Why Teens Are Stressed—and How Parents Can Help

Last updated on: April 2, 2018 at 4:42 pm By Sarah Hamaker

Today’s teens are more stressed than ever, and much of that anxiety can be attributed to school. “Teens routinely say that their school-year stress levels are far higher than they think is healthy and their average reported stress exceeds that of adults,” according to a 2017 survey by the American Psychological Association, The Hill reported last January. At 83 percent, school topped the list of common reported stress sources, with college/life after high school coming in at 69 percent, and... Read more

Recapturing Your Self-Identity as a Mother

Last updated on: March 15, 2018 at 4:20 pm By Sarah Hamaker

As Christian women, we have many callings: wife, mother, housekeeper, errand runner, chef, accountant, chauffeur, nurse, laundress, etc. Whether we stay home with our kids or head off to work, the duties related to childcare, housework and errands, can be all-consuming. Some days, we feel like we spend the entire day doing—but can’t recall exactly what we accomplished. If that’s you, you might have lost your sense of identity underneath the hands-on mothering required by children. In this week’s video... Read more

A Quiet Kind of Kid

Last updated on: March 16, 2018 at 2:22 pm By Sarah Hamaker

My introversion nearly held me back in school. As a child, I was what we used to call “shy”—I could answer questions (but only raised my hand when I knew I knew the answer). I actually had no trouble preforming in front of a crowd, like in a school or church play, for example. However, I was petrified of getting up in front of my class and saying anything. When my third grade teacher at the beginning of the year... Read more

Dad’s in Charge!

Last updated on: March 8, 2018 at 3:39 pm By Sarah Hamaker

In this week’s video, I talk about the importance of moms letting dads be in charge—complete charge—of the kids as a regular occurrence. We need to support and encourage fathers to be every bit as essential to our children’s well-being and upbringing as we are as moms. My go-to bit of advice at baby showers has nothing to do with how to diaper or feed a baby, or how to coax a baby to sleep, or any of the general... Read more

Helping Kids Develop Healthy Emotions

Last updated on: March 16, 2018 at 2:23 pm By Sarah Hamaker

Emotions are powerful, and to children, emotions can seem to be all-powerful. All too often, we view emotions as negative, simply because most emotions that spill over into family life have negative undertones, such as anger, jealously, rage, envy, strife, division and unkindness. But emotions can be a positive force in the family—laughter, joy, sharing and love. What we should strive for as parents is to strike a balance between promoting the positive emotions and being proactive in restraining the... Read more

Tools To Help Kids Behave

Last updated on: March 16, 2018 at 1:15 pm By Sarah Hamaker

We all want our children to behave, but often we forget to give them the tools to help them to behave. These aren’t magic bullets, but instead ways to build that internal motivation within our kids so that they will be more likely to do the right thing over doing the wrong thing. In this video blog, I discuss how to use visioning to help our kids change and how to use the three C’s. Visioning inspires a child to... Read more

Raising Self-Reliant Tweens and Teens

Last updated on: February 27, 2018 at 8:25 pm By Sarah Hamaker

In last week’s blog, we talked about how to help toddlers, preschoolers and younger elementary school age kids develop self-reliance. This week, we’ll focus on how to guide tweens and teens. While some of the same principles apply to all ages, kids age 10 and up have more challenges—and more capabilities—than the younger set. Before we get to specifics, let’s look a little bit about why so many tweens and teens are not self-reliant. “In a world filled with instant... Read more

Consequences and Kids

Last updated on: March 8, 2018 at 2:27 pm By Sarah Hamaker

Parents often struggle with consequences. The truth about consequences is very different from our perception about punishments. In this week’s video, I discuss the two main reasons for consequences, and why Christian parents especially should punish their children for misbehaving. Read more

How to Raise Self-Reliant Kids: Toddlers Through Fourth Grade

Last updated on: February 27, 2018 at 8:10 pm By Sarah Hamaker

Today’s parents are overly focused on keeping their children safe—safe from both perceived and real dangers. Hence many moms hover over and around their kids, morphing into “helicopter parents.” But to raise children with healthy self-esteem and to equip them for adulthood, parents should be focused on rearing self-reliant kids. “We live in a world that warns us of danger at every turn. The ‘safety first’ preoccupation enforces our fear of losing our kids, so we do everything we can... Read more

Welcome to Some Assembly Required

Last updated on: February 28, 2018 at 1:48 pm By Guest Contributor

I’m glad you’re here. This is my welcome to Some Assembly Required video blog. Read more