There is no manual or guide that can tell you the proper way to be a parent, because every child is different and should be treated as such. Although that is true, there are some great tips you can employ to make parenting a much easier job than it has been.
The most important thing to remember while disciplining your children is consistency. Parenting during the terrible-two’s can be challenging, for both little one and adult. At this stage children like to push the limits of what is and is not allowed. Make sure that you set clear boundaries and are consistent with your time-outs so children know what is expected of them.
Even though it is important to spend plenty of time with your kids, take time to relax alone. Doing so helps you to retain your individuality.
Praise your children often! If you ‘catch’ your child doing an appropriate behavior, tell him how proud you are. Children love positive words and praise. Hearing kind words will help your child to feel good about himself and will cause him to continue trying to do good things to receive more praise.
If you have children in your home and you have a fireplace, make sure to get a fireplace or hearth gate. Thousands of children are injured each year from fireplace accidents. These injuries could have easily been prevented if the parent had taken safety precautions and gated off the fireplace.
When your child is having a crying temper tantrum, the best thing you can do is to let them cry it out. Eventually, they will get tired and stop. If your child includes physical demonstrations in their temper tantrums, intervention could be necessary to avoid the possibility of injury.
Sometimes, the best reaction is no reaction at all. When your child throws a temper tantrum or fit, remain calm. Do not try to bribe him or her to behave, but also avoid making irritated or caustic remarks with the intention of threatening or shaming the child. Instead, continue speaking normally, getting chores done and addressing the child, as if he or she was not acting up.
Want your child to have a large vocabulary? Talk to her! Studies show that parents who spend significant amounts of time talking with their children about everyday events have children with larger vocabularies than their peers whose parents spend less time talking to them. So turn off the TV, put down your book, and start a conversation!
A great rainy-day project to do with your little ones, is making macaroni masterpieces. Take pieces of construction paper, elbow macaroni, child-safe glue, and crayons and lay them out on the table. Let your little one color the pieces of construction paper, and then help him glue the macaroni to his drawing. He will be proud to see his own macaroni masterpieces hung from the refrigerator for all to see.
Playing outside with your child will benefit the both of you. Spending time together drawing with chalk on the driveway, will strengthen the bond between you both; many times opening doors to insightful conversation. Playing together outside will also help keep you both physically fit and help you to live happier, healthier lives.
Treat your child the way you’d want your parents to treat you. If you hated it when your child screamed at you, your child will, too. Talking in a calm, rational manner is more likely to get you heard than screaming. Show your children how you would like them to behave when they are angry.
I know life is hectic, but take time to play with your children. You don’t have to play their favorite games every time you play, but make sure to balance what you like to do with what they like to do. It will show them compromise, which is an important thing for them to learn.
Let your children play with anything and everything! If they’d like to color on a cardboard box, let them – what’s the harm? It will develop their hand-eye skills, their artistic imagination, and their self-esteem. Obviously you have to keep your children safe, but let them play outside of the box once in a while!
Getting your kids to do chores can be an opportunity for positive character-building rather than an ordeal. If you keep records (like a chore chart) of your expectations and encourage your children to meet them, you can foster a sense of accomplishment and actually make them look forward to helping out around the house.
If your baby will not settle, dab a bit of lavender essential oil on your neck, and snuggle up to your child. The fragrance from this should actually relax your child. You can also use lavender oil when you want your baby to fall asleep.
Droning noises can help you calm your baby or toddler. Run a faucet or a fan for a few minutes in a room with other kind of noises. The droning noises should remind your baby of hearing your heartbeat in the utero. You can also rock gently your baby at the same time.
A good parenting tip that is good to practice is to spend time with each of your children separately. Each child has a different personality and spending time separately will help them feel appreciated. It is also a way for you to have an experience with them that they will never forget.
Start giving your child healthy treats from the beginning. By offering sugary snacks and other unhealthy treats as either the normal snack or as a reward for good behavior, you are setting up patterns that will be very hard to break. Instead build those patterns with goodies that help them build healthy choices for years to come!
While this is all great advice, some of these methods may not work with your children. That does not mean to give up. It just means that you should switch gears and try to find the methods that will help you to be the best parent your child could possibly have.
