Parenting Archive

My thoughts on parenthood, and what it's like to be a mom in the Philippines.

Crawling

Sati is now trying to crawl. She is such a strong and big baby, must be the multivitamins I took while I was pregnant or the multivitamins she was taking right now. She is now trying to sit on her own but of course she is stil not succesful on it, but oh my, she moves a lot and can finish the bed in a blink. I also tried feeding her with the usual banana and milk mixture/cerelac but she does not like the taste. I think she’s into more veggie taste, good for her. Tomorrow, I will buys some biscuits for her. I can’t wait to see her munching on cookies.

School Year Again

For some parents, this time of the years is one of the most difficult time in terms of finances.It’s school time once again and we have so many expenses to take care of. Some loses sleep thinking of ways to gain financial freedom from all of these, some moms out there uses the aid of sleeping pills just so they can relax and sleep away their stress. And for some moms, this is the time of the year where they creativity, frugality and resourcefulness is put to a test.

Tuition Fee is one of the first financial problem a parent encounters. With the rising cost of education, parents are always on the look on how they can maximize their income while giving their kids the quality of education they deserve. But what you can do when finances are just tight? Well, good thing that most school offers installment fee when it comes to their tuition payment. Parents can opt to pay in full or in 4 parts. For those who does not have the resources to pay in full, installment is the way to go.

Another financial burden that comes with the start of the school year are school things such as bags, school shoes, uniforms, notebooks, pens etc. One way to save up on this is to teach your kids the value of things, if it still works, then use it. If your kids shoes are still OK, why buy a new one? If their bags still in working condition (or if it can be repaired) save your money for other things.

The start of the school year can be as fun as the ending if a mom knows how to handle it well.

How To Stop or How To Manage Siblings Fight/ Bickering

I hate when they bicker. It makes me insane, specially when I needed to write something and all I can hear is their fight. Sometimes I want them both out of the house but of course I cannot do that. So instead of writng, I end up researching on How To Stop or How To Manage Siblings Fight/ Bickering.

Below is some advice that I got from HERE

When your kids start arguing or bickering, tell them “Either you guys work this out, or I will.”
They will, of course, keep bickering at which point you step in and say “Looks like you weren’t able to work this out on your own, so I will. Go to your rooms and don’t come out until you can play or interact nicely with each other.” Make sure you tell them to stomp their feet as hard as they can and slam their doors loudly on the way (they HATE doing what we ask of them…my kids go quiet as church mice to their rooms. They aren’t going to give me the satisfaction of slamming their door!).
If and when they come out, DO NOT DISCUSS THE MATTER FURTHER! The consequence is having to go to their room. If they get involved in reading or playing in their rooms, yipee! You don’t have to listen to any more arguing! By allowing them to come out when they can play nicely or talk nicely to each other, you are giving them complete control as to how long they remain in their rooms. I don’t know about you, but I don’t care if they are there three seconds or three minutes as long as the fighting stops.
If the fighting resumes, back to their rooms and so on.
If they are fighting over a toy, the tv or the computer, solve the problem by taking away the desire object. That way they learn that they both lose when they don’t work it out on their own.
Keep your cool! When you have to step in, keep your cool. When we get angry, they start focusing their anger on us instead of thinking about the poor choice they have made.
Be consistent in using this technique.
Mean what you say and say what you mean. Your kids have to know that without question you will follow through with the consequence EACH AND EVERY TIME. If there is any wiggle room, the likelihood of success on your part is minimal.

I wish I can follow all these steps. How about you guys? Do you have suggestions on how to effectively manage siblings fight?