There’s nothing nicer than cuddling up with your kids and a book and sharing a great story together. I’m sure that all of you have had the experience…
As the first day of February dawned, I realised with horror that my youngest daughter Emily turned 9 in less than a month and I had done absolutely…
Over the next few weeks there will be a myriad of emotions at the school gate. Tears glistening in the eyes struggling to be held back, excitement with…
It’s that time again when parents are reminded by relentless advertising on TV that its is time to get their children ready to return to school. I meet…
Back to school is a busy time of year and there are always thousands of pieces of paper! I got this idea from a craft website and not only…
“Ding ding ding” School’s in. Sigh. Back to grind for many of us. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas holiday with loads of fun, laughter, food and…
Do you know what your children want to be when they grow up? Maybe a doctor? A pop star? Or perhaps captain of the All Blacks? ChildFund, through…
It’s a new year; time for focusing on new challenges. For parents, this year will see an increase in SMART phone usage and schools moving on implementing BYOD…
I saw a version of these rainbow biscuits in Pinterest and I couldn’t resist having a go at some myself… they looked so pretty! But my three year…
Are you a parent or a caregiver of a child, interested in his or her health and wellbeing? If our children are to enjoy optimal health, they must…
Making a packed lunch for children every day can be quite a test of parents’ ingenuity. It’s all too easy to fall into a boring routine or a…
Holidays can become stressful times of the year very quickly. Work stress can flow over into holiday stress, and mess up a good holiday. But taking holidays with your teen doesn’t…
Summer is almost upon us, and that means holidays and Christmas too… I do take a little comfort here in New Zealand that we don’t break out the…
One of the most important factors in preventing learning difficulties from developing in children is to ensure that from the moment of birth each child is free when…
I was teaching a parenting seminar a few weeks ago and showing parents how to insist that their children do as they are told. A parent asked, “But isn’t…
I started my cake decorating career back with Bananas in Pyjamas for a little guy called Tom for his first birthday. Tom has now just celebrated his 15th…
The importance of family traditions. Family rituals and traditions bring us together; they connect us and become part of each family’s identity. Birthday celebrations are amongst the most…
If colouring books and pencils aren’t enough to keep the kids busy during the holidays, then these website ideas might do the trick. We’ve pulled together the top 10 educational…
Parent often ask me what they can do at home to help their children with learning difficulties. Because we are engaged in a process of remediating the underlying…
A vegetarian diet can be very healthy, but care needs to be taken to achieve a well balanced diet to ensure an adequate intake of nutrients. In a…
Many studies have supported the evidence that vegetarians have a lower risk for developing health issues such as obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and diet related cancers. Overall vegetarians…
In a recent workshop for RTLBs I discussed all of the different diagnosis which are given to children today with learning or behaviours difficulties. We now have ADHD,…
BALANCE is a Key to Successful Learning Vision and hearing, good fuel and hydration are obvious to most of us. However, many parents and teachers do not realise…
Getting ready to go back to school holds excitement and anticipation for some students and pure dread for others. Those children who have all of their “learning equipment”…
As a parent your first steps are to ensure that your child’s most obvious learning equipment is in good order and functioning well. Parents should submit their children…
Every parent who has ever delivered their child to school on their very first day at the tender age of 5 years will recall the myriad of emotions…
How bad has this winter been for colds and flus? I have seen countless cases of families suffering with the nasty viruses that have been circulating around the…
Are there more children today with Learning Difficulties? If you ask any senior teacher they will invariably tell you that there are more children today with learning and…
School lunches may be something that we all hate having to prepare each morning. However school holidays can often bring different challenges.
Often, the first sign that you have osteoporosis is that you break a bone. Osteoporosis has no symptoms and the disease offers its victims no warning until it is…
The Christchurch mosque shootings have shaken most of us to the core. There is just a general disbelief that anything like this could have happened in New Zealand……
Thank you to all the lovely people who have sent me “real” questions about their daily lives as parents. I will answer them in the order they arrived.
As parents, we often find ourselves with two competing parenting “ethics” and these are the source of a parenting dilemma that means we are uncertain of “which way to…
Happy New Year! Once again the media abounds with articles about sun and safety. A recent one began: “Parents warned about sun’s danger.” It began with a reminder…
Recently I attended yet another parenting seminar, in the ongoing quest, I suppose, for anything that may assist with the challenging role we face as parents. This seminar…
Vernon and I have had a special privilege these holidays. It is to spend a length of time in our one-roomed beach-house in sometimes less-than-summer weather with our…
Today I am going to sound like a “Grumpy Grandma.” I am going to tell you all about 4 common labels that disempower parents. These really annoy me because…
Are you seeking effective parenting methods for raising your kids? Family therapist and renowned author Diane Levy provides 5 key strategies to improve child attitude and behaviour —…
It never ceases to amaze me how often a certain wisdom has been known for a long time and then, Hey Presto!, along comes a scientific discovery that…
With our growing obesity problem in New Zealand we have seen the introduction of a number of food guidelines being issued to schools. This has included advising parents…
Much has been said lately about wrapping your kids up in cotton wool. I have been as guilty as most about being over protective, however the more kids…
People often ask can toddlers help in the kitchen and the answer is a resounding Yes! As we know toddlers and preschoolers often want to be with you…
It appears that the topic of the moment is the ever increasing “cost of living “ particularly the basic necessities such as food. You can imagine that with…
I think my 14 year old son is very lucky. Lucky because he has just spent the first week of his school holidays with his Grandparents. Now, I…
We’ve been a lucky family when it comes to grief and dealing with death in the family. My children have both sets of grandparents to provide all the…
Only 3 more weeks left of Term 1. I seem to have just recovered from the last holidays. As much as I enjoy the break from routine, the…
The school term is about to get under way, and we are about to get back into the school lunch box routine. It is a well known fact that what…
Every so often the age range of our children creates little dilemmas – and Christmas is one of those times! Remember we’re the ones with a teenager, a…
So what does a Super Dad write about for his first parenting article? Having just assumed this mantle I find that the pressure is now on. Out of…
If you worry about whether your child is eating enough and whether the amount they eat is normal, you are not alone. Many parents feel uncertain about what…
Life with children is always busy and planning meals, preparing food, and then getting the little darlings to eat it can take up big chunks of your precious…
The issues of chores and pocket money and whether there should be linkage between the two have always vexed parents. Vernon and I tried many and varied ways…
I am interested in your knowing that, if the law continues to inform you that you may not smack your child (or, at the very least, ought not to…
Super Granny Diane Levy talks to Kerry Burridge about her books and her work with families.
It’s been an adventurous couple of months in the Leishman household as we reached the culmination of a number of years of planning to take off on a…
Sometimes, when I give a seminar that involves teaching our children to do as they are told, a question comes up early on. I have just got as far…
Mark Leishman’s had a long and varied career as a New Zealand radio and TV broadcaster. Here’s his ten top tips for developing respect and assertiveness in our…
Dietary iron is something we all need but women, children and teenagers commonly eat less iron than they need. In New Zealand it is estimated that about 42%…
Unfortunately, when it comes to our teeth, we’re not like sharks – we don’t have 3 rows of teeth and we can’t grow a new one if we lose…
I was deeply disturbed when I heard that another child had been abused and was in a serious condition in Starship hospital. I can’t bear to think of…
About seventeen years ago, I read a book which impressed me greatly and turned upside down my thinking about how to raise children. The book was called “The…
It’s the age old parent’s fear and dilemma. When to tell your child the facts of life? My tuppence worth. Do it earlier than you think advisable, and…
One of our many important roles as a parent or caregiver is to help our children foster and develop good eating habits and attitudes to food from a…
I was trying to recall how and when I learnt about the birds and the bees. I know for sure there was never any mother-daughter, or for that…
I often get calls from parents worried about their children’s self-esteem. They may have seen their teen drop out of situations, which they can usually cope with, or heard…
When parents are faced with the prospect of homework for the first time, it can be a little daunting. And it’s not always that obvious how you can…
By now our children are well entrenched into their new school year. Having coped with the anxiety of the first few days, the tiredness of the first few…
Barbara Coloroso in her delightful and insightful book, “Kids are Worth It” talks about three styles of parenting: Jellyfish parenting, Brick-wall parenting and Backbone parenting. Another version of…
When I had my first baby, thirty-five years ago, there were two questions that about-to-be mothers were asking themselves and each other. (Yes. I know that I said…
The nightly ritual when I get home from work is probably mirrored by many Dads around the country. In the door, take a breath and then it’s the…
Here’s a reality check and it’s courtesy of my good friend Jim Mora (he was the warm, witty voice of Wonder Dogs)- Jim’s afternoon radio show on National Radio…
Do you frequently look for new recipes or do you stick with the same recipes you always use? Could some of your favourite recipes do with a makeover?…
Having four children contributes to a heavy workload and I often say that I have too many children and not enough husbands. Or, as someone corrected me recently,…
I enjoy the holidays but with 4 boys at home I have definitely run out of ideas to keep them busy and active without depleting all our financial…
I sense my 8 and 10 year old sons are struggling to believe that Santa Claus is really real. This year there have been no requests for Santa’s…
I have succumbed to the “but everybody else has” argument in allowing my two eldest sons to have mobile phones. According to them, every child eleven years and…
I am not a perfect parent and as much as I adore my four sons they aren’t perfect either; come to think of it neither is my husband…
One of the questions we are often asked as parents is “What after school activities do your children do?” Maybe it is just the “mother thing”. Since the…
Childhood obesity is becoming a big problem in New Zealand, as it is in most Western countries. The National Children’s Nutrition Survey, carried out in 2002, showed that…
Many of us hark back to a distant memory. It may be of our family, it may be of someone else’s family, it may be of a mythical…
I know that many of us dread the kindy and school holidays. Weeks without a break from the kids. For me, I always see it from a different…
Years ago I went to a business seminar by Andrew Smith of APT (Accelerated Planning Technique). He based his planning method on the idea that every large project…
The return to the school term routine presents a good time to reflect on how meal times in your household work. Here’s some of my key tips to…