Parenting Tips

By Caron C. Andrews and Amanda Scott What is empathy and why is it important to cultivate it in our children? Empathy is being able to recognize and understand another person’s feelings and experiences. Being empathetic is important because it’s a cornerstone in loving, healthy relationships and in being compassionate. It’s key to understanding the […]

A media guideline is a great tool for protecting your family from online dangers and excessive usage of devices. By Caron C. Andrews Cell phones, televisions, iPods, tablets, laptops, PCs—they’ve become a way of life and a way of communicating and relating to each other. They provide great sources of information and tools that make many formerly time-consuming tasks […]

By Mary Ann Benson, M.S.W., L.S.W. Show your children unconditional love. There need to be daily physical and verbal expressions of affection and encouragement for your children that are not in response to something they have done positively. It’s important not to send the message that your children are only lovable when they are behaving well […]

By Amy Hoyt, Ph.D. Dr. Amy Hoyt is a Visiting Professor at University of the Pacific and Mother of 5. Feminism is a broad social movement with a long history of advocating on behalf of women. There are many different expressions of feminism within the U.S., and it’s no secret that feminism can provoke strong opinions and […]

By Caron C. Andrews Do your children trust you enough to ask you the toughest questions? Do they know that they have an ally in you, someone who will champion them and give them straight answers? Do they know that you will handle their deepest concerns and fears with loving care? Building trust with your […]

By Amanda Grossman-Scott Update May 26, 2015-With the accusations against and acknowledgment of wrong doing by a member of the reality-TV-famed Duggar Family I can’t help but think that this is another result of many parents’ fear of or refusal to discuss sexual intimacy with their children. What are parents afraid of? Information empowers children. […]

By Caron C. Andrews Every parent has found themselves at one time or another saying things to their teenagers that they later regret. Or that shut down whole conversations. Or that their kids make clear are neither helpful nor welcome. These are things that can pop easily into your mind when you’re mad or frustrated at […]

So the children in your life know their worth; 20 ways to compliment a child that have everything to do with who they are and nothing to do with appearance.

Many times young children don’t know exactly what they are asking, so finding out what the context is can help prevent giving more information than they really need at that point. Similarly, it can help pinpoint what the child’s true concern is. When children learn that they can discuss things with you and you’ll be patient, honest, and respectful of them, the trust will grow. Lay a foundation for this early and your children will likely continue coming to you as they grow older.

By Caron C. Andrews Search online and you can find all kinds of tips on how men can be good lovers and avoid things that turn women off. You can find tons of information on birth control and avoiding STDs. But where can a young man turn to learn about the emotional and relational aspects […]

By Caron C. Andrews There are conflicting messages about sex everywhere we look: that it’s good, that it’s bad, that everyone is doing it, that it’s important to save it for marriage. There are countless ways pop culture reduces it to unemotional, un-relational entertainment. There’s also plenty of information about how amazing and life-enhancing it […]

There is no one source that is going to tell you exactly what to say or how to respond perfectly to every question your child might have. But I can tell you this: the more we talk about sex, the more comfortable we are talking about sex and sexuality with our kids. Don’t have “The Sex Talk” with your Child- Have Many

By Caron C. Andrews Pornography has saturated our culture, from clothing to speech to racy TV shows to hard-core porn videos. We can talk about porn with our children in open and honest ways in order to curb its harmful effects, but did you realize there are ways you can fight porn beyond talking about […]

Mothers have a huge impact on their sons’ emotional development. We can help them become healthy, productive, and secure men by promoting their sense of self-worth throughout their childhood and adolescence in many different ways.