It’s school picture time again which, in my house, caused drama and anxiety the likes of which I’ve never seen.  It seemed a simple enough request of a nine year old that she wear something other than a t-shirt.  But according to her, it was equivalent to killing her. And so it goes, the tween [...]

“Mom, I NEED to talk to you.  I’m having friend problems.” Oh-oh.  Here we go.  Entering into familiar tween territory.  My youngest daughter entered third grade this year with such a definitive shift in awareness, attitude, and emotion, that I’m considering nominating her for tween poster child.  It’s as if my daughter’s eyes have been [...]

How do you know if your tween is ready for a cell phone?  The same way you assess her readiness for other privileges:  take an inventory of her committment and level of responsibility.   Does your tween take care of her belongings?  Is she organized enough to find her things on a regular basis? Has she demonstrated [...]

The following link forwards to an article written by a teen at RadicalParenting.com.    I share it with you because it is a very typical example of the critical and defeating inner dialogue of an adolescent girl.  It reminds us that exterior image or impression is not necessarily indicative of one’s inner sense of self-worth.  A bold, beautiful, accomplished [...]

Cautions from childhood echo in my ear, “What are you complaining about?  Wait til you’re an adult in the real world.  Then you’ll know problems!”  Dismal warnings like this were enough to make me want to curl under my covers and hope that Peter Pan would rescue me from becoming an adult.  Feeling overwhelmed and [...]