Parenting Tips: 5 Reasons to Take a Parenting Class

Though not vocalized enough, parenting is a full-time job. Think of it as your career. Something you need to work at and prep for—whether that be through schooling or experience. Parenting classes offer both. Just like a career, no one expects a newbie to know everything in the beginning. Though once thought of as natural instinct, parenting is a cycle we’ve learned through observation plus trail and error. The parenting trend offers safe spaces to explore incorrect theories and learn without doing any term damage to the little ones (physical or psychological).

Classes offer parenting tips and tricks to raising a family, but what are the specific benefits of attending parenting classes?

Parenting classes offer a sense of community and the know-how to those who want to up their parenting game. Whether you’re expecting your first child or you’re pregnant with your third, there’s always room to learn. You can follow the expert parenting advice offered in these classes through level-based classes to begin your journey to more efficient parenting.

1. Judgment free zone: There’s not any worse feeling as a parent than to worry you’re being judged for your parenting style. Not only will a parenting class give you the skills you need to be an efficient mom or dad, but the class will be full of other parents who feel the same way you do, and you’re less likely to be criticized. Never let someone’s harsh judgments affect how you think you should bring up your kids, but in a class, you’re more likely to find like-minded individuals who won’t make you feel like an awful parent because you need some extra help.

2. Support systems: Even with your partner and family support, raising a child can feel like a lonely job. Taking a parenting class can help you connect with other parents going through the same thing you’re going through—whether it’s supporting your child through a learning disability or coping through postpartum depression after your second child.

3. Firstborn jitters: Time to put it out there, having a baby is magical and wonderful, but it’s terrifying. To new parents, it may feel like any wrong move could harm your new little angel. That’s valid. If you’ve never had a child before you likely have no idea what you’re doing. Attend a parenting class to master the basics and reassure yourself that your parenting skills are up to par.

4. The latest research: Parenting trends and topics are always cycling. It can be a challenge to stay up to date with the newest concerns and tactics to battle them. Taking classes may open your eyes to new information and challenge some instincts that may secretly be harming your kid’s self-esteem. For example, praising a child’s intellect when they achieve may cause frustration and feelings of failure when they cannot immediately master something. Instead, praise their hard work.

5. Aid academics: Studies have shown that engaged parents are one of the top factors to an academically successful child. Classes specifically designed to focus on academics will teach the right questions to ask your child and ways to become more involved in their life, like attending school functions and being more involved in homework.

How do you feel about taking a parenting class? Share in the comments below!

Parenting Tips: The Benefit of Kind Words

By Bonnie Griffin

Trying to be a good parent is a full-time job and then some. As a parent, you’re always growing, learning, making mistakes and correcting them, and trying to find the best ways to raise your children to be good people. A big part of that includes setting a good example for your child. They see you as a role model so being a kind person yourself is important for their development as they grow. This parenting advice on using kind words with your children will help you raise your children to be good, kind people.

Try raising your children with a kind word in these parenting tips!

Your children look up to you. They learn a lot about their language skills and behaviors by mimicking you. If you use harsh language or they see you being unkind to others that could influence their behavior. That’s why it is important to set a good example that starts with using kind words with your children. Cupid has some parenting tips on how using kind words around your children can benefit them and their development as people:

1. Sets a good example: Your children love you unconditionally and they look up to you. Often times, especially when they are young, they want to be just like mommy or daddy. It’s important you set a good example by being a good role model. You want your child to be kind, then be kind yourself and they will follow suit.

2. Teaches them to be positive: Babies and young children are “sculpted” by experiences. Kind words help you give your child positive experiences. This will help them grow into a happy child full of laughter and love. They will then pass their positive experiences onto others, spreading the kindness you’ve taught them. Teaching your child kindness and giving them these positive experiences also gives them happy memories; memories they will carry with them throughout their lives.

3. Offers them encouragement: As a parent you want your child to grow and accomplish great things. Teaching them kindness through your words and actions is one of the first milestones to encouraging them to grow and learn and become successful people as they grow older. Kindness shows them you believe in them and gives them the encouragement to keep pushing forward because they know they have you in their corner to help them succeed.

Kindness goes a long way with your children. It teaches them to be positive and kind to others and helps them succeed. Let us know your thoughts about the benefits of using kind words with your children below.

Parenting Advice: Tips to Get Your Child Talking

By Bonnie Griffin

Kids are full of questions. We can sometimes find ourselves tired of giving them answers, especially when they ask the same question more than once. However tiresome the endless questions may be, it’s actually good that they are asking questions and they should be encouraged to ask even more. According to Parents.com “When you answer your child’s questions, you help keep your child’s mind open, says author and parenting expert Michele Borba, Ed.D.” This parenting advice will help you get your kids talking and help them use their imaginations and satisfy their need to learn.

Parenting Advice: Ask your kids questions to keep them talking.

Teaching your child to talk doesn’t have to be all work. It can be fun for both of you. The main important part is to just get your kids talking so they can mimic your words and patterns and continue to learn and grow. Cupid has some parenting tips when it comes to some ways to get your kids talking more:

1. Ask them open-ended questions: You want to get their minds and imagination working and open-ended questions are a great way to do that. Instead of asking them yes or no questions, ask them questions that require a more elaborate answer. Ask them questions that will make them think and talk more. You can ask them what they like to daydream about, or what makes them happy. If they give a short answer prompt them to elaborate.

2. Parent-Kid Activities: Life is busy and sometimes we feel like we don’t have enough time in the day to do everything we need. It’s important that we make time to be with our kids because they learn much of their words and behaviors from us. If we just sit around on our smartphones that is what they will mimic. Set aside time every night to do an activity with your child. Working together on a puzzle, or playing an easy game of go-fish is a good way to break into conversation with your child and get them talking.

3. Listen and participate: When your child starts asking you a hundred questions, don’t blow them off. It only takes a few minutes to engage them when they want to ask questions, and showing them you are interested in what they have to say will only prompt them to talk even more and ask more questions which are a good thing. It not only helps them learn to talk and open their imaginations but sets the precedent that you are there to listen and help them learn and that is equally important in their development.

Encouraging questions and asking questions of your own are great ways to get your children talking. Let us know your thoughts about getting your young children to talk in the comments below.

Parenting Advice: Plan To Fail and Be Okay With It

By Bonnie Griffin

If there is one thing about parenting is certain, it’s that nobody is perfect; not us and not even our children as much as we love them. We’re all human and being human means we will make mistakes, but we need to slow down and realize it’s okay to fail. Children are growing and learning. They might not meet your expectations on the first try. Admit it—you have experienced moments like this in your own life you learned from. See this as an opportunity for growth instead of failure. Instead of stressing out about mistakes you or your child might make, follow these parenting tips keep small failures from turning into something big, and help your child grow into a contributing, responsible person.

We all learn from mistakes. Here are some parenting tips on how to handle your child’s.

Sometimes you’re going to zig when you later realize you should have zagged. Sometimes your children are going to forget or choose not to do their homework or drop a dish when helping clean the kitchen. It is all a way to learn and grow that will make you a great parent, and your children grow into a responsible adult. Cupid has parenting advice and parenting tips on accepting those failures with ways to help your children learn from them so they can grow into intelligent, good people:

1. Learn from mistakes: Just like you learn from mistakes at work and throughout life, you will learn from mistakes as a parent. You may learn a better schedule, etc. Like you, your children can also learn from mistakes. Instead of stepping in to help them smooth out every mistake they might make, let them make them.

2. Rules of homework: Getting our children to do their homework isn’t always easy. In fact, it can be really hard, and mistakes might get made. Remember, it is up to you to help set them up for success but don’t do their homework for them. Provide them with a quiet, phone-free environment, and give them the tools they need. If they wait until the last night to do their science project even though they had the tools necessary to complete it, don’t jump in and do it for them. They will learn to prepare and use their time more wisely the next time.

3. Teach them kindness: Kids can be mean. It’s something we hear often, but it’s something that makes it all that more important that. Teach them what kindness is through action, and show them it should be a part of everyday life. Volunteer at a soup kitchen, donate toys and clothes to shelters and let them be a part of it all.

What are some ways you deal with your children when they don’t initially meet expectations? Let us know in the comments below.

Parenting Tips: Lifestyle Changes for Better Behavior

By Bonnie Griffin

We all love our children and would do anything for them, but that doesn’t mean getting them to behave in the best way is always an easy task. As a parent, you want the best for your child and part of this includes teaching them appropriate behaviors so they grow into productive and good people. Luckily, if your children have behavioral issues, we have some parenting tips to help you develop better your children’s behavior.

Here are parenting tips to help improve your child’s behavior.

Raising your children is a full-time gig, and the most important job you will ever have. Sometimes it seems like the hardest job in the world it’s because you love your children and are dedicated to them. Parenting is a 24/7 job which doesn’t end after the workday. Your children won’t always behave the way you want or expect. Cupid has parenting advice on lifestyle choices to help with nurturing your children so they behave better:

1. Routines: Children thrive on routines. Make sure you have a strictly set routine for important parts of the day like mornings, breakfast, school, after school, dinner, and bedtime. That doesn’t mean you have to dictate to your kids exactly what the routine has to be comprised of, it means you can work together to make a routine; allow them to give input and come up with a routine together.

2. Daily one-on-one time: The one thing that will have the best effect on your children’s behavior is spending quality time with them individually. They have an emotional need to feel connected with you as their parent and need positive attention or they will seek out your attention other ways. This often means they will act out negatively because they see negative attention as better than no attention.

3. Sleep is important: When you’re tired you feel sluggish and cranky. So do your children. Children and teenagers need more sleep to keep up with all the energy their growing bodies require.

4. Find opportunities to say yes: Children have lots of questions, they want to go everywhere and see everything which means saying no a lot. To counter the negative tone that can be set every time they hear the word no, find ways to say yes. Make a compromise and help them notice you are trying to help them find their way in life and with their friends. The more positive reactions they get from you the more positive their behavior will be in return.

5. Look for the source: When children misbehave it’s usually because some underlying issue is bothering them. Take a look at the big picture and try to address the real issue causing the poor behavior.

What are some ways you redirect misbehavior in your children? Let us know in the comments below.

Parenting Trend: The Science Behind Baby Fever

By Bonnie Griffin

Whenever you see a cute new baby cooing you might feel a profound sense of “baby fever,” or a desire to have a baby of your own. Baby fever is often passed off as a fleeting thought, and people don’t often think of this thought as an emotion, but science shows that it is as real as any other emotion you may experience. Baby fever may feel stronger under different circumstances, like when you see a happy baby, or a bit more faint when you are around a crying baby or unhappy child.

Parenting Trend: Baby fever is an emotion as real as any other.

Every time you see a baby, or you get on social media and all your friends are posting pictures of their children, you feel a sudden need to have a baby of your own. A desire to hold a tiny life in your arms and nurture and love them. This is a natural part of life and real emotion that most people experience throughout their lives. The number one factor is often simply being exposed to babies being cute. Let’s take a look at this parenting trend and check out some of the reasons why people get baby fever:

1. Peer pressure: Peer pressure plays a role in people’s emotions causing feelings of baby fever. When we reach adulthood and many of our friends and family members are having babies, they often begin to hint, or outright say that it is time for us to do the same. Family members may often add to this feeling of pressure to have children, like parents insisting it is time for you to make them a grandparent with plenty of parenting advice.

Related Link: Parenting Trend: Weighted Blankets

2. Society: Society has certain “norms” we all feel pressured to meet from time to time. Once you reach a certain age or you get married it is as if you feel this invisible weight on your shoulders saying you should take certain next steps, and one of those steps is having a baby. Your subconscious can play into this need to meed societal norms with feelings of baby fever.

3. Biological clock: Women have a finite time to have children before it becomes difficult. Our bodies have a biological clock that reminds us when we’re ready for kids. Baby fever is sometimes our body’s way of saying it is time for us to have our own babies before the opportunity passes us by. It can also be a combination between our biological clock reminding us that it is time to pass on our genes, and cultural influences telling us we need to have children.

Let us know some of the things that make you feel baby fever in the comments below.

Celebrity Parents: Struggling with Postpartum and Recovery Tips

By Bonnie Griffin

When you have a baby it’s the happiest time of your life… until it’s not. Many mothers struggle with a sense of extreme sadness and depression after giving birth. It may feel like you’re all alone, and like you need to hide your feelings and pretend to be happy even if that’s not what you’re feeling but it’s not. Celebrity parents like Katy Perry and Serena Williams are speaking out about their battle with postpartum depression. It’s nothing to be ashamed of because it is very real for many new mothers.

Parents, you’re not alone. Even celebrity parents struggle with postpartum.

According to People.com, celebrity parents like Katy Perry, Serena Williams, and Alyssa Milano are helping to shed some light on the reality of postpartum depression. Williams opened up saying, “Sometimes I still think I have to deal with it, … I think people need to talk about it more because it’s almost like the fourth trimester, it’s part of the pregnancy.” These celebrities are helping shed light on the fact that postpartum is not something to be ashamed of; it is a natural part of giving birth and the first step to beginning to feel better is to accept it is natural and you don’t need to hide. Here are some recovery parenting tips for dealing with postpartum depression:

1. Respond to your child’s needs: Build a bond with your baby. That may seem like a lot when you’re feeling like you’re stuck in sadness and darkness, but take it one step at a time. You build a bond by meeting your baby’s needs. When they cry, pick them up, have skin-to-skin contact, sing to them, anything as long as you’re interacting with them in a positive manner. As your bond grows between you and your baby it will help you both to feel more secure and help you feel better, too.

Related Link: Parenting Trend: Baby Led Weaning

2. Take care of yourself: It can be easy to get lost of taking care of your baby instead of taking care of yourself after giving birth. This can be further exasperated if you’re suffering from postpartum depression. Take your vitamins, and make sure you are sleeping when the baby sleeps. Ask your friends and family for help so you can get some time to yourself to pamper yourself and make sure you’re getting enough sleep. Get outside and get some sunshine because it can positively impact your mood.

3. Use your support network: Loneliness can make your postpartum feel worse, and leave you feeling lost in the dark. Reach out to your friends and family for support when you’re lonely. Visit them or invite them out to lunch. They can offer social and emotional support that will help boost your self-esteem and lift your mood.

4. Therapy: If self-help and lifestyle changes are not enough to pull you out of your depression you can seek therapy. A doctor may also prescribe medication or counseling and psychotherapy to help you talk about your concerns and set manageable goals to help you take steps towards feeling more positive.

Postpartum affects many new mothers. What are some tips you have for lifting your spirits when you feel depressed? Let us know in the comments below.

Parenting Advice: Collaborative Parenting

By Katie Sotack

Past parenting advice has sought to punish bad behaviors and reward the good. Collaborative parenting takes a new and innovative approach to parenting that involves treating your children like people. The parenting trend focuses on working with our children rather than against them to solve problems.

Collaborative parenting involves working with your children and treating them like people in this parenting advice.

The beauty of collaborative parenting is the understanding and well-thought-out approach you must take in guiding your child. If they don’t want to clean their room, ask them why, and then come up with a solution together. They might only need to pick up their room for fifteen minutes a day, for example. Here are some collaborative parenting tips to help you and your child get on the same page:

1. Hear your child out: Instead of becoming angry and grounding your child the moment you find out they haven’t done their homework, hear your child out. The collaborative parenting approach encourages you to breathe and think before you dole out punishment. Maybe they have too many after school activities or they don’t understand the homework. Communicating with your child and understanding them is an important key factor in being a strong role model for your child.

Related Link: Parenting Trend: Baby Led Weaning

2. Offer choices with boundaries: Yes, by all means, listen to your child, but you are still the adult. For example, if it’s close to bedtime and your five-year-old daughter doesn’t want to stop playing with her dolls but you want to read her a book before she falls asleep, give her an option. Keep playing and go straight to bed with no book or you can read the book after you tuck her into bed. It’s giving a clear choice and option that makes collaborative parenting work!

3. Keep your head: Try not to lose temper with your child. This is easier said than done, but keeping a calm head while you offer choices and the consequences of not listening will prevent you from turning into a screaming banshee to get things done your way. You may have to employ tremendous patience but both you and your child will have a better relationship in the end.

4. Seek a CPS expert: If you truly feel you are failing with collaborative parenting, seeking the guidance of a collaborative parenting solving expert is an option. An expert can show you how to work with your child, teach you patience, and ease your concerns.

How likely are you to try collaborative parenting? Share in the comments below!

Parenting Tips: Best Subscription Services for Kids

By Katie Sotack

Subscription-based services are everywhere. From meal kits to style and book boxes, you can get your monthly fix with a continuous supply of goodies. Subscription-based services are set to become the hottest parenting trend in 2019. These boxes range from toys to diapers, and the options are endless.

With diapers, food, and fun able to be shipped regularly, there’s no need for a trip to the store any longer. Check out the subscription packages that may be right for you with these parenting tips.

Subscription-based services are an efficient way to shop. All they require is a customizable “click.” This system is especially convenient for new parents who can no longer pop out to the store without worrying about the baby. Here are great starter kits for parents who want fun essentials shipped and delivered:

1. Happy Family Organics: Operating on a monthly basis, HFO specializes in sending food based on your child’s “growing taste buds and dietary needs”. You’re required to enter the little one’s age and allergies before selecting from options and restrictions. The company says it’ll “build a unique bundle” for your child. If you find yourself dissatisfied with the service you can cancel whenever you like without fees.

2. Lovevery: Lovevery works by delivering toys based on your child’s age. The toys venture between 0-24 months and are categorized into sections by experts. The boxes ship every two to three months, depending on your baby’s stage with a guarantee that the package’s cotton and wood are sourced sustainably and organically.

3. The Honest Company: Enjoy a shipment of seven jumbo diaper bags and four packs of Honest wipes every month. With this service, you’re able to craft the exact diaper you want for your little one with customizable prints. All diapers are certified eco-friendly, super absorbent, and made without fragrances or lotions.

4. MOMBOX: Parenting subscription boxes aren’t just for your kids. At MOMBOX, services are customized with items dedicated to taking care of new moms so they don’t have to run to the store after giving birth. They offer a standard box, which carries everything from overnight pads to nipple cream, and a c-section option containing belly oil and a calming supplement tea.

Are subscription services useful to new moms? Share your experience below!

Parenting Trend: 2019 New Age Parenting Trends

By Bonnie Griffin

Gender reveal parties were all the rage last year. They’re becoming more passé in 2019. Having all of your friends and family show up just to set off an elaborate reveal of your baby’s gender may not be at the top of your list as a new parent, especially if you are a new age parent who doesn’t want to push your baby into gender norms before they are even born. Instead of gender reveals there are many new parenting trends popular in 2019.

Move over gender reveal parties, there are new age parenting trends this year.

Everyone has their own parenting style. Some parents are strict, some constantly worry about all the perils their children may face, and some are relaxed and prefer to let their children make their own decisions from a young age. There is no one set “right” way to parent your children. Each parent gets to choose their own personal parenting style. Let’s take a look at some popular parenting trends for 2019:

1. Parenting with an authoritative edge: You may not be a very strict or overprotective parent, but you teach your children to respect your authority. Authoritative parents make it clear they aren’t pushovers by setting firm rules. Parents who practice an authoritative parenting style have expectations for their children, and they provide them with the resources and support needed to succeed. They are great at listening to their children as well, but they also believe in fair discipline if their children break the rules.

Related Link: Parenting Trend: Weighted Blankets

2. Subscriptions: Parents are taking subscriptions to a level far beyond just using Amazon Prime. Parents are using subscriptions for all things baby including toys, diapers, baby food, and even postpartum recovery items. The convenience of skipping the store with the stroller is a far greater help through online shopping and parents love it!

3. Audiobooks: Parents are looking for ways to limit screen time. Audiobooks offer a great alternative to sitting your children in front of the TV for a little quiet time. It gives parents something to help distract the kids when needed, or it can help at bedtime to get them lying still and calming down before they fall asleep. It is a great alternative to television with the added benefit of them learning a new book.

Gender reveals used to be the greatest thing for new parents, but this year it’s more about the children and convenience in the new age. Let us know some of your parenting style or your favorite methods of convenience as a parent below.

Parenting Trend: Authoritative Parenting

By Emily Green

The way you raise your child sets the foundation for the rest of his or her life. Authoritative parenting is the most recent parenting trend gaining popularity in 2019. This parenting style means you’re sensitive to your child’s emotional needs but have high standards on how you expect them to behave. It not only allows your child to explore who they are as an individual but teaches them responsibility. Check out these parenting tips to learn some parenting advice about why authoritative parenting is an ideal style of parenting.

Authoritative parenting is a popular parenting trend in 2019. What are some benefits to raising your child this way?

While it is important to give your child some freedom to explore life on their own, it is also important that they follow household ground rules! Here are some key aspects to raising your child with an authoritative form of parenting:

1. Be flexible: Rules are meant to be broken (as some kids, especially teens, will test you with). You can’t always control what happens while you’re raising your child. Take into consideration the situation at hand—step away to calm down if need be—and then decide the best and most appropriate course of action.

2. Comfort, but don’t coddle: Your child is only human. They’ll make mistakes, break rules, and test your patience because there is no way to get them to listen to you 100% of the time. It’s important to let your child know after they mess up why they made a mistake, but also be there to comfort and to show them what they did isn’t the end of the world because you’ll always be there for them.

3. Listen: Your child will form their own opinions as they get older. This is the beauty of parenthood–you get to watch a human you created turn into their own person. Be there to listen to your child if they have something to say. It’s important to let them know you care even if they might be wrong.

4. Place limits: Every household has to have rules. Rules are rules for a reason, from cleaning dishes after a meal to no running in the house. It can take a while to strike a solid balance between letting your child be a kid and teaching them responsibility so your rules and boundaries are respected.

5. Consistent Discipline: Your kid will think it’s okay to keep breaking the rules if you don’t practice consistent discipline. For example, it’s important for your child to know if they hit your dog, a time out will follow. Studies show this type of cause and effect method to disciplining your children will help them develop their cognitive skills and the ability to make wise choices.

What are some other aspects of authoritative parenting? Let us know in the comments below!

Parenting Tips: Social Media Apps to Keep an Eye On

By Bonnie Griffin

Smartphones, social media, and many cell phone apps make parenting an extra difficult task these days. Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram were once apps you had to worry about your kids using inappropriately, but they pale in comparison to some of the newer apps available to children on their smartphones. Regularly checking your children’s cell phone and following this parenting advice on watching out for dangerous apps can help keep your children safe on their phones.

Parenting Tip: Monitor your children’s smartphones and watch out for these dangerous new apps.

You might be worried about checking your kids’ phones because you don’t want them to think you’re being nosy. It’s important to inform your children aware you are the one in charge of the phones, and you are checking them for their safety and not just to be a snoop. Your job is to parent them, not a friend. You should also set up their phones so your approval is required before they can download new apps. There are too many risky apps and ways for kids to be lured into something dangerous to not monitor their phones these days. Cupid has some parenting tips when it comes to some of the apps you need to be on the lookout for:

1. Dating apps in disguise: You would never be okay with your children using Tinder or Bumblebee, but what you may not realize is there are numerous new apps made for hooking up which are disguised as something innocent. These apps encourage your children to meet up with their matches. Anyone can pose as a teenager online, so you never really know who the other person is they are agreeing to meet when it comes to online hookups. The Yubo app, Hot or Not, and the HOLLA app are all designed to help teens hook up with other teens or people.

2. Anonymous ranking apps: As a parent, you want to teach your child to be kind and not to be a bully. There are apps out there built around ranking people based on their looks. These apps promote negative comments. Some of these apps also allow you to comment anonymously so your cruel or inappropriate comments are not linked to your name. If children can access these apps then so can adults, so you never know who is judging your children’s photos. Some of these apps include Lipsi, Tellonym, and the BIGO LIVE app.

3. Apps disguised to hide content: Nobody wants to think their kids would hide things from them, but in reality, they will. There are apps out there disguised as something innocent which are specifically designed to help your kids hide things on their smartphones. Some of these include the Calculator app, the Locker. This app is especially sneaky because it looks just like an ordinary calculator, but it stores hidden photos, allowing teens to share nudes without parents finding them because they don’t know to check this app.

Smartphones can be great tools, allowing you to keep up with your kids as long as they are monitored properly to keep children from downloading apps which could lead them into dangerous situations. Let us know your thoughts about smartphone safety for your children in the comments below.

Parenting Advice: How to Support Your Child Through Graduation

By Katie Sotack

You’ve made it to the graduation milestone, congratulations! Graduation is a testament to both students and parents alike. Both parties have worked hard to get to this point, but in terms of parenting, you may be asking, “what’s next?” Whether your child’s looking for their first career or moving onto more school, they need your support now more than ever.

Graduation symbolizes the end of an era. What are some ways to ensure a successful transition with this parenting advice?

With parental pride swelling as your grad sweeps across the stage with their diploma, this is surely one of the best moments shared between you and your child. Here are some parenting advice and parenting tips on the road after pomp and circumstance:

1. Instill confidence: Avoid expressing your concerns about your child’s weaknesses at this moment, especially if they’re underperforming. Instead, routinely share your belief in them and their abilities.

2. Be proactive: It’s important to be aware of all opportunities. Avoid an explosive reaction by keeping your mind open to all the possibilities your child may consider. When something comes up that you hadn’t thought out, process your feelings and then react in accordance.

3. Encourage the best fit: Whether it be college or career, find one that is a personal fit. The ‘take what you can get’ attitude will be harmful to your child’s potential in the long run. So encourage them to keep searching until they find what will work for them.

4. Sit on the sidelines: This is your child’s journey. While it may be tempting to impart your desires and dictate which way is the right one, let your child take the lead and support their decisions.

How do you support your child through transitions like graduation? Share in the comments below.

Parenting Tips: How to Keep Your Children During a Custody Battle

By Bonnie Griffin

One of the worst parts of going through a separation can be worrying about splitting custody of your children. In an ideal world, both parents are loving individuals who can come to an agreement to share custody that best suits the needs of their shared children. However, there are times when an agreement cannot be reached or a parent believes it is best for the children to only live with them. This can result in a custody battle, and there are right and wrong ways to go about winning so that the backlash doesn’t come back to haunt your children.

Parenting Tips: Custody battles can be difficult. Here are some ways to keep your kids during a custody battle.

It can be hard to share your children with their other parent; to go from being with them all the time to having to split time with another. Still, an agreement that prevents a custody battle is often the best solution for your children. Unfortunately, an equal agreement isn’t always suitable to meet your children’s needs and you’re forced to fight for custody. Cupid has some parenting tips on keeping your children during a custody battle:

1. Preparation: Not every attorney is equal. If you want to win your custody battle and keep your children you need to be prepared, and a big part of that is doing your research to ensure you hire a quality attorney with experience and a positive win record in child custody cases. A good attorney may not be the cheapest solution, but when it comes to keeping our children finding a cheap lawyer is not a great path to take.

2. Know your kids: It is important that you know your children well. You may need to show that you know details about their education, sports they play, their favorite pastimes, and if they have any special needs. If you want to be the primary caregiver it’s important to show you’re invested in their lives and helping them be successful in life.

3. Ensure you have good living arrangements: When you want custody of your kids it is important to be mindful of your home. You need to ensure your living arrangement shows that you are able to provide a stable physical environment for your children. While many judges may be flexible, you will need to show that the home you can provide has enough space for your kids, and it can also be helpful to find a home close to the original family home so the kids are not uprooted to far from familiar surroundings.

Being prepared, knowing your kids, and having a good living environment are important factors to consider when you want custody of your children. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Single Celebrity Parents: Balance Your Career & Parenting Like Sandra Bullock

By Bonnie Griffin

One single celebrity parent who seems to have it all figured out when it comes to being a full-time actress and mom is Sandra Bullock. According to RadarOnline.com, Bullock was already helping raise her three stepchildren in her previous marriage when she decided to adopt her baby boy from New Orleans. Bullock handled her quickly changing family situation and becoming a single mom with grace, making a smooth transition into her role as a single celebrity mom.

This single celebrity parent balances working full-time as an actress in the public eye. What are some ways to balance being a full-time single parent and a full-time career?

Cupid’s Advice:

Trying to balance work and being a single parent can be the most difficult job of them all. Spending time away from your child to work, then coming home to take care of them and provide a happy, healthy home can be a lot to juggle for anyone. Cupid’s has some parenting advice to help you balance work and parenthood:

1. Find your support system: Being a single parent doesn’t have to mean you are all alone. Everyone needs support, whether if be someone to listen when we need to vent or to lend a helping hand. This includes single parents. Reach out to family or friends and find people who are willing to listen and occasionally pitch in when you need some time for yourself.

Related Link: Parenting Tips: Apply Research to the Practice of Parenting

2. Take care of yourself: It is easy to focus all your energy on making sure your children eat well and take their vitamins so that they are healthy, but it’s not as easy to remember to take care of yourself. If you are going to pull double-time working and being a single parent, taking care of your own health is essential so that you can care for your child and not wind up completely worn down and exhausted. Your health will help you keep up with your busy career and allow you to be the best parent you can be.

3. Have a backup plan: The unexpected can happen to anyone. We would all love to ditch work and take care of our child anytime they are sick or don’t have school, but that isn’t always realistic when you’re working. It is important to have a plan for what to do when something happens out of the ordinary, like losing a job or handling work when you have a sick child. Having a friend, neighbor, or family member as a backup for childcare when you cannot take your child to daycare or school will help you balance work and parenting. Folks in the IT world know that passing the Cisco 200-125 test to get the ExamSnap’s Website credential can make all of the difference. Other parents simply go back to school to find what they love to do.

What are some ways you balance being a working parent? Let us know in the comments below.

Parenting Tips: Taking Care of Yourself Helps You Take Care of Your Kids

By Mara Miller

All parents do it: You feel selfish when you put your needs above your children’s. This can be even truer when your little one is under the age of five. Whether from self-imposed pressure or from a constant need to be around your child, it feels like there is little time for your passions outside of raising your child. This stems from an age in which we over-parent our children. It’s easy to confuse the amount of time you spend with your kid with the quality of your relationship. In fact, by not stepping away, you might be hurting yourself and your child more than you realize.

In these parenting tips, we explore how taking care of yourself helps you take care of your kids.

In the parenting advice below, we have a list of reasons why you shouldn’t be afraid to put yourself first once in a while in order to keep your sanity for yourself and your child.

1. Start Small: It can be as simple as shutting the bathroom door while your child safely naps in the other room. Starting small allows you to realize that, yes, you don’t have to be with your child every second of the day. It will give you time to do what you need. It can be as simple as cleaning the house or taking a shower.

2. Recruit your partner: You don’t have to feel guilty for spending time with your friends or doing things you love. Think of it as a chance for your partner to spend quality time with your kid(s) so you can develop individually. While your partner is with your child, this isn’t considered babysitting either: it’s parenting.

3. Get help: Hiring a babysitter while you and your partner go on a date is perfectly fine. Or maybe you’ve decided you want to go back to school and need help for two hours every day so you can take your class. If you can do something to better yourself for you and your family, why not go for it? Don’t be afraid to source out help.

4. Do what you love: Taking care of yourself means balancing what you love to do with being available for your children. Whether it’s a movie night once a week with your best friend or some time away at your favorite coffee shop because you need to work on your blog, make sure you can still pursue your passions as well as be a good parent to your child.

5. Happier parent equals happier kid: Even if your child is too young to understand, they’ll know that you’re happier when you start to put yourself first on occasion. You’ll have more energy to run after your little one and you’ll feel like the time you spend with them is more meaningful than if you ignore your life to be a mother or father.

What are some of the benefits of taking care of yourself before you take care of your child? Let us know in the comments below!

Parenting Trend: Baby Led Weaning

By Bonnie Griffin

In recent parenting trends, parents are beginning to put down the spoons, and are choosing to follow the method of baby led weaning. It may sound uncommon to some to consider the idea of not feeding your baby with an airplane spoon full of mashed up foods, but many are setting this old classic to the side and allowing their babies to pick up their food and feed themselves. According to Parents.com, dietician Clancy Cash Harrison claims, “Baby-led weaning supports the development of eye-hand coordination, chewing skills, dexterity, and healthy eating habits.” Maybe it is time to give the idea of letting your one-year-old feed themselves a try.

Parenting Trend: Baby led weaning may be the best way for your child to learn important motor skills and to feed themselves.

It can be hard to put down the reigns and let our babies feed themselves. They depend on us so much that it seems natural to keep feeding them even after they turn one, but it turns out that it might be better for them overall if we allow them to do some of the work at meal times themselves. Cupid has some advice about baby led weaning:

1. Learn to self-regulate: When we feed our babies it can be hard for us to know when they have had enough. This can, unfortunately, lead to accidental overfeeding. However, babies who feed themselves are less likely to continue eating once they are no longer hungry, and this will teach them to self-regulate their food intake, instead of taking in too much food, which could lead to issues where they eat even when they’re full as they get older.

2. No more jarred food or time blending: Do you dread buying all those little jars of baby food, or spending a lot of time blending food into mush only to have your baby spit it out? With baby led weaning, you can forget the jarred food, and tuck that blender away in the cabinet because your baby won’t need that mashed food any longer.

3. Soft foods in the beginning: You don’t want to dive right into the more difficult foods with your one-year-old. Instead, start them on their self-weaning journey with soft foods like puffed cereals, cooked egg yolks, and cooked pasta. These are foods that will be easy for them to consume on their own with you supervising.

Soft foods, self-regulation, and no more jars of blended baby food are just some examples of why it is a best parenting practice to use baby led weaning. Let us know your thoughts about this method in the comments below.

Parenting Advice: Tips to Leave in the Past

By Megan McIntosh

Do you remember when you last tried an old wives’ tale because you thought it was solid parenting advice, but it didn’t work? It might have even made the situation worse. We now know some advice our elders swore by is best left in the past.

Cupid shares parenting advice that’s best left in the past.

We’ve all heard one of these parenting tips from either our parents or grandparents when they want to help us with our children. Sometimes the best thing you can do is agree and move on. Here are a few things we should all leave in the past:

1. Spanking: Your parents might have spanked you when you were a kid. They probably thought it was the most effective way to punish you. Society now understands a child can’t understand your explanation, nor can they connect spanking as a consequence of their wrong-doing.

2. Chicken soup for colds: Your parents probably made a bowl chicken soup for you when had a cold while you were still a kid. Chicken soup has no actual medical value to cure your illness. Soup as a comfort food when you’re sick will make you feel better mentally. It won’t get rid of your cold. Best to stick to medicine.

3. Put some alcohol on your teething baby’s gums: You know this is a risky remedy. Alcohol in any form is bad for your baby. Give them a teething ring or some baby’s aspirin instead.

4. Do as I say: This is a frequent statement you might make to your kids, “Do as I say, not as I do.” You might realize that the best lesson is a visual one. Show your kids your good behavior and they will imitate you.

What are some old wives’ tales about parenting that you no longer listen to? Share below!

Parenting Tips: Apply Research to the Practice of Parenting

By Mara Miller

Let’s be honest: it’s easy to second guess yourself after you have your first baby…or your second…or even your third (if you decide you want that many kids!). This is totally normal! Your parents may have parenting styles that you didn’t agree with as kids, so now you want to do better for your own children. If you feel this way, it’s why you might consider applying research to the practice of parenting in these parenting tips. We are now in an age where information is literally a tap away on a phone screen or a computer keyboard, so it’s easier than ever to access the information you need.

Here are some parenting tips for applying research to help you become a better mother or father!

You can use a search engine on the internet to find just about any information you need, but don’t discount parenting books for parenting advice! They can have a wealth of information as well.

1. Figure out the kind of parent you are: Doing a quick Google search on “the four kinds of parents” can give you a wealth of information on parenting types. Whether authoritarian, permissive, uninvolved, or authoritative, you will be able to figure out areas where your parenting skills are working just fine or where you need to improve for your kids.

2. Find new ways to entertain your kids: Are you the type of parent who doesn’t want your child to spend hours playing video games? Running out of things to do to entertain them? Research new ways to play with your kids will take only a few minutes. It doesn’t mean that you’re a bad parent just because you have run out of things to do, it just means that you need help!

3. Find new ways to bond with your child: Bonding with your child should be obvious, but figuring out new ways to do it so your child doesn’t get bored or show disinterest is another beast altogether. What might work for one parent when it comes to bonding with their child may not work for another. It depends on how old the child is but using research to help you find new things to bond with your kids might help you find something you didn’t think about before.

4. Keep up to date with the latest research: Research centered around child development continually changes and evolves. Keeping up to date so you can make the best decisions, like that children actually need to play in order to learn, for your child. That way you’ll have the power to say “no” if someone–like a teacher–tries to tell you otherwise.

5. Find support groups: Parenting little ones is a difficult task that can become overwhelming if you don’t have the right type of support. If you find the right group of people, you can not only make lifelong friends but might be able to find future playmates for your children if it’s an online group for your local community. Groups like this also tend to share a lot of research that you can use in order to adjust your parenting style!

What are some other ways you can apply research to the practice of parenting? Let us know in the comments below!

Parenting Tips: Start a Family With Assisted Reproduction

When you are ready to start a family of your own but things don’t seem to be working as quickly as you had hoped, you may be dealing with infertility issues. Over 1 in 6 couples that are trying to have a baby run into difficulties. Assigning blame should never be an issue, as it takes two to tango, but the frustration of not getting pregnant can take its toll on the hopeful parents.

If a natural pregnancy is not an option for you it doesn’t mean that you will never have a child. Advances in science and technology have allowed hundreds of thousands of people become parents each year.

Investigating methods of assisted reproduction is the place to start. You can talk to fertility experts, a surrogate mother agency, an adoption agency or get advice on becoming a foster parent. If you are serious about having a family, but are having trouble becoming pregnant, don’t worry! There are plenty of options that will allow you to have the family of your dreams.

IVF – In-Vitro Fertilization

The IVF method has become the most popular and effective method for infertile couples to have a child of their own. The process can be very involved but is also very customizable to your needs. The egg and sperm are combined outside of the womb in a lab, where the progress can be carefully monitored before a viable embryo is implanted into the uterus.

You can have either a donor egg, donor sperm or both if needed, and the embryo can be implanted into the mother or a surrogate. For couples who desperately want to have a child, this method has been very successful.

The process itself can be complex, time-consuming and expensive. From the stress of hormone treatments that will prepare the mother for implantation to the possible failure of the transfer, IVF can be a highly emotional ordeal. Each attempt can cost up to $10,000, so it is not an affordable option for many couples to try more than once.

Surrogacy

The gift that a surrogate mother gives to expectant parents is unparalleled. If you have not had any success with either traditional methods or with IVF, you may want to consider using a surrogate to carry your child. The process itself uses the same In-Vitro technology but with a different “host”. A woman that is not the mother will volunteer to have your embryo implanted in her uterus where the child will grow safely until term.

For many couples, this may be the only way that they are able to have a biological child of their own. Surrogacy agencies can help match you with a surrogate mother and help guide you through the process, from implantation to birth.

Adoption

For some, the idea of surrogacy is as emotional as it is expensive. You may not have the budget or the resources to make that option a reality. The good news is that there are thousands of children right here in the U.S. and in countries around the world that are in need of a family.

You can work with an adoption agency that can help you find the perfect child for you to bring into your family. If you are interested in adopting an infant, you will need to be prepared to wait for up to 5 years before bringing a child home. If you are open to giving an older child a permanent home, you will have a much shorter wait.

What are some of your experiences with assisted reproduction? Share below.

Parenting Advice: Five Reasons to Stop Yelling at Your Kids

By Mara Miller

Parents yell at their children, even if they might not want to openly admit it. Maybe you snapped because you’re mad they haven’t put on their shoes yet. Or, you have had it because they won’t do their homework. Or, maybe you’ve had a bad day yourself, and your teenager just smart-mouthed you one too many times, so you decided to let them have it. We’ll explore why you need to stop yelling at your kids in this parenting advice.

Parenting Advice: Five Reasons to Stop Yelling at Your Kids

You’ll snap, your baby will burst into tears (or if your kids are teens they might snap back)—and then the entire family will be upset. It should go without saying: if you can stop yelling at your children, they will be happier. But if you’re still not convinced, here are a few things to consider that you may not have thought about before:

1. They will learn to yell back: Yelling at your kids will eventually turn into you being yelled at by your children. And they may not just yell at you—they’ll possibly yell at teachers, peers, or a future partner. Remember, you are teaching your kids cultural and social norms and they will mimic your behavior.

2. It causes anxiety: Yelling can cause anxiety attacks and severely limit your ability to interact socially with other people as an adult. Yelling can also trigger full-blown panic attacks later when your children are older. This can lead to struggling with performance in school. They will also have trouble finding, and keeping, employment when they are older.

3. It’s emotionally draining: Have you ever gotten just as upset as your children after yelling at them? Yelling at your children can be stressful and damaging to them, but it can be stressful and damaging to you even though your first response might be to raise your voice to your children.

4. They’ll stop listening: Yelling at your children will trigger a fear response deep in the brain that will turn off their listening completely. This can lead to bad grades in school because your kids will automatically tune out their teachers. Adults who have been yelled at often as children will neglect orders at work or their partner.

5. Your children will learn to crave negative attention: Do you want to teach your kids to crave negative attention? Yelling at them frequently can teach them to seek that kind of attention later in a potential partner. It can also negatively affect any other social relationships, like with siblings or friends.

What are some other reasons to stop yelling at your kids? Let us know in the comments below.

Parenting Advice: How to Cope with Your Child’s Diabetes

By Mara Miller

According to the American Diabetes Association, approximately 1.25 million children have diabetes. It can be a scary situation when you first find out a loved one is affected by this disease, but even scarier when one of them is your child. And, no matter if they have Type 1 or Type 2, it can be hard on you as a parent to not feel like it’s your fault or to feel guilty because there is a way you could have prevented it. We have some parenting advice and parenting tips on how to cope with your child’s diabetes because it isn’t your fault and you shouldn’t feel guilty or alone with your family’s struggle to cope with it.

Parenting Advice: How to Cope with Your Child’s Diabetes

1. Get help when you need it: Rely not only on your support network with your partner and extended family but your child’s healthcare professional too.

2. Make parenting decisions together: It’s important to make decisions with your child’s parent together as a team rather apart. And more than anything, be consistent.

3. Share your feelings: Don’t bottle up your feelings about your child’s diabetes. Connect with other parents in a support group or seek help from a family therapist.

What are some other ways to cope with your child’s diabetes? Let us know in the comments below!

Parenting Tips: How to Find the Best Tracking App for Your Kid

Phone tracking applications are proving to be very useful, especially for parents. A mobile tracking application will allow you to watch over your child and ensure they are safe. Whether you want to track an iPhone or an Android phone, remember that you need to make sure that you have proper access to the phone you are monitoring including the private messages and most visited websites. It is also important to discuss this with your child so that there is open communication and understanding.

If you want to be a little more worry-free, follow these parenting tips to ensure your child is kept safe from harm.

Following are things to take into consideration when searching for the right tracking app:

The price
There are numerous mobile tracking applications online and they all come with various features which typically dictates their pricing. Advanced trackers with a lot of bells and whistles will obviously cost more but most of the features will never be used and are not necessary. On the other hand, watch for applications that are extremely cheap or a lot less costly because often those do not have features that are helpful. You really need to do research and talk to others to get the best value for your dollar.

Convenience
As much as you want to track your child, you don’t want the process to be complicated or confusing. That is why most parents buy mobile tracking applications that have user-friendly dashboards.

Does it have what you need?
Figure out what is most important to you for the safety of your child and focus on finding an app with those features. For example, you may want to focus your tracking on a particular area like messaging, whether in emails or social media. Or, maybe your concern is more about location to ensure your child is safely at their destination. Once you determine what is most important to you, find an app that helps those concerns.

Conclusion
With so many mobile tracking apps on the market, figuring out which one will best serve your purpose is important. If you’re finding it challenging to select a mobile tracking app, you can always check out this article here, Best Cell Phone Tracking Apps or ask your friends and family what they use.

Are there any phone applications you use to keep your peace of mind as a parent? Share below!

Parenting Advice: Cooking Fun with Your Kids

By Megan McIntosh

There comes a time when your kids want to be involved in what mom or dad is doing in the kitchen. They want to bake their own cake or fry their own eggs. Whether you decide to start small or let them help you with a whole meal, it’s easy to have some cooking fun with your kids! Celebrity parent and model Chrissy Teigen recently made a special menu for celebrity baby Luna, and Jennifer Garner routinely cooks healthy meals for her kids. Like them, you can also have your kids join you in the kitchen!

Parenting Advice: Cooking with your kids can be a fun and educational experience that lets you have some quality time together, too!

Here’s some exciting advice to start cooking in the kitchen with your kids:

1. Find some kid-friendly menus:
Find some fun menus that the kids can easily follow with you. Try to make character pancakes with fruit and nuts as decorations. Put together a yummy snack mix, which is simple and should keep the mess to a minimum. There are a variety of kid-friendly menus, but you can even create your own like celebrity parent Chrissy Teigen did when Luna turned out to be a picky eater.

2. Start small:
If your child wants to be involved in a the preparation of a grown-up meal, give them something small to start with. Let your child mix the spices, or let them toss some ingredients into a salad. This gets them excited to be involved in the kitchen, but keeps their little hands safe. Help them create something healthy but simple, like Jennifer Garner and her granola recipe.

Related Link: Parenting Advice: Make Your Own Fresh Baby Food

3. Let them be a little independent:
Once your child is a little older, you can let them be a little more independent in the kitchen. Let them create their own snack mix rather than following a recipe. Let your child create recipes that have three ingredients like banana pancakes or dunkaroo dip. Let your kid make dessert while you focus on dinner with them making banana oat cookies or peanut butter fudge. Keep it seasonal by making popsicles in the summer and hot chocolate in the winter.

4. Keep it age appropriate: Though we encourage independence with our children, it’s very important to keep it at level with their age. If they’re a little younger, you’ll want to keep them away from sharp objects and doing more activities like mixing and squeezing. As they get older you can incorporate more difficult tasks such as cutting with a blunt blade or cracking eggs. Eventually they’ll be able to help you out in the kitchen so much that you’ll get a chance to relax a little quicker.

Any tips for how to get started in the kitchen with your kids? Share below!