Being Present for the Presents

This picture made me laugh.  This is a clever yet poignant statement about the way we often operate in our everyday family life.  This family isn’t putting on a fake front, even for the ubiquitous happy holidays happy family photo.  This picture made me think about being fully present in the moment.  It is true that we can be so preoccupied and distracted that we miss our own lives.  We can even miss the times that are supposed to be the happiest, most memorable times!  “Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. And today? Today is a gift. That’s why
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December 2, 2011 | by
Categories: Family, Holidays, and Transitions / Change.
Tags: anxiety, books, christmas, depression, Family, Holidays, and Stress.

Mother’s Day

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there!  Nobody loves us like our mothers, right?  The quote “A face only a mother could love” is a testament to the staying power of motherly love.  A mother’s love and nurturing are often taken for granted.  Remembering the significance of mothers in our society is a big reason that mother’s day was first established by Anna Marie Jarvis. She was a West Virginian by the way. Social research has studied the influence of mothers on child development.  Results show that if it weren’t for mothers, there would be no children!  All
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April 29, 2011 | by
Categories: Family and Holidays.
Tags: Children, Holidays, influences, and mothers.

Traits of Healthy Families – Part 5

Ready or not, the holidays are upon us!  Hopefully this means you are excited and in the spirit rather than stressed out by this holiday season. It has worked out well that this last column on traits of healthy families will cover traits that show how important the holidays can be to your family wellness.  This is the last installment in a series on the 15 traits of healthy families identified by family expert Dolores Curran.  The three traits left to discuss are that healthy families have rituals and traditions, value service to others, and have a shared religious core.
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May 15, 2007 | by
Categories: Family.
Tags: christmas, Family, Holidays, religion, and service.

Traits of Healthy Families – Part 1

The summer season is entering its final stretch now.  Families will be trying to squeeze a few more valuable vacations in before school starts.  Sometimes August feels like “the calm before the storm” because the new school year often hits like a strong wind that scatters the children and blows apart the parents’ schedules.  I want to encourage you to take what time is left this summer to shore up your family relationships and overall functioning.  Now is the best time to change and improve things in your family, before the frenetic pace of school begins.  Rather than worry about
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May 3, 2007 | by
Categories: Family.
Tags: Children, communication, conversation, Family, Holidays, listening, Stress, and tv.

Parents Unite! Take Back Christmas!

With the end of Thanksgiving, the “Holiday Season” is in full swing.  In addition to the everyday grind, there is all this extra stuff to do to get ready for the holidays: shopping, baking, planning reunions, planning parties, wrapping, decorating, putting Christmas trees in stands, getting hunters out of tree stands, and numerous other tasks.  Why do we put ourselves through this every year?  The Scrooges and Grinches of the world see it as a waste of time, all this pointless effort for one frenzied day of consumerism.  Those who love Christmastime hold this time as a special time of
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December 2, 2006 | by
Categories: Family and Holidays.
Tags: christmas, Holidays, presents, Stress, and time.