This post about mental health and teens has been sponsored by BetterHelp. All opinions are my own. Parenting teens can be incredibly challenging. This is a time in their lives when hormones are raging and they have an intense desire to not communicate with their parents. Academic stress, societal expectations, and interpersonal relationships create challenges in their lives that they NEED to talk about. How do parents help their teenagers tackle the stress of these chaotic years? And where can teens and … [Read more...]
Celebrating High School Graduation with Burgers, Tears, and Memories
May 30, 2018 by · Leave a Comment
This post about celebrating high school graduation has been sponsored by Culver's. All opinions are my own. The school year is drawing to a close. It's hard to believe that the last 9 months have flown by so quickly. What makes this year particularly difficult is that I have a high school senior. There will be no going back for this guy. He is moving onward and upwards and will be heading off to college in a few months. His impending departure has me wanting to cling to every moment I have left with him. He is harder to hold on to as a … [Read more...]
Things College Kids Need to Stay Organized
March 22, 2018 by · Leave a Comment
This post about things college kids need to stay organized has been sponsored by Best Buy. All opinions are my own. I am the proud parent of one high school senior. We stressed out for months about SAT scores, worried a while longer about college applications, and now have breathed a sigh of relief that he is heading off to college in the fall. Except that I am really worried about his ability to stay organized at college. I love my son dearly, however, organization is not his strongest skill. His room is a mess, the agenda he owns is … [Read more...]
A Message for my Daughter About Acting Her Age
January 22, 2018 by · Leave a Comment
I am writing a message for my daughter about acting her age as part of the #DisruptAging campaign. This post is made possible with support from AARP’s Disrupt Aging. All opinions are my own. When my children were young, they were very tall for their age. That means at age five, they were the size of an 8 year old. Which meant that when they ACTED five, they got some very nasty looks from people who wanted them to 'act their age'. The age they ASSUMED my children were, anyhow. It created a lot of stress for me and probably unreasonable … [Read more...]
Make Time for Music No Matter What Your Age
January 16, 2018 by · 6 Comments
Thank you Fender for sponsoring this post about why you should make time for music. Learn guitar at home with Fender Play! One of the first formal classes I joined with my children was a small music class at our church. The kids were babies and toddlers at that point. The instruments they used were wooden maracas and brightly colored shaker toys. We sang and we clapped and generally had a grand and glorious time for a solid hour. As the children grew up, they brought home the dreaded recorders from school. We signed them up for formal … [Read more...]
Beauty Stocking Stuffers for Teens That Will Be A Hit This Year
December 1, 2017 by · 1 Comment
This discussion about beauty stocking stuffers for teens has been sponsored by Olay and Braun at Walmart. All opinions are my own. Gone are the days of getting my kids Pokémon cards for their Christmas stockings. I have teenagers now, and it has gotten harder to find stocking stuffers that they will really use. I could load their stockings with candy but there are enough sweets around this house in December without me buying them more. If you are hunting for stocking stuffers for teens this year, I thought I would share a few that might be a … [Read more...]
High Tech Holiday Gift Ideas and Shopping Technology for Teens
November 20, 2017 by · Leave a Comment
This post about high tech holiday gift ideas and technology for teens has been sponsored by Intel. All opinions expressed here are my own. When the kids were young, gift giving was easy. They were pretty happy with just about everything they found under the tree. Heck, when they were really little, all they wanted was the empty box and bows to play with. Now that they are teens, gift giving has gotten more challenging. Of course, like most teens, they are constantly tossing out plenty of high tech holiday gift ideas in addition to new … [Read more...]
Giving My Kids Music Gifts Makes Us All Happy!
November 14, 2017 by · 6 Comments
Thank you, Fender, for sponsoring this post about kids music gifts. Learn guitar at home with Fender Play! Like most teens, my kids have a long list of 'wants' when it comes to birthday and holiday gifts. Some years, I have to say, NOPE, you can't have that. Like the baby sister my daughter asked for several years in a row. That one wasn't going to happen! I'm always happy to give my kids music gifts, however, and there have been many! Our home contains a piano, flute, piccolo, clarinet, about 5 guitars and a ukulele. And probably a … [Read more...]
Our Sylvan SAT Prep Experience for Improving SAT Scores
November 8, 2017 by · 5 Comments
This post about Sylvan SAT Prep courses is in partnership with Sylvan Learning. All opinions expressed here are my own. I am the proud mom of one academically gifted high school senior. He is both a joy and a giant pain in my backside like most teenagers are! This year has been challenging for him, trying to find a balance between his grades and tackling things like sports, drivers ed, and his social life. While his grades are very good and his SAT scores were decent, the competition in this area for college spots is fierce. In order help … [Read more...]
Cool Gifts for Teens That You Will Want to Keep For Yourself!
October 13, 2017 by · Leave a Comment
The holidays are coming and not only do I have Christmas gifts to buy but both of my kids were born in November and December! I am always on the lookout for cool gifts for teens and this year I have found a few that I totally want to keep for myself! I thought I would share my finds with you in case your own teens are hard to shop for. Check out my post about gifts for techies if your teenager is a huge technology fanatic like mine are. If they are photography buffs, check out my macrophotography post using the Olloclip lens for my … [Read more...]
