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How our toddlers showed us that they’d reached key milestones.

One of the most fascinating things of parenting is watching your children learn and develop. From the moment they are placed in your arms their little minds are absorbing knowledge and information from the world around them. They’re always watching, always listening (even when you wish they weren’t!) and all the time, their minds are expanding. There’s no ‘off’ switch when it comes to toddler’s learning. From the minute they wake in the (very) early morning their brains are little sponges; soaking up whatever their environment has to offer.

8 Things That Only Moms Notice

This is a story about a sock. It was an ordinary white toddler sock that lay abandoned right in the middle of an otherwise cleared-off set of stairs. I happened to see this sock in the middle of the stairs the morning before I was leaving for a few days. Being a mom, I went to pick it up.

How Does Your Wednesday Evening Look Like?

One blogger launched a project to show that our lives are still filled with joy amidst exhaustion, stress, and rush.

Why Kids Today Are Out of Shape, Disrespectful – And in Charge

Dr. Leonard Sax has been a family physician and psychologist for 27 years, conducting workshops around the world for parents, teachers, social workers, counselors, school psychologists and juvenile justice professionals.

He’s also a dad, and it’s from all those perspectives that he took on his fourth book, an alarm bell of sorts titled, “The Collapse of Parenting,” out recently from Basic Books.

20 Things on a Toddler’s Daily To-Do List

1. Check to see if it’s time to wake up. If not, wake up anyway and immediately tell parents.

Man Writes Touching Tribute About His Stay-At-Home Fiancée

Stay-at-home moms hear it all the time:

You're so lucky to be able to stay home with your baby!

Well, I wish I could afford to do that...

So you watch TV and play games all day?

So like... you don't work?

Enough is enough. It's high time we all paid attention to the real work stay-at-home moms (and dads!) put in day in and day out. One man, who is engaged to a hard-working stay-at-home mom, posted a picture to Facebook that helps us see this in action. When men appreciate the work of women, it's a wonderful thing for us all. Take a look at this:

Why Toddlers Won’t Share Their Toys

There”s nothing more adorable than the sight of a toddler happily immersed in an afternoon of play. Wee hands stack blocks and peals of excited laughter escape from his tiny body as playtime ensues. But when two toddlers come face to face during playtime, they’re ready for a showdown, and their battle cry in a playground full of toys rings: It’s mine!

Pineapple juice is 500% more effective than cough syrup

Pineapple is packed full of vitamin C, vitamin A, manganese and magnesium, among others – which boost the immune system – and a powerful enzyme called bromelain – which breaks down proteins and reduces inflammation.

A World Record Paper Airplane Thrower’s 3-Step Plan To Help Your Kid Rule The Skies

Grab your finest construction paper and show your kid the simple joy of folding, aiming, and hucking that origami bomber as far as it’ll fly.

2 Week Meal Planning

Ever since I took on the job of SAHM, I’ve tried my best to save our family money while also continuing to cook healthy(-ish) meals at home. I’ve always enjoyed cooking and coming up with new meals for Mr. Oyster and me to eat – but my excitement for it has changed a bit since having to juggle 1 or 2 children while cooking and also cooking things that they won’t eat. I know it’s a common parenting challenge, but it’s one that’s definitely taken away some of my enjoyment of cooking.

5 Mistakes Parents Make When Giving Kids Directions

If your child doesn’t follow your instructions the first time you speak, examine the way you’re giving directions. These are the common mistakes can decrease the chances that your child will listen.

Too little magnesium in your diet could have drastic effects on your body

Adequate magnesium levels are crucial for brain, cardiac and muscle function!!

What's Your Child's Potty Personality?

How To Potty Train Your Little One According To Their Personality

5 Ways to Keep Your Baby Safe at Home

Think your home is baby-proofed? Watch this short video for a look at common safety hazards many parents overlook.

Why grown-ups as well as kids are swimming to Finding Dory

Finding Dory is set to be a huge draw because it works by cleverly and subtly tapping into our love of nostalgia. It is a movie about a forgetful blue fish desperate to find her long-lost parents...

THIS COMMON PARENTING STYLE KILLS EMPATHY IN CHILDREN!

You might think “tough love” is a good motto to hang onto as a parent when your child is crying because they can’t find their favorite toy, or they stubbed their toe. After all, it’s a rough world. Nobody’s going to coddle them in the real world – Why should you? But you might want to think twice in light of evidence that suggests telling your kid to ‘suck it up’ can do a lot more damage than good.

9 Things babies touch every day that are dirtier than a public toilet

It starts from carpet: 200,000 bacteria...PER SQUARE INCH.

Brain damaging heavy metal MERCURY found in grocery products made with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)

HFCS is ubiquitous in the modern processed food supply. It's added to pizza sauce, salad dressings, ketchup and "whole wheat" breads. Did you know it's often contaminated with the toxic heavy metal mercury?

Slow Cooker Barbecue Ribs with a Special Ingredient

We all love BBQ pork ribs, but we don’t always have the time to cook it in the smoker and depending on the season (or if you live in a place where you can’t use a BBQ) your slow cooker will be an ideal alternative that will only take you few minutes to prepare!

Don’t Expect Toddlers To Behave Consistently — They Literally Can’t

One day, when my oldest daughter was not quite 2, she wouldn’t sit still to let me change her diaper. Squirrelly and writhing, she made a game out of staying half naked. She wasn’t fussing about it or anything — in fact, she was giggling maniacally.

Anesthesia Safe for Infants, Toddlers, Study Says

- The researchers looked at 105 healthy children younger than 3 who had surgery to repair an inguinal hernia, a common operation of early childhood.
- Between the ages of 8 and 15, researchers assessed the children's IQ, language, behavior and mental functions, including memory, learning, attention and thinking speed.
-The children were no different than siblings who were not exposed to general anesthesia at a young age, the study found.

[WATCH] GoPro Helps You See The World In The Eyes Of A Toddler

For a child, everything is new. Refresh your view of a mundane day through the lens of a toddler!

Why Danish Parents (And Their Kids) Are Happier Than Americans

Can you really raise happy, well-behaved, resilient, confident children just by consistently rewarding them with delicious pastries? Perhaps, but that’s not what The Danish Way of Parenting is about.

When A Single Mom Had To Bring Her Kids To Her Final Exam, Her Professor Did An Awesome Thing

A college professor in Kentucky is getting a ton of online praise after a photo of him babysitting a student’s kids so she could take her final exam went viral.

PRESCHOOL BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT – 10 TIPS FOR A MORE PEACEFUL CLASSROOM

Here are my nine lessons about behavior management for preschool. I wish I had known all of these before ever stepping foot in a preschool classroom but instead learned many through experience.

10 Tips On How To Raise A Free-Spirited Child

Raising a strong-willed child can be a challenge when he or she is young. They might seem overly difficult, stubborn and opinionated. But strong-willed children are also spirited, fun and courageous. They simply want to learn things for themselves instead of accepting what others tell them. They may have a habit of testing boundaries and limits, but it’s because they are strong, passionate and they live life to the fullest. So how can a parent raise a strong-willed child without discouraging the child’s high energy, persistence and spunk? Here are ten tips for parenting a strong-willed, free-spirited child:

All The Times President Obama Lost His Chill Around Kids

Obama can’t help but get really into it. Can you blame him?

Here are 25 Words That Every Toddler Should Know

Back when my now 8-year-old daughter was a toddler, I had a fantastic pediatrician who actually sat down with my to evaluate my daughter’s physical and emotional development. Rather than being rushed out the door so he can see the next patient, he took his time to talk to me and ask me questions about my child’s well-being, her milestones and our home environment.

Stop Telling Me I'm "Lucky" To Have A Husband Who Helps With The Kids

But despite all of my husband’s wonderful qualities, I have to admit that it’s always made me slightly uncomfortable when anyone has told me how “lucky” I am to have the type of husband that I do — the kind that thinks of nothing of getting up with our kids at night, the kind that happily makes dinner, the kind that I would never doubt could handle all four of our offspring on his own if I happened to have an overnight business trip. (Hey, a girl can dream, right?)

Do you read to your baby? How it can make all the difference

A child needs a good partner in learning. Instead of telling our children to read more, maybe we can start putting aside our time to join them in this can't-emphasize-enough activity that will expand your child's potentials.

This Is Why You Should Never Let Your Dog Lick You!

You might think it’s cute – that big, wet and slobbery tongue reaching out from your canine’s jaw and affectionately lapping at your face. But what if I told you there was something quite sinister about it?
No, I’m not saying your beloved Fido is trying to harm you. Your little (or big) furry friend genuinely is trying to display affection. Too bad the same can’t be said for all the bacteria on the dog’s tongue.

Too bad the same can’t be said for all the bacteria on the dog’s tongue.

My Child Has Meltdowns Over Everything

f your child has meltdowns over everything and loses his temper all too often, these tips will help.

I am a child developmental therapist and I was also a teacher for many years before becoming a therapist. Behavior issues can stem from so many things, but while trying to the bottom of it, we need to help our child cope.

What’s Going On Inside A Toddler’s Brain, According To Science

As the parent of a toddler, your big adult mind is always trying to make sense of what’s going through their tiny kid one. “Why are you flopping on the ground?” “Why are you biting me for no particular reason?” “Why are you peeing yourself while maintaining eye contact?” The biggest issue is that you don’t know what they’re thinking, and they can’t tell you yet. But science can.

Smacked children more successful later in life, study finds

A study found that youngsters smacked up to the age of six did better at school and were more optimistic about their lives than those never hit by their parents.
They were also more likely to undertake voluntary work and keener to attend university, experts discovered.
The research, conducted in the United States, is likely to anger children’s rights campaigners who have unsuccessfully fought to ban smacking in Britain.

Play and Learn: 4 Ways to Deal with A Curious Toddler in the House

It never fails: You take just a two-minute bathroom break, and by the time you’re done your toddler has emptied his toy box across the living-room floor, ripped your magazines to shreds, and somehow gotten into the crisper drawer of the fridge. “Toddlers learn by exploring their environment with all five senses,” says Alexis Clyde, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist at Children’s Medical Center Dallas. Kids this age are particularly fascinated by how an object works and what happens when they bend, drop, or throw it. While your child’s inquiries are normal, it’s no fun having your house constantly look like a wreck. We’ll help you contain the chaos by controlling his behavior without suppressing his inquisitiveness.

13 Kids' Wrong Exam Answers That Were Absolutely Perfect

Some kids take the philosophy of being wrong and strong very seriously, and it often leads to amazing results. Here are some of the moments kids had no clue what to do with their homework or exams, but didn't let that keep them from going down in a fireball of glory.

Parenting Your Strong-Willed Child

Have a strong-willed child? You're lucky! Strong willed children can be a challenge when they’re young, but if sensitively parented, they become terrific teens and young adults. Self-motivated and inner-directed, they go after what they want and are almost impervious to peer pressure. As long as parents resist the impulse to "break their will," strong-willed kids often become leaders.

Parents 'Control' Their Children in One Of 2 Ways — Only One Leads to Happier Kids

A study from University College London found that people who perceived their parents as less psychologically controlling and more caring as they were growing up were likely to be happier and more satisfied as adults.

This Seat Helps Kids With Cerebral Palsy Experience The Joy Of Slides

Every kid deserves to know the fun that comes with going down a slide, and a team in Israel is trying to make that possible.

Toys can spread viruses for up to a day

Scientists at Georgia State University studied how long certain viruses could stay active on a plastic squeaky frog. The virus type, called an ‘enveloped virus’ because it has a protective outer layer, includes flu, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) – although you don’t need to worry about the last two popping up at your child’s daycare. They’re not active in the U.S.

Toddler Lunch Ideas

New ideas for sandwiches, wraps, mini-pizzas and more tasty lunch recipes for kids.

Why did Steve Jobs ban use of his own products at home?

The New York Times journalist Nick Bilton once asked the late Apple CEO, Steve Jobs, the following question during an interview: ‘It seems that your kids are crazy about the iPad, right?’ He got the following, unexpected answer: ‘They don’t use them. We limit the amount of time they are allowed to use iPads at home.’ There’s certainly something to think about here...

DIY Portable LEGO Kit with 24 Free Printable Activity Cards

Easy & Economical way of boosting your child's brain development:

7 Productivity Tips for Working Parents

If you’re tired of always being the last parent to pick up your child from daycare, consider this: are you working as smart as you can? Clocking in extra hours doesn’t always mean you’re working harder. While it’s no secret that workplace pressure continues to rise, it’s nearly impossible to leave the office on time if you’re not working efficiently from 9 to 5, regardless of what’s on your plate.

THE FUNNIEST TWEETS FROM PARENTS WHO ARE READY FOR SUMMER TO BE OVER

The Delightful Hidden Meanings of 7 Everyday Objects

The little pocket on your jeans. The little hole in your pen cap. They're not just there for show.

The Reason Why Children are 800% Worse When Their Mothers Are Around

Finally, there is an answer to this question, and it is a good one. The Reason Why Children are 800% Worse When Their Mothers Are Around is simple. If your child acts up in front of you it means that you are being a good mom, and doing your job just right.

Here Is the Final Word on How Much Sleep Your Kids Really Need

All parents know that sleep is important to growing kids, especially now that kids don’t seem to be getting enough of it, thanks (or no thanks) to tablets and smartphones. Where it gets quite confusing, however, is how many hours of it children really need as different health institutions and experts seem to be giving inconsistent info.