Families | New Beginnings

Teaching Your Parents To Love Technology

Since technology is so important, you can help your parents learn to embrace it for communication needs, even if they have reached old age. Although your efforts might seem futile at first, with patience and the right approach, you can do a lot to ensure that your parents can harness the power of technology to assist them with their unique needs.

First of all, remember that that which comes so naturally to you may be completely bewildering to a parent who is not grown up with the benefits of the same technology that you have. Therefore, it is important to maintain a calm and supportive demeanor even while teaching the most basic of concepts such as using a web browser, composing an e-mail or learning how to bookmark a favorite website like www.direct.tv, to return to at a later time.

When you are teaching your parents about technology, make sure to tailor your lessons so that they will be informed about skills that are important to them. For example, if your mother only wants to learn how to operate her mobile phone, you both may become frustrated if you insist on teaching her how to operate her computer as well. Usually, once people become comfortable with learning skills that they consider to be essential, they will be more willing to tackle other skill sets.

Finally, be aware of the pacing of your lessons, and be sensitive to your parents ability to retain the knowledge that you’re teaching them. For example, after you have taught them a concept, you may find it worthwhile to suggest that they try to re-create the situation on their own as you look on and provide feedback. This is a good way to ensure that they have learned the lesson’s content and will increase their chances of being able to perform it on their own when you are not present.

Filed Under: Families, Lifestyle Tagged With: Education, Learning, Technology

Choosing the Best Obstetrician During Pregnancy

Women want an obstetrician they feel comfortable with and one that they have confidence in. But finding just the right one isn’t an easy task. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when you’re looking for one.

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

First, refer to your health care plan. Some insurance plans require that you to go to doctors that are on their preferred list. If so, this requirement automatically reduces and limits who you can choose. Talk to your insurance provider to find out.

Talk to friends and family members about whom they have for their obstetrician, and start a list of doctors whom people recommend. Ask people for their doctor’s name and whether they like the doctor. Ask them about their delivery experience and if they were satisfied with the total care they received.

If you have recently moved to a new city, or if you don’t have someone you could ask, you can use Canada 411 to find the name of a doctor. Or, ask for referrals from your neighbors or check with your city offices. Some cities provide a welcome packet to new residents, which includes the names of doctors and their office addresses.

When you have a list of several names, call and make appointments to meet the doctor and talk to him or her. Some doctors don’t charge for this interview appointment. Take a list of your questions and concerns, and take notes so you can remember what the doctor says. Also, pay attention to the staff and see if they’re friendly. Before you know it, you’ll have the perfect obstetrician for you!

Filed Under: Advice, Families, Lifestyle

Create Your Own Pocket-Friendly Style Statement

Want to feature that million dollar look? You do not have to necessarily spend that much on it! An individual sense of style and a sharp, intelligent approach to adding costumes to your closet can take you a long way. The process can be systematic and thoughtful. Your clothes can be an eclectic mix of good solid pieces and a fun riot of colors. Your DIY look should be a combination of whatever compliments you and represents your personal style. The right style statement demands two things to attract notice and flattering praises:

the way clothes fit on a person, and
how well a person manages to carry them.

Once you have defined your taste and figured out what makes you look absolutely adorable, you can set about to acquire these pieces. For example, a bright colored tee from LRG Clothing combined with a pair of denim jeans can give you killer looks without spending a fortune. Also, it is important not to be afraid of experimenting and trying out the new looks of the season.

Colors and motifs really matter when you are assembling your own look because you do not want to seem out of fashion. Fashion houses like LRG clothing really cater to current urban looks and fashionable street wear, a must for young guys these days. You can accessorize your look by adding affordable watches, caps, hooded sweatshirts, and other essentials for the ultra cool look. You will leave others wondering how you managed to dress so expressively and fashionably.

Filed Under: Advice, Families Tagged With: Clothing, Fashion, Fashion design

Starting Over: Life After Divorce

BEVERLY HILLS, CA - JUNE 07: (FILE PHOTO) Act...

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

There is such a thing as life after divorce. You just have to remember that it’s not about stuff. You, as the opposing party who didn’t expect it or desire it, may not feel that way, but rest assured, life does move on.

Georgia divorce laws, Illinois divorce laws, California divorce laws — it doesn’t matter what state you’re in, you’ll notice right away that material possessions usually monopolize the meaning behind divorce. Even children can be considered “possessions.” The reality is this: that’s what makes divorce so dismal! Who gets the house? Who gets the dog? Who gets the car? Who gets the kids? When does each parent get the kids?

The fact is all this debate can be exhausting. In the end, none of that stuff should matter. Life after divorce, honestly, shouldn’t be about the stuff, or the rules, or the laws, or which parent should have more rights based on the facts of the marriage life leading to divorce. What matters is simply this: You want your kids to have the best life possible. You know that the only way to make sure of that is to live your life. No bickering. No arguing about splitting the assets or money or whatnot. There’s no time or energy for that. Focus on life after the fact. A divorce can be way too painful to focus on the life that’s going on right at that moment.

Your divorce is happening right now. But just know that in the future, what you should focus on are your kids. That’s your life.

Filed Under: Families, Lifestyle Tagged With: California, Divorce, Law

Family Game Night

Sometimes individual family members get so caught up and busy with what they are doing that they don’t spend time together as a family. Lack of quality time together causes family bonds to fade away. The family is the most important unit in society and parents need to strengthen their relationships with their children. They can do this by having regular family game nights.

Having a family game night builds relationships in the family. It’s a happy time, a time for playing together, laughing together, and enjoying each other’s company. It also improves communication. When parents and children are relaxed, children are more willing to talk about themselves.

Game night can be a simple affair of playing games and eating a simple treat such as popcorn. Or, it could be elaborate with a theme, flyers or invitations, costumes, and specialty food.

Game nights are also a learning time. Children learn to take turns. They learn good sportsmanship. They learn patience as they wait to take their turn. If you play ping pong, baseball, or shoot some hoops, it’s also a time for physical activity.

Playing games can be subtle learning activities. Parents can foster creativity by playing games such as Cranium, Gestures, or Pictionary. Playing games such as Boggle and Scrabble builds children’s vocabulary skills. The games of Clue and Scattegories build critical thinking skills.

A family game night is an inexpensive family activity – much cheaper than going out to a movie where tickets and treats can cost over $40 a family. If money is tight, playing games is a good activity.

Filed Under: Families, Lifestyle Tagged With: Family Game Night, Pictionary, Scrabble

How to Deal with Your Child Going Away to College

For many parents, their lives change drastically as soon as a child goes away to school. While this is an important step for these students, who are starting their own lives, this does not make the change for parents any easier.

Tips for Dealing with Empty Nest Syndrome

Interestingly, there is an informal condition labeled empty nest syndrome that describes this exact process — the process of a parent who is suddenly faced with an empty nest, or no children at home. What do you do when this happens to you?

Realize the child is not out of your life, just exploring the world. Do not take it personally that your child is no longer at home with you.
Take a vacation. Start a new business. Do something new and exciting that takes away from your thoughts of “losing your child.” You may find new opportunities at EarnMyDegree.com, if you want to go back to school yourself.
Find ways to be around other people more often. Join clubs or attend various organizational events. Getting around others is important.
Do find new ways to become yourself. For many of these parents, raising their children defined who they are. Now it is time to become yourself in a new and exciting way.
Take time to relax. You may now have the time you need to spend with friends and family. It is also a good time to catch up with your spouse. Try activities you and your spouse can do together.

These are all opportunities for parents, but it is up to you to define what the right move for your needs is. Explore new opportunities.

Filed Under: Families, Relationships Tagged With: Empty Nest, Empty nest syndrome, Parent

Keeping your Family Relationships Strong through the Generations

Coney Island, the Whole Drand Family (LOC)

Image by The Library of Congress via Flickr

While it may be easy to think that your grandmother knows little about your life, or that your great aunt Sally couldn’t begin to understand raising children merely because she never had any of her own—think again.

Keeping your family relationships strong means more than seeing them every few years for a family reunion or on their 70^th birthday; it means keeping the lines of communication open. It means hearing them out, and applying to your own life what may just work. Strength within family members takes a great deal of listening and more than a little understanding if you disagree.

If you make your relationships about differences, you won’t get very far. But make your relationships about love and understanding, and there’s no reason not to believe you will keep your relationships strong.

Interviewing a grandmother or a family member you know little about is a great step not only toward genealogy, but getting that connection you want. Who doesn’t want to talk about their life? Asking a family member out to lunch, or making a surprise visit does wonders for relationships too, as does making a point to sit with a family member during a reunion and scheduling a later time to get together; email works great but don’t count on it for secure bonding. There comes a time when that needed telephone call is in order.

Whatever you decided to do to strengthen your family relationships, just make sure you do it with an honest heart and an open mind ready to listen. There will be no mistaking your instant connection.

Filed Under: Families, Relationships Tagged With: Cousin, Family, Relationships

Tips for Keeping Family Traditions Alive

Family Traditions: Birthday Breakfast In Bed!!

Image by DJJudah via Flickr

Whether it just be a fun activity that all family members take part in or some type of religious tradition, family traditions are an important way of not only bring family members together but keeping that heritage alive. Through the years some family traditions may get lost but there are ways to help keep them going. Here are some tips for keeping family traditions alive.

Plan Ahead

Waiting till the last minute can make it easy for traditions to get lost in the every day happenings so planning ahead of time is important when it comes to keeping these traditions going. Make it a point to get everything that is needed and get everyone together. Be sure to include all family members, including both young and old and new family members to add to the fun.

Pass the Traditions On

Another important step in keeping family traditions alive is to ensure they are passed on to the younger family members. Once a child or teen is old enough to understand, be sure to sit down with them and explain to them the importance of the tradition. Also explaining the significance of the tradition is important as well. While they may not fully comprehend at first, it is still fresh in their mind so they can remember it in later years.

Make it Fun

Make family traditions fun! This is the most important step to keeping family traditions alive. If at all possible add a few new twists to the traditions to keep it modern and up to date. Making the traditions fun will not only encourage the whole family to get involved and have fun!

Filed Under: Families, Relationships Tagged With: Family, Family traditions, Home

Depending Upon Traditions In Your Family’s Life

When raising your children, you may feel that it is very important to ensure that your children grow up in a way that embraces long-standing traditions within your household, as well as create new ones that will persist for years to come. Whether you are seeking to create an entirely new tradition or reinstate one that was created several years ago, the important thing to remember is to start small so as not to seem overwhelming. Many families choose to rely upon traditions during holiday celebrations for example. Ideally, a tradition is something that will create lasting memories but does not require a large amount of constant effort. Many traditions centered around gift exchanges during holiday events. So as not to seem intimidating, if you choose one of these types of traditions, make sure to set a price range that the gift should fall into, so that people who may not have as much money to spend will not feel that they are being left out or slighted.

In closing, remember that traditions do not always have to be related to holidays. In fact, they can be easily integrated into daily life more quickly than you might think. The good news is that traditions are very flexible and can therefore be tailored to achieve any goals that you might have in your own life. For example, if you want your children to be more aware of those who are less fortunate, consider starting a tradition in which you will volunteer at a soup kitchen each week. Or, if you want to encourage environmental awareness, check to see if you can spend time sorting items at a local recycling center on a periodic basis.

Filed Under: Families, Lifestyle Tagged With: Child, Holiday, Tradition

Adjusting To Your Child’s College Lifestyle

if you are a parent, one of the most difficult transitions that you will make in your life may very well be that which occurs when you must send your children off to study at a university. Although the change is usually slightly easier to bear if your child is going to study in a nearby location such as within the same state, many parents find the transitional stage of learning to adjust to life without the constant present of their children a very hard one to bear.

If you count yourself among them, there are a few things you can do to help ensure that relationships with your children remain strong even during their college years. Technology is a wonderful tool especially for bridging the gap across distances. Ideally, you don’t want your only correspondence with your children to be that which occurs when they need more money added to their bank account. To help facilitate beneficial conversations for the both of you, take steps to embrace the types of technology that your children already use in their daily lives.

If your child’s university offers at parents weekend, make plans to attend each year. Most of these events offer a structured way for parents to understand their child’s college lifestyle without seeming overeager or stifling. Although it may be hard to accept your child’s independence as they learn to thrive in a college environment, the transition will likely be easier for the both of you when you make an effort to engage yourself in your child’s new lifestyle in a way that is supportive and consistent. This will demonstrate to your child that they can rely upon you even as you each learn to handle the challenges of these new life stages.

Filed Under: Families, Lifestyle Tagged With: Child, Home, Parent