Posts by Abby Normal

I do think it's good to be honest with our kids about the effects of their choices on us. That said, my tactic with similar language was not to give it power in our home in the moment it was spoken. When it happens I'd shrug it off,...

A couple thoughts. First, I had a wonderful AP mama group when my kids were young. Somewhere around our oldest children becoming 4-6 we started to realize that while we were all friends, some of our kids would not choose each other...

SassyFireChick, if you met me and my dog I'm sure you'd not think we were dominant control types. My dog came to us at age 5 with the scars of having been a puppymill survivor. She never had to be taught or tamed, she had to be cuddled...

Personally, I think dogs thrive under the control of a loving human companion. I don't think the same is true for little humans. You can be the most loving you possible, and they are going to find control and behavior manipulation...

I think it is better than yelling or spanking, and better than being permissive. In terms of life lessons, value and effectiveness I'm not sure it's something I would rate as high on my resource list. We rarely found a purpose for it,...

My goal with jobs and expectations was not to make them... unlikeable? I didn't force much, other than basic cleaning up after themselves. (And event hen, force isn't the word I'd use). I encouraged the helpful cleaning behavior by...

First I would think, if she were not happy with how I interacted with her child- how would I want her to tell me? Humans are naturally defensive. Our goal should be to change behavior, not make her feel bad. Just like with kids-...

Thank you so much for the feedback. I have been kind of baffled, because she comes to restitution/solution on her own when I state the problem. In the cupcake example, she might say "I didn't eat it, but if you give me a ride to the...

I'm not quite sure where to start. I've been a long time reader of the magazine, and I often check in on the board when when I have a specific question. I've always been able to find someone else asking basically what I was asking, so...