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12 Tips for Parenting Your Teenager
by Janet Kontz, MA, LPC Does this sound familiar? We often hear from parents of teenagers that they find it difficult to connect with their kids when they reach the adolescent stage of life. Many parents feel that this is the most daunting time to be a parent. Helping your teenager navigate through this period of life in between childhood and adulthood can be as confusing and frustrating for you, as it is for them. Take heart, parents! It doesn’t have to be a hard as you might think, and you don’t have to do it alone. Here are 12 tips for understanding and parenting your teenager: 1. Expect inconsistencies Teenagers are…
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Empty Nest: Ambivalent Emotions
This summer I watched a mommy bird build a nest in our back yard. Never before had I witnessed such a cycle of nature. This mommy bird was very nurturing and protective. Every day she sat on her little eggs with a watchful eye. When her babies hatched, she was faithful to care for them. She guarded them, she nourished them and she taught them. Then, as is God’s design, one day the nest was empty. Empty Nest and Mixed Emotions Like the mommy bird, as parents, we are nurturing and protective. We care for our babies, we guard them, we tend to their basic needs, and we do our…
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Unconditional Love and Boundaries
A reflection on Cloud & Townsend’s “Boundaries with Kids” In Christian terms, unconditional love is love that doesn’t depend on the attitudes or actions of the beloved. It is a self-sacrificing love, which finds its ultimate expression in Christ’s sacrifice on the cross: “But God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8, RSV). Yet we know that God did not love us just to leave us wallowing in our sin; on the contrary, we are told, “Do you not know that God’s love is meant to lead you to repentance?” (Romans 2:4, RSV). We all desire love from our parents, children,…
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New Year’s Resolutions for Parents
by Carolyn Knarr, MSW, LCSW, Director of Children’s Therapeutic Services Every year around this time many of us make new year’s resolutions but very few of us keep them. Here are some resolutions for parents that are worth keeping: 1. Increase the amount of time you spend in casual conversation with your child. A recent study showed that 85% of what parents say to their children is either telling them what to do or what not to do. Very quickly, children turn off their listening ears. Try making positive comments about what they are wearing, or their hair, or something they have done well recently. For example: “I don’t know…
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