Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could nurture our children’s self-esteem for the rest of their life? That’s the goal Dr. Ingrid Schweiger proposes in her book, Self-Esteem for a Lifetime. Subtitled “Raising a Successful Child from the Inside Out,” this book offers practical techniques and a hopeful message for parents, educators and people who love children: Nurturing self-esteem is a dynamic process and it’s never too late to begin.

Dr. Schweiger, a psychotherapist, speaks from both a professional and personal perspective. She’s spent 30 years counseling families and raised two daughters, now 35 and 31. She readily admits that of all her roles in life, being a parent was the most demanding. Now that she’s a grandmother she has the opportunity to nurture self-esteem in her grandsons. (more…)

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Who would ever think that a cockroach would be a lovable storybook character? Author Katie Speck did.  She’s written two books about the adventures of Maybelle, a curious little cockroach, who gets into lots of trouble because of her love of food. (more…)

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From the time I was a young child, family vacations with my parents and grandparents were a summer ritual. I’ve continued the tradition with my own children and grandchildren. Another ritual of mine is writing vacation journals. I’ve been keeping journals since I was in high school. My maternal grandma, who traveled around the world several times, kept journals from all her trips. The summer I graduated from high school, she and I took a two-week train trip across the U.S. and I kept a journal of that adventure.

When my first granddaughter was born six years ago, my daughter—who also keeps journals—started a journal for visitors to write in when they came to her house. The only one to write in it more than once was me. And I’ve continued to write the stories of all our visits over the past six years. I’m now on the fifth volume and write about the “adventures” of both my granddaughters. (more…)

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It is the business of grandparents to create memories and the relative of memories: traditions…Ellen Goodman

My grandma friend, Kathleen, put these words into practice by creating memories for her granddaughters and passing on her tradition of spending summers camping in nature.

A few weeks ago Kathleen sent me one of her enthusiastic emails: “I’m off to White Wolf Lodge with Bridget, 4, and Cate, almost 6, for 3 days. We’ll sleep in a tent cabin and enjoy the High Country in Yosemite all along Tioga Road. Hiking and outdoor exploring here we come!!!“
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