Janis B. Meredith's Blog: JBM Thinks Sportsparenting, page 16

3 Questions Parents Must Ask When a Child Doesn’t Cooperate

Kids who don’t listen, respond, or obey–this behavior is not at all unusual; every parent faces it and each deals with it in their own way. Many parents respond in frustration and anger. Many threaten, yell or bribe. Most will do whatever it takes in the moment to remedy the situation and restore peace in...

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Is There Such a Thing as “Too Much” When it Comes to Youth Sports?

Do your kids play youth sports several days a week throughout the year? On weekends too? According to a report in the New York Times, Young athletes are practicing too hard in just one sport, increasing the risk of injuries and burnout. New guidelines urge parents to reduce the intensity. New recommendations issued by the...

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Why Kids Lie and How Parents Should Respond

Kids lie. Unfortunately, no one has to teach a child how to lie; it’s one of those things that comes very naturally, and even though it’s human to bend the truth, it’s not a good habit for children to get into. Honesty is a hugely valued character trait in life–in families, in workplaces–and basically you...

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How To Raise Thankful Kids

It’s the time of the year for thankfulness. We do thankful things: we share with those who have less, give generously to the Salvation Army Bellringers, and look for ways to teach our children gratefulness so they can be thankful kids. These are all good things. I’m glad that Thanksgiving and the holiday season remind...

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Kids and Money: What Does Your Child Need to Learn?

When it comes to kids and money, if you don’t teach your kids how to take care of money, they will learn it from somebody else. Is that something you are willing to risk? Teaching children money principles is going to take time and effort from you. Along with most other parenting challenges, you must...

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Good Cop/Bad Cop Parenting, Which are YOU?

Good cop/bad cop parenting is another way of saying that parents disagree about what’s best for their kids. Do you find that you and your spouse are often opposing each other when it comes to dealing with your kids? In many homes, mom and dad become good cop and bad cop. Maybe in your home,...

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What are Competitive Youth Sports Doing to Our Kids?

Competitive youth sports are drawing kids in at earlier and earlier ages. Or maybe I should say, they’re drawing the parents in sooner and sooner. In an article titled What Rep Sports are Really Doing to Our Kids, author Courtney Shea says this: It all starts so innocently: A kid joins the neighborhood house league,...

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It’s Time to Change Your Mind About Raising Kids

Raising kids is not an easy task. There’s opportunity for parents to make lots of mistakes because, after all, we are human. Over the past 12 weeks, we’ve talked about the biggest mistakes that parents make, taken from the book, 12 Huge Mistakes Parents Can Avoid, by Tim Elmore. The mistakes are: Mistake #1: Parents not letting...

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12 Huge Parenting Mistakes You Can Avoid…Mistake #12: Preparing the Path for Your Child instead of Preparing Your Child for the Path

The last of the 12 parenting mistakes is one that is very easy for parents to fall into. What does it mean to prepare the path for your child versus preparing your child for the path? In his book, 12 Huge Mistakes Parents Can Avoid, author Tim Elmore says that preparing the path for a child is...

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12 Huge Parenting Mistakes You Can Avoid…Mistake #11: Being a Controlling Parent

Being a controlling parent is a very common mistake that parents make. They will give up sleep, sacrifice money, and carve out time, but giving up control? Much harder to do. In his book, 12 Huge Mistakes Parents Can Avoid, author Tim Elmore talks about the importance of parents not doing too much for their kids, taking...

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