Posted by
janet on Aug 24th, 2010
If we are what we eat, aren’t we also a product of the way we eat?
As busy new parents we’re usually focused on the mechanics of breast or bottle-feeding, then introducing solids: when to start, which foods, in what order, how much and how to provide the best nutrition. But most of us also hope to foster healthy eating behaviors for our children. We want to do all in our power to prevent eating disorders,...
Posted by
janet on Aug 19th, 2010
Growing up, I was labeled a shy child. Silent and withdrawn in unfamiliar social situations, I was not the confident, gregarious kid who initiated games with other children, never mind conversations. I would hang back and watch as the others interacted, bringing as little attention to myself as possible. It always seemed that the other kids knew each other, that they were already comfortable friends, that I was the...
Posted by
janet on Aug 3rd, 2010
Romance was in the air at a recent parent/infant class, and it was definitely one for the cameras, but interrupting those astonishing minutes to document the action could not have been further from my mind.
Mila and Julian, 3 and 4 months old respectively, were on their backs on the rug by their moms. The infants soon took notice of each other, began engaging, and spent several minutes captivated. Mila twisted...
Posted by
janet on Jul 30th, 2010
My sisters and I had my mom pegged, and we never grew tired of teasing her about it. When we asked my mom for something and she said, “We’ll see”, it always seemed to lead to a “no”. “Maybe” usually turned out to mean “yes”. So we would whine and beg, “Just say maybe, pleeeeeze!”
Now that I’m a mom and have learned that parenting is an endless list of really hard decisions that can make...
Posted by
janet on Jul 27th, 2010
I spend a lot of time in my head, and one of my favorite ponderings is nature vs. nurture. How much does parenting matter? We toil and we fret. We read the latest round of confusing, conflicting studies and opinions. We stimulate, teach, parent the way we were parented because it worked just fine, or do the radical opposite because it didn’t. We hover, free-range, stress and (according to the New York...
Posted by
janet on Jul 9th, 2010
From time to time I have the pleasure of sharing the perspectives of other parents, educators, and early childhood professionals familiar with the work of infant expert Magda Gerber. This post is by Miven Trageser, M.A., a Marriage and Family Therapy Intern in private practice in Beverly Hills, CA. Miven specializes in parenting, mother-infant attachment therapy, play therapy with small children, and couples...
Posted by
janet on Jul 6th, 2010
From the moment they are born, babies struggle to communicate physical and emotional needs. First they cry, and then they learn by our example to smile, coo, babble, eventually extend their arms to us, shake their heads, point, gesture, and finally speak words and phrases. Imagine the challenge it is for our babies to make us understand!
Common sense tells us that the more actively we acknowledge our child’s...
Posted by
janet on Jun 30th, 2010
I’m not one to question the value of demonstrative love and affection. Giving hugs is such a reflex for me that I embarrass myself by hugging people I barely know. I’ll often come to my senses midway through the ‘hello’ or ‘goodbye’ hug — too late to catch myself. This creates some awkward moments, but (I hope) my kind intentions are understood.
But with children, especially infants and...