Raising Children Who Travel Well

Traveling can be a dreaded situation for some parents. Most children tend to be restless and rambunctious or even downright boisterous while traveling. It is very important that parents are raising children who are pleasant and respectful travelers. It doesn’t matter whether you are going to the grocery store in the family car, taking a cruise or flying to visit Disneyworld, you must be parenting kids to behave in all forms of transportation.

Riding In the Car

Everybody rides in the family vehicle on nearly a daily basis. Many people simply believe that their kids will outgrow their poor behavior while in the car. This is not true. You should be raising kids to know the rules for riding in the car, as distractions are dangerous and could be deadly for all in the vehicle.

One of the best tips for parenting kids who ride in the car properly is to have a few special toys in the vehicle. These toys should never be allowed to leave the confines of the car. The children will look forward to playing with their special toys, and stop being problematic on car trips.

Longer trips, such as vacations will require a little more preparation. You will need a variety of items like coloring books, Barbie dolls, action figures or even a personal DVD player with some new movies. Be sure to have headphones for the DVD players if you have more than one child. Those small and relatively inexpensive items will help you in raising children to be quiet and well-behaved in the car.

Cruising On a Boat

Many people enjoy taking cruises for their family vacation; however, most fail to realize that this can be boring for the kids. Sure, cruise ships have programs that are designed specifically to keep children occupied so that their parents can have fun, but few run children’ events twenty-four hours per day. This must be taken into consideration if you wish to be raising children to travel well.

It’s wise to make sure that the cruise you are planning has tons of things for your kids to do while on-board the vessel. There are few things worse than raising children who are disruptive to the other passengers because they are bored. You can curtail this behavior by planning ahead and bringing some new toys or games on vacation with you. Hand-held video games or even some age appropriate down-loadable games for your smart phone are perfect for occupying an ornery child on a cruise ship.

Flying in a Plane

It is very important for you to be raising kids who will be able to fly in an airplane without creating problems for those around them. Nearly every traveler has had an experience with a poorly behaved and disruptive child on a plane. Other passengers often talk about these horrible experiences for quite some time. You surely wouldn’t want to be the person remembered as the one who was parenting kids who simply would not behave on a trip.

Age appropriate magazines such as Highlight, Tiger Beat or Nick magazine will keep your kids occupied, especially if they don’t have subscriptions to them. They will be a real treat and keep them busy for a couple of hours. It is also important to bring chewing gum with you. Experts on raising children believe that poor behavior while flying can be caused by ear pressure. Chewing gum will help the child’s ears to pop and relieve the pressure and discomfort. You should also bring other snacks such as chips or fruit to alleviate any hunger complaints. These tips will show others that you are raising children to be pleasant and respectful fliers.

Parenting Help for Separation Anxiety

There are many parents who never realized that children could have extreme cases of separation anxiety – that is until they experience it firsthand. Most people associate separation anxiety with pets that are left alone while their owners go to work. Both people and animals can experience symptoms of this very real condition. There is help available if your child exhibits signs of separation anxiety. Follow these tips for parents, and soon you will be able to leave your child without the crying and temper tantrums.

Parenting Help 101

Separation anxiety can lead to further issues if not handled when children are at a young age. Kids who have this issue normally begin to exhibit signs of it between three and five years of age. It will get much worse as they get older if you don’t seek assistance to overcome your child’s separation anxiety.

One of the most important tips for parents dealing with this problem is to never leave your child with someone that they don’t know. Many parents will call a friend to find a sitter that they use, and hire her to watch their child. This is never a good thing, and can trigger a full blown anxiety attack.

Let your child know that you would never leave him. Before attempting to leave him alone with the sitter, let your child know that the potential sitter visit for a few times only and that you will be back soon. Allowing your child to acclimate before leaving him alone is one of the most important tips for parents that you will need to know.

Day Care Devastation

Many people seek parenting help for when their kids start going to day care. This separation can seriously cause great anxiety for young children. Day Care can be exciting for your child, but it can be very stressful as well. You will need to prepare your child for Day Care before you even consider leaving him there for the day.

When you bring your child to Day Care, stay there with him or her. This will help your child to become comfortable with your child care provider. Kids that suffer from separation anxiety need to feel comfortable before they are left with others. This will increase their confidence levels.

You can slowly step out of the room, but remain in the building to acclimate your child to being away from you. One of the finest tips for parents is to NEVER walk away from a child exhibiting symptoms of separation anxiety.

Summer Camp Woes

Going to summer camp can be the biggest trigger for separation anxiety a child can go through in life. Use your positive parentingskills to reassure the child that he or she will be alright. Let him or her know that this is supposed to be a fun experience where he/she can make new friends.

You can prepare your child well in advance as opposed to springing summer camp on him/her. Having an open line of communication with your child is one of the best tips for parents that you will ever receive. Don’t just drop your child off and leave the separation anxiety issues to the counselors. You can avoid a detrimental situation by addressing his needs and insecurities. Use your parenting skills to encourage your child’s ability to have a fun camp experience.

Parenting Help Regarding Chores

Running a household takes a lot of time and energy, especially when both parents are working outside of the home. Children as young as three years of age can help with some small chores around the house. Teaching your children responsibility, helps to give them a bit of independence, and even strengthens child-parent relationships.

Picking up Toys

One of the most important parenting help guidelines is that if a child is old enough to take out a toy, he is old enough to put it away. This should be a simple thing for parents to understand, but many still pick up after their children. Encouraging children to pick up their own toys instills cleaning up after themselves at an early age.  This should carry over into their adult lives.

You can make picking up the toys fun for your child. Child-parent relationships get stronger when you play together. Make picking up the toys into a game. You could have a race to see who gets more toys picked up the fastest, or you could set the oven timer and see if your child can get the toys picked up before it beeps. You can also sing a song about cleaning up – make one up!  Remember to use your positive parenting techniques and give your child a little praise for a job well done. Should your child not pick up the toys but genuinely tried, praise him for his effort. If the child did not try to put away the toys, let him know that next time he will lose the toys that are not put away.

Making the Bed

Even young children can learn to pull the covers up on their beds in the morning.  Although you’ll need to go back and tidy the bed up later, praise the child for the great attempt. Don’t let them know that you remade the bed later, as it may harm their self-esteem. Your child may feel they didn’t do a good enough job for you. Encouragement through positive parenting will enhance the parent child relationship for life.

Setting the Dinner Table

Sometimes parents don’t realize that children usually enjoy setting the dinner table.  You can even allow them to make a new centerpiece for everyday that they set the table. Be sure to encourage the child to be creative and set the table in the proper way.

Taking Out the Trash

Kids who are eight years and older can help taking out the trash and recycling. They will be more willing to do this, if they know that they are helping to save the polar bears and penguins by caring for their environment. You can encourage child-parent relationships bonds by watching movies about how recycling helps animals and the planet. 

Weeding the Garden

Even the youngest of children can help with the yard work. Spending the time pulling weeds together can enhance child-parent relationships because this gives you time to talk to each other. Singing songs or telling stories while gardening can make the chore more fun.

The Problem Child

Many child-parent relationships become strained if a child refuses to help with chores. There you can use your positive parenting skills to get the child to help. Explain that everyone must work together to make the household function. You should let the child know that if he will not help with chores, he cannot enjoy luxury items such as television, computers and toys. This should reign the child back in and make the child-parent relationships more respectful.