Parenting Journals

Extended nursing can be defined as breastfeeding beyond the first year of a child’s life.  This practice is healthy, safe and should be regarded as completely normal.  However, some Western societies have conspired to make it an almost taboo activity and pressure on women to stop nursing their children at 12 months old has become commonplace.  The disapproval of friends, family and even strangers can become quite a burden and this alone may prevent mothers from carrying on with what must be one of the most natural acts of motherhood.

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by Sophie Cosic

For many parents today, the issues that surround childbirth don’t only concern the various birthing methods or the reputation of a particular hospital or obstetrician. There can be a myriad of factors to consider. Increasingly, women are turning to doulas for emotional and physical support when they give birth. And for some, this support continues in the postpartum period.

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by Sophie Cosic

The Bradley method of childbirth was developed in the 1940’s by Dr. Robert A. Bradley, an American Obstetrician.  It is based on the philosophy of ‘natural childbirth’ (drug free) and was pioneering in the involvement of fathers during the birthing process.

The Lamaze technique was also established in the 1940’s by Dr. Fernand Lamaze, a French Obstetrician.  Lamaze was influenced by Soviet childbirth practices and he particularly endorsed the role of Midwives during labor.  His method began to gain popularity in the USA in the late 1950’s and is now the most commonly used childbirth technique.

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by Sophie Cosic

There is nothing more exciting or overwhelming than becoming a parent for the first time. What if there was someone who could help to take some of the guesswork out of being a new mother and answer all of your breastfeeding questions?

This article is designed to help answer those important questions by helping you to find the right Lactation Consultant for your growing family.

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by Lydia Quinn

Whether it’s a holiday or a birthday, kids can be especially hard to buy gifts for. Here are some surefire gift ideas that will make any kid happy.

Games

The best games to get a child are usually the tried and true games that have stood the test of time. These include Candyland, Chutes & Ladders, Monopoly, Battleship, Sorry, Operation and PayDay. These games have been played for generations and are fun for the whole family, as well as the kids.

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by Sophie Cosic

For countless women, becoming pregnant is relatively easy.  For others, it can be far more complicated. 

Many women feel helpless if they do not conceive quickly, and they begin to think there may be a serious fertility problem. There are many things women can do to increase their fertility levels and therefore, improve their chances of having a baby.

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by David Palmer, Ph.D.

School’s in session – and although most of their parents don’t realize it, millions of early elementary age kids are being screened, tested, and sorted in an attempt to find those who need gifted education support services to flourish.

While it may seem that gifted kids should be able to do well in any setting, parents, researchers, and specialists who advocate for this sometimes overlooked group point out that many of our brightest child minds become bored, frustrated, and tuned out - both socially and academically - without placement in a gifted program that allows them to move through the curriculum at their own pace and connect with “mental mates” who may hold similar interests.

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By Julie Redstone

“A new study in the scientific journal Child Development, Nov./Dec., 2006, shows that if you teach students that their intelligence can grow and increase, they do better in school.

About 100 seventh graders, all doing poorly in math, were randomly assigned to workshops on good study skills. One workshop gave lessons on how to study well. The other group was taught about the expanding nature of intelligence and the brain.

The students in the latter group learned that the brain actually forms new connections every time you learn something new, and that over time, this makes you smarter. The group of kids who had been taught that the brain can grow smarter, had significantly better math grades than the other group.”

Michelle Trudeau, NPR-Morning Edition, Feb. 15, 2007.

In the progressive unfoldment of the idea that “you are what you believe,” many of us have learned to apply this teaching to help create a positive outlook in our children concerning what they are capable of intellectually, and what they can aspire to in any area they choose to pursue later on. We know how to encourage our children in the ways of worldly success.

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by Lori Heatherington

From the time I enrolled my daughter in elementary school it seemed that the world was out to ruin her innocence.

Her know-it-all six year old friends with older brothers and sisters shared the world’s reality with her on a daily basis. And I, who was happy living in the land of talking stuffed animals, was in no hurry to debate the concept of Santa Claus.
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by Nikitta A. Foston

AT 4:45 a.m., Anthony Brown, a 39-year-old computer specialist for the United States government, gets up, exercises for an hour, then wakes his 7-year-old daughter Eboni to prepare her for school. By this time, his wife, Linda Brown, a deputy program manager for the government, has already departed for work and has prepared Eboni’s clothes and hair for the day.

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