How to Teach Your Child to Stop Screaming

Guest Post by L. Elizabeth Krueger of Raising Godly Tomatoes:


Here's my "Hand On/Off" trick for teaching little children to obey their mom's direction and stop screaming defiantly for no good reason:

When a child is screaming for NO GOOD REASON (usually just because he's mad) and does not respond favorably when I tell him to stop, I scoop the child up, set him on my lap facing outward, and hold him there securely by placing my left arm over his arms and around his waist.

It's Not About Spanking!

Guest Post by L. Elizabeth Krueger of Raising Godly Tomatoes:

For some unknown reason, some people, even after reading my book multiple times, think it's all about spanking. No matter how many times I say that if they're parenting the right way they will only need to spank for a short period of time in the beginning, they are still spanking the same kids for the same offenses year later - and thinking this is the right way to parent! ACK!

Adventures in House Cleaning

I used to get frustrated with my children when I let them help me mop the kitchen floors, because they couldn't seem to stay out of the bucket, always wanting to keep dunking their rags in and then spreading WAY too much soapy water all over the place!

Then one day a couple of years back, I decided to just lose the bucket altogether! I literally just took the soapy water and poured it ALL over the kitchen floor. It was great! The kids were just thrilled to take their rags and slop the soapy suds all over the place, and in the process my floors got a great scrub!

Park It!

About the time my oldest child was 11 months old, I found myself in a quandary. I did not know how to get him to sit still, even for a few minutes! He was an early walker (just before 10 months), and loved being mobile. That was great in most situations, but we were living in Japan at the time, and there were certain situations in which that was not great, like during train rides!  Our church also did not have a "cry room" or anything like that, nor were the messages able to be heard through a speaker in the hallway, so I missed the majority of the church service week after week, because our little guy was just "incapable" of sitting still!

Arrogants Anonymous

Guest Post by Megan:

Hi.  I'm Megan...and I'm arrogant.

Sure, it's a misquote: but if alcoholism is destructive enough to warrant intervention like A.A. groups, multiply the Destructo-Factor by the power of ten to describe the effects of arrogance in a person's life.  If there were an organization called Arrogants Anonymous, I'd be a card-carrying member; and just like an alcoholic, I know it won't ever matter how many years I've been sober.  Arrogance is always a constant danger.  Ask Moses, the humblest man who ever lived...and who could not enter the Promised Land because for a time he looked to his own glory and honor instead of God's.

Lessons from the Ironing Board

Lessons from the Ironing Board

My mother was a fulltime homemaker and loved it. She always said that she enjoyed cooking, keeping the house tidy, and even doing dishes. She kept up well with the laundry and often had something good baking in the oven. She homeschooled us children and found time to do extra projects with us as well.  She often offered hospitality for a meal and many times even long-term, for missionaries, friends, and those in need.  I have much to thank her for as an example to me of a homemaker.

What Will Our Children Remember?

About a  month ago, we went to a local restaurant that we hadn't been to for quite a while. My husband and I were *shocked* when we pulled into the parking lot and our 6 year old told his sister, "Yay! This is the place that gave me a free ice cream cone!"  We were shocked because that happened about 4 1/2 years ago, when I was still pregnant with his sister; he was just barely turned 2 years old. We have not talked about it since it happened, so how could he remember that?

My Method of Potty Training- Relaxed and Simple

My Method of Potty Training- Relaxed and Simple

I really don’t have a real high-tech or well thought out strategy for potty training my children, but as I was counseling a first-time mom through a potty crisis a couple weeks ago, I thought a few points might be worth writing about.

What to Do About Picky Kids

 What To Do About Picky Kids

Written in July 2008

Am I the only one who gets tired of picky kids in the house??? I was sure that I would never raise picky kids; they would simply be expected to eat whatever was set before them, and that was that. 

Breakfast and lunch are rarely a problem, but at dinner time it seems that there is always someone that is unhappy, someone that just "isn't hungry", or something to complain about. We have tried different approaches: disciplining for complaining about the food, clearing the table and making them go without until the following meal, and even then we often saved their plate and gave them the same thing at the following meal, etc.

Cabin Fever Solutions

 Cabin Fever Solutions

I don’t know about you, but I am feeling SO ready for spring!! I haven’t feel too stir crazy for most of the winter, but all of a sudden, I’m feeling the days drag on. So, I have been trying to dig out some ideas to keep the kids happy and busy for this last little bit of being cooped up. I’d love to hear your ideas too – leave a comment below!

My Two Cents on Co-sleeping

I was asked this question:

I'm sure you have always had people ask you if you get enough sleep? I get this question all of the time and when I tell people I actually do, I think they are more than shocked. I mean, Esther sleeps with me for right now and her feeding is really automatic, so I never have to fully awake to feed her. But I guess what I am trying to get at is the fact that she does sleep well through the night, and I don't know if this is just because we sleep together and she is breastfed, so we don't need to wake up, or if other babies that are breastfed as well are just "up" during those nighttime hours. Am I blessed with a good sleeper, or do all co-sleeping, breastfed babies just naturally stay asleep most/ all of the night?

My Two Cents on Co-Sleeping

Before I had my first child, I was SOLD on co-sleeping, and I do mean with a capital “S”!

STARTING BABY ON SOLID FOODS

It has arrived again – another one of my children is beginning to eat solid foods. I have contemplated posting about how I do this “food thing” with my babies for a while, and now that I am facing that stage once again, I decided to post about it - to give myself a refresher!

You may be interested in reading this post as well, which includes some very helpful information. I actually do a very similar process as that mother, as far as theory goes, but I think I may be less methodical. So, here are my two cents, for what it’s worth!

The Vine and the Branches

Raising children is such a challenging job!  There are so many things you need to do – train them for life, train them in obedience, teach them how to relate to people, provide them with stimulating experiences, correct them for defiance and misbehavior, give them opportunities to explore the world and encourage them in academic pursuits as well.
But I believe that one of the most important things we can do as parents is build a loving relationship with our children.
I learned this in a very poignant way a couple of years back when we spent a month in Brazil, visiting my husband’s family.
There were eleven of us in a tiny apartment, plus aunts, uncles, cousins and friends over visiting every day. Everywhere we went, it was in a huge group. We had virtually no time alone with the children.

They are Happiest When They are Working

I think I have found a BIG key to happy children: giving them plenty of work to do. Good, physical labor seems to give them much better attitudes!

Don’t get me wrong – I certainly know the value of child’s play as well, and my children certainly get plenty of time for that as well.  However, we seldom see the benefits of teaching children to work touted in our modern society.

I Pray for My Children

I  made this list some time ago and thought someone else might find it helpful as well. Many of them speak to using different parts of their little bodies for the glory of God. I like to pray this while holding or nursing a baby, touching feet, hands, etc as I pray. 

I Pray For My Children:

Several years ago, I wrote a few articles for Heart of the Matter Online, and I just decided to post them here so I don't lose them. :)

Putting the Homeschool Cart Before the Horse

By Elizabeth K. Tsukayama

 

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…” Proverbs 1:7

I started attending our local homeschool conference when my oldest child was 22 months old, and I am so glad I did! At that point, my husband and I were not looking for information on the nuts and bolts of teaching different subjects, but rather inspiration on the visionary aspects of homeschooling – the big picture.
Our firstborn is “one smart cookie”. At 22 months, he knew the alphabet backward and forward, could count to some fairly large number, and talked like a five year old. I was understandably proud of my little genius and was constantly looking for ways to increase his scholastic abilities.