jake’s Sunday Post?

 http://jakesprinters.wordpress.com/ 

And here are some other bloggers who are doing Jake’s Sunday Post…click on a link and travel around the world:

http://p0nky.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/sunday-post-close-up/

http://blueberriejournal.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/close-up-2/

http://cyclingrandma.wordpress.com/2011/07/12/cheese-less-pesto/

http://drieskewrites.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/sunday-post-close-up/

http://bodhisattvaintraining.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/sunday-post-close-up/

http://perceptionsofareluctanthomemaker.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/jakes-sunday-post-close-up/

http://inspirationimport.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/my-mothers-eyes-close-up/

Related Posts:

http://tracycampbellwriter.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/week-6-summer-short-sweet-challenge-have-you-been-bullied/

http://spanishpinaynanay.blogspot.com/2012/04/show-me-how-book-attached-parent-will.html