amy@daretoparent.com

Do you worry about doing a "good job" raising your kids? Do you struggle with "how" to accomplish this goal? Does it keep you up at night? If so, keep reading! I recently participated as a guest speaker for a panel discussion about raising teens. Concerns from parents ranged from drug use to social media's influence. There was a central theme underlying all of their questions: "How do I do this parenting thing right?" We had various experts, from a pediatrician to schoo

"Time out" is usually related to the correction of our child's misbehavior. Sometimes life turns the tables on us... I will never forget the time our oldest, then 6, was mad at me after a particularly passionate power struggle and she told me to go to my room...and I DID! Yep, I looked at my husband, told him I needed a minute, went to our room and closed the door. To be honest, I stayed for more than "a minute" and it was glorious! I wasn't in the habit of letting our

Did you know there are 3 secret benefits of eating meals together as a family? Learn how family meals boost your child's social IQ!

Independence is something we all want our kids to have, but for some even the smallest things become a drama filled battle of wills. Does this scenario sound familiar.... Parent: "Can you please go clean your room?" Child: (using a whining or pouting voice) "I just can't do it by myself, can you help me?" If you've had this happen with your kids, then you're in the right place! I'm so excited to share these 4 steps to help you change this dynamic while encouraging posi

Parenting...sometimes the struggles have NOTHING to do with the kids! Jim says, "If she would just set the rules and stick with them, the kids would behave better." To which Sue replies, "Me?! How about you stop nagging at everyone? The kids will get their chores done eventually." Parenting isn't easy, especially when each parent has a different parenting style! Each parent believes they are right, so what can we do to settle this conflict? Going backwards to move forward...

We watch adorable baby food commercials and think, "I can't wait to have those happy moments with my own kids." When we actually have kids we discover parenting is hard work, sleepless nights and days of questioning our ability to deal with a two-year-old mid-tantrum. It is also life lessons we wouldn't have had without our kiddos! Lesson #1: It's okay to admit we don't know everything Part of parenting is feeling unprepared. My first real struggle came during our firstborn'