• Last updated 1/26/13 by Cynthia Mosher

Hi Friends, Future Father The following L.O.V.E. Parenting exercise was created to bring consciousness and intention to your parenting by elevating your awareness of subconscious beliefs and your pre-disposition to behaviors based on your family of origin.This exercise is written for a mother and father team, but can easily be done with any two people. Sit quietly and think about your same gender parent; mothers meditate on your mother, fathers meditate on your father. Think about the quality of their parenting; traits that you value and... read more

• Last updated 5/4/11 by Mothering

What we've learned about parenthood; shared wisdom, from our family to yours.   Hylands asked some moms and dads to share some thoughts and lessons learned from parenthood and pass them on to others.  All the people in the video work for Hylands and are simply put- real people, with real lives, real parents.   We invite you to share your own words of wisdom about parenting on Hylands' Facebook Page.   Hyland's video tribute to moms this Mother's Day.       read more

• Last updated 2/16/10 by Mothering Editorial

My daughter is two and a half and generally confident, talkative and cheerful. She loves adult company and playing with older children but is shy around her peers. She often spends time away from me with a variety of family members - grandparents, aunts, older cousins and is never upset when I leave. She has been attending a playgroup with me for two years and is very familiar and comfortable with the setting and the staff, but when we started leaving her there for sessions without me she became anxious and unhappy whilst there and at home began to have tantrums. ... read more

• Last updated 10/18/12 by Melanie Mayo

Assetou Diallo, with a brother, her daughter Mariam and nephew Mohammed in Kati, Mali (Photo: Peter Biro/IRC) By Peter Biro Kati, Mali— A week after Mohammed was born, he was abandoned by his parents and left in the care of an aunt who was already struggling to raise nine children. “Milk is expensive and it is very hard to feed them all,” the aunt, Assetou Diallo, said as she sat in front of her home, a one-room shack next to a busy dirt road on the outskirts of the Malian capital of Bamako. This year has been particularly... read more

• Last updated 11/3/12 by Cynthia Mosher

I saw a mother smacking her 2 year old on the bottom when he ran near the road yesterday.  It made me wince then it made me sad.  Where is the sense in hurting a child to stop them hurting themselves?  There is always another way to keep them safe.  Although smacking has been proven to be an ineffective form of discipline, many of us still believe smacking, or spanking, is a necessary evil. Why, in our modern world full of human rights, is it deemed unacceptable to do to an adult, but not a child? A 200lb man can smack a small child as often as they like as long... read more

• Last updated 4/17/12 by Pardis Amirshahi

click on photo for the Doll Pattern click on photo for the Doll Pattern Find complete instructions on how to make a Waldorf Doll by Katja Magus, on Living Crafts blog.  This doll can be made without hair and baby clothes and diaper, for your baby.  As your baby grows you can add hair and kid clothes.  To find instructions on how to make the doll click here.  For instructions and pattern for the clothes click here. click on photo for the Clothing Patterns! About Pardis AmirshahiPardis Amirshahi is the editor of Living Crafts magazine and also writes for their popular... read more

• Last updated 3/12/13 by VKHarberRYT

Being enthusiastic about our passions without judging others' choices.     By V.K. Harber   I was recently told by a complete stranger that I “look like someone who cooks from scratch”. I’m fairly certain this was meant neither as a compliment nor as a simple benign observation. The whiff of insult was subtle but noticeable.      I’m not sure what gave me away as a person who does indeed cook from scratch. I was not wearing an apron or a dusting of flour, which would be two very obvious tells for me. Perhaps it was the unwashed hair or the slight odor... read more

• Last updated 1/7/13 by Melanie Mayo

Do you have independent readers? Do you ever wonder how best to support their growing relationship with reading? My friend Laura Simeon, a school librarian who has helped foster a love of books in many children, including my own, joins me today to chat about ways parents can create a culture of reading at home. CGL:What are some good ways to encourage reading? LS: First of all, read Unlucky Arithmetic: Thirteen Ways to Raise a Nonreader! Secondly, remember that children are clever enough to work out at quite a young age that adults never... read more

• Last updated 11/14/10 by Mothering Editorial

By Katherine Gyles Issue 138 - September/October 2006 In my memory, the first beautiful moments I spent gazing on Kate's newborn face turn into minutes and hours, then days and weeks. Those were the moments when I fell deeply in love with this little person. She was born at home, where I was surrounded by familiar comforts, love, and deep faith in my ability to give birth without intervention. But the real story of her introduction to me lies not in the beauty of her perfect homebirth, but in the days and weeks we spent lying-in together as a new family. I always knew... read more

• Last updated 2/6/12 by Mothering Editorial

By Ann E. MichaelA Web Exclusive "You're a better woman than I am," sighed my friend, "And out of your mind." I had just told her of our summer vacation plans: my husband and I were traveling to an island off of Nova Scotia, a place without electricity, plumbing, gas, phone lines, roads or satellite reception. And we were taking our teenagers along. I know there are families out there who rough it on a regular basis, who've been backpacking with their kids from infancy and for whom a flush toilet constitutes a modern amenity. But let's face it. With the miniaturizing... read more