ScreamFree Parenting Blog's Page

"Parents learn a lot from their children about coping with life." — Muriel Spark, British novelist (1918 - )

The other day at my son's football practice, a car alarm started sounding. While the owner was trying to fix the problem, the adults furrowed their brows and shook their heads at the interruption to the business at hand. The boys on the other hand, spontaneously turned the alarm into a group dance, alternately crouching and jumping with each beep.

Children instincti… Continue

"Parents are often so busy with the physical rearing of children that they miss the glory of parenthood, just as the grandeur of the trees is lost when raking leaves." — Marcelene Cox, U.S. Writer

When did all of the "haftas" of family life take over for the reason we had kids in the first place?

I remember staring at my kids' toes when they were newborns--for hours. Everything was so new that it was easy to be knocked over by the wonder of it all. After a while, you start to tak… Continue

"If we don't start trusting our children, how will they ever learn to become trustworthy?" — John Lithgow as Rev. Shaw Moore in Footloose

Trust is a tricky issue. We automatically think that a person has to earn our trust before we can freely give it to them. But the truth of the matter is that trust can never be fully earned. Even the most trusted person you know has the power to disappoint you.

Embracing that truth and letting go of what you can't control will help you p… Continue

"Bore, n: A person who talks when you wish him to listen." — Ambrose Bierce (1842 -1914), American writer

We all love our children dearly and want them to follow the best path possible. So we look for teachable moments along the way to guide them down that path. That's all well and good--some of the time. But if we see our kids as receptacles and ourselves as "the givers of all wise things," we quickly become bores.

Many times our kids just want to be heard. They are more capable… Continue

"The great thing in this world is not so much where you stand, as in what direction you are moving." — Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894)


"Is it too late?" We get asked that question on a regular basis, and the answer elicits another question: "Too late for what?" Too late to raise the perfect child? There's no such thing? Too late to make a difference? Never.

All of us have made mistakes. Some of us remain stuck waist-deep in them with no idea how to get out. The first step is t… Continue