Dear Susan, I don’t know what to do with my kids for the winter break.  I have two active girls, aged 7 and 4.  I have a lot of baking and wrapping and, well, the usual for these holidays.  I’m usually good to put the kids in front of the TV, but they’ve seen all the holiday movies already.  Plus, we’re traveling to visit family out of state and I just don’t know how to keep my kids entertained while we’re there.  And, worst of all, the DVD player in the van is out.  How can I survive this Christmas season? Sincerely, Anxious Mommy   Dear Anxious, You are not alone.  Many parents have the …

Dear Susan, My 2-year-old’s tantrums are disrupting our family!  She flails about, screams, cries and rolls around the floor.  If we walk away, she follows us until we stop walking and then she “entertains” us some more.  How, how, how do we make her drama stop? Done in Atlanta   Dear Done, Yes, I remember those days.  I tried ignoring, mocking and I even joined in!  But nothing was as effective and peaceful as “the tantrum place.” Here’s how it works.  First, designate a place in your home that will be your daughter's tantrum place.  I used the downstairs powder room.  The room was …

Dear Susan, I am a SAHM with a wonderful, active 30-month old.  She is very bright and happy and I seem to manage the “terrible twos” just fine.  At home.  But while running my daily errands and I have to go into a store, Sadie goes wild!  How can I discipline my mostly wonderful two-year-old in public? Sincerely, Lucky Mommy   Dear Lucky, Your question got me thinking back to when I had toddlers, before I was a parent coach.  So, I decided to visit the archives of John Rosemond’s articles to find the right solution for you. Here’s what I found: Three Steps to McIPP McIPP is the acronym for “…

Dear Susan, My wife and I have two children, 10 and 8.  They are reasonably well-behaved.  They are mischievous at times but not defiant or disrespectful.  They have good manners and they get decent grades.  They’re so good that my wife and I struggled whether we should even write to you. But here we are.  There is only one problem my wife and I have faced that we cannot solve.   They fight.  All the time.  And we are at a complete loss as how to handle this.   Can you help us? Sincerely, Hopeful in Atlanta   Dear Hopeful, Yes, I can help. First, congratulations on raising two well-behaved …

Dear Susan, I have a 13-year-old who is absolutely defiant.  Recently we took all electronics away for six weeks because he earned a “C” on his report card.  On his next report card, he had earned a “B.”  But now he’s lying and being blatantly defiant (he uses his iPod touch at night when we’ve told him not to, etc.) to us and so we’re frustrated because taking the electronics didn’t work!  What’s worse, when I ask him if he did it, he lies right to my face. How can we stop the lying and defiant behavior of our son? Sincerely, Frustrated in Atlanta   Dear Frustrated, Taking the electronics …

Dear Susan, My wife and I have a 30-month-old and we feel like we’re being held hostage at bedtime!  We both work outside the home and have our daughter in day care while we work.  We get our daughter ready for bed around 7:30 every night.  By 8 pm, we tuck her in, give her a little kiss, and walk out of the door.  But before we can even step our second foot into the hallway, she starts to scream.  I mean really scream!  We won’t let her cry it out (our upstairs neighbors would probably call 911 on us) so we stay in her room until she stops.  She keeps peeking to see if we’re still there and …

Dear Susan,I have two great girls.  Today I’m writing about one of them.  My youngest daughter is 8 and she forgets everything!  She forgets her lunch, she forgets her coat, she forgets her school folder, she forgets to do homework and I can’t believe I’m actually going to admit this but I find myself saying to her, “You’d forget your head if it wasn’t attached!”I’ve tried having a basket by the door where she can put her things, I’ve made checklists, I’ve made charts, I’ve punished, I’ve explained, lectured, yelled, encouraged, begged and pleaded and yet, she continues to forget.  My older …

Dear Susan,I recently attended the Open House at my son’s school and I left feeling completely lost.  While the teacher talking I nodded my head but didn’t understand anything she was talking about.  Not only that, when she explained the procedures for homework and projects, they seemed so arbitrary that I left wondering how I was going to make sure my son turns his work in on time or even at all. I am normally very organized and on top of all my children's school work, activities and responsibilities.  I'm the mom that "does it all."  But now that my oldest is in the fifth grade, I feel like…

Dear Susan,  I am a single mom to three children, 12, 9 and 8.  My oldest two want Facebook accounts.  I know the age requirement is 13 but I'm thinking about signing them up anyway.  Since I can't control what happens at their Dad's house, I'm afraid if I say "no" then they'll sneak and create the pages themselves.  Then I'd have no way of monitoring their pages.  I'd rather have access to their accounts so I can keep tabs on them.  Also, since I allow all three to have G-mail accounts even though the required age is 18 to use any Google product, aren't I being a hyprocrite if I don't allow …

Dear Susan, I need your advice.  My 12-year-old (she'll be 13 next week) keeps disobeying my "no makeup" rule.  Generally, she's a good kid although she's somewhat moody and I wish her attitude would change but I guess that's to be expected for a tween.  But I can handle that.  What I cannot handle is that she keeps wearing heavy eyeliner makeup.  Her friends all wear it and they look ridiculous.  I have told her she's too young.  I have explained how beautiful she and that she doesn't need it.  I set a good example as I wear very little makeup myself but no matter what, I still catch her …

Dear Susan: I read with interest your last article Bugged To Death By Kids? but I have a slightly different problem and I am in need of a specific solution and quick! My husband works at an office and I work from home so I can spend more time with my 5-year-old adopted daughter.  I appreciate the flexibility my job affords me so I can spend time with my daughter during the day but I find myself working around the clock in order to meet my obligations as an employee.  As it stands, I feel like I'm constantly working, either as a mom telling my daughter to wait "one more minute" (and feeling …

Dear Susan, I am a stay at home mom (SAHM) to two boys, 10 and 8.  School’s only been out a couple of weeks and already my boys are driving me crazy.  It’s not that they are misbehaving, they are just bugging me to death!  Every time I sit down to enjoy a book or just relax after my daily chores are done, one of my children needs something from me.  I feel guilty saying “no” to them because, well, I am available but at the same time, I think I should be able to rest a little too. How can I enjoy my children AND my summer without being a slave to their constant demands? Sincerely,  - - …

Dear Susan, My son is bright, capable and, according to tests, he has above-average intelligence.  Since the 4th grade, I’ve been able to work with him and help him complete homework, projects, etc.  But no matter what I do, he still is not motivated to do his assignments on his own.  He is barely making the grades to be promoted to the 8th grade and the assignments are getting too difficult for me to be of much help.  I’ve looked into tutoring but it’s just not in the budget and the school won’t help because his teacher thinks he's capable of doing the work on his own. How can I get him …

Dear Susan,My five-year old son is a very picky eater.  He refuses to eat what I make for dinner, even if it's something he's liked before.  When I force him to eat, he gags and spits it out.  I've tried everything, even sending him to bed without supper.  Nothing works!  The worst part is, I feel guilty and awful that my son is not getting enough nutrition.  Can you help?-- Frustrated in Decatur Dear Frustrated,Some children are picky eaters.  Some aren't.  That's just the way it's always been. But when I think about the times I didn't like something as a child, I cannot recall my mother …