How to Raise Independent Children
By Camille Aagard, 2019 BYU Law School graduate 2019 and mother of 5. When she went back to school to study law, her children were between ages 6 and 16. Helicopter parenting does more harm than good. I used to hover over science projects. Now they do their own. They are self reliant. Here are […]
How to Maintain Healthy Relationships With Your Adult Children
By Connie Sokol, speaker, author and mother of seven First, acknowledge you don’t stop being a parent. You just parent differently. And that could mean your skillset needs a slight adjustment. Olea Gough found this to be the case. “As I transition to this stage, it’s just plain hard to be the consultant instead of […]
How to Crack Down on Screen Time
By Andrea Davis, Co-creator of BetterScreenTime.com and @BetterScreenTime on Instagram Technology Plan Help your family cut down screen time by creating a family technology plan with your kids. Define screen-free spaces in your home, such as bedrooms and bathrooms. Talk about where, when, and how long your family will use screens and what you’ll use them for. Defining boundaries ahead […]
How deleting my Instagram account helped me let go of my social media addiction
I deleted Instagram for a month to focus on writing my first book, but I got so much more out of it than that. It took me awhile to actually delete the thing. Months, in fact. I knew a break was in order. I was getting too caught up in sharing there and spending too […]
12 ways having your 4th child is different from your first
Ah, having a baby. It’s a magical time, a stressful time, a happy time, an emotional time. Whether it’s your first baby or your tenth, there’s something special about every baby and every birth. But as I prepared to give birth to my fourth child, I noticed a few differences between this birth experience and […]
Gardner Quad Squad making appearance on ‘The Ellen Show’ Wednesday
Utah County’s famous family with quadruplet two-year-old girls are making an appearance on “The Ellen Show” Wednesday afternoon. Take how much fun you think we’re gonna have tomorrow and quadruple it. A video posted by Ellen (@theellenshow) on Jan 17, 2017 at 6:12pm PST Ellen DeGeneres’ show contacted the Gardners after seeing Ashley Gardner’s viral […]
7 ways to be a more present parent
Have you ever noticed a mom who was brushing off her children while staring at her phone? Or who seemed constantly overwhelmed and exhausted by the demands of her kids? It was probably me. One day, I realized how bad it had gotten. I was going through the motions of motherhood, and it felt like I […]
Highland’s Debora Fletcher is raising 10 children on stewardship and love
Debora Fletcher lives in a spacious house in Highland where she raises 10 children (eight boys, two girls) and oversees Sustainable Families, a nonprofit, internationally active organization she founded less than a year ago. But this isn’t the life she envisioned for herself while growing up in Guatemala in a family with 10 children (eight […]
10 reasons why it takes a village to raise a child
My family and I recently moved to Utah from Texas. After three years of living in Dallas, in the heat and humidity far away from family, there have been a few adjustments to make. But besides purchasing winter coats and introducing our children to fry sauce, one change has been especially apparent as we’ve settled […]
5 encouraging phrases that will make kids smile
Everyone needs a little encouragement, and kids are especially needy for positive words in the first weeks of the school year. Early wake-up times, confining schedules and packed days wear out parents, yes, but kids, too. You don’t need to flatter them endlessly to lift their wish-it-was-still-summer spirits; a few well-chosen words can go the […]
11 tips for a smoother day skiing with kids
Skiing can be an incredibly fun family outing. You’re staying active, enjoying nature and spending unplugged time together. But there is no denying it takes a lot of work — and sometimes a lot of cash — to get your family on the slopes. When teaching your kids to ski or snowboard, it’s best not […]
7 kid-friendly clutter busters
Kids and stuff go together like peanut butter and jelly. They stick together, and it can be a challenge for parents to keep things tidy with little clutter magnets in the home. Don’t work harder to fight the piles of kid paraphernalia; work smarter. Try these seven kid-friendly clutter busters: 1. Live by the one […]
8 New Year’s resolutions to make as a family
Parents may have a secret weapon when it comes to making and keeping New Year’s resolutions: their kids. After all, most children exhibit near-perfect recall when it works in their favor (“On Monday when we were driving in the car you said that we could go to Target on Saturday to look at Lego”), above-average […]
10 activities to add to your Christmas break bucket list
Summer isn’t the only season worthy of a bucket list. Winter deserves a wish-list of its own (and not just the one penned for Old St. Nick). Consider adding these 10 activities to your Christmas break bucket list: 1. Build a snowman. If you’re dreaming of a white Christmas, pencil in some time to build […]
8 tips for staying healthy during the holidays
It’s the most wonderful time of the year … until your kids catch the nasty virus that’s going around, you eat one too many figgy puddings and a schedule packed with holiday merriment makes your normal exercise routine impossible. Before you cancel Christmas, try these eight tips for staying sane and healthy until Santa Claus […]
15 toys and books that will help your kids keep quiet
There are plenty of scenarios when you need to keep your kids quiet but their hands busy so they don’t fight, complain or fall asleep in the car right before you get home. Keeping a quiet bag stocked and ready for car rides, waiting rooms and church time is a major parental sanity saver. But […]
8 solutions for the bedtime battle
Last week I staged a bedtime intervention with my kids. I was feeling frazzled and frustrated that what I pictured as a warm and fuzzy farewell to the day was in fact an hours-long power struggle. In desperation I did what any self-respecting journalist would: I interviewed my mom friends about what their bedtime routine […]
Is school stressing your kids out? 7 tips for managing school-related stress
Starting school each fall is like starting a new job. The first few weeks are often exciting but it can be stressful to adjust to a new routine and get a grip on the realities of the job. By mid-September, students that were once excited about school may feel stress and anxiety about homework and […]
15 books (and series) for boys who hate to read
If your son hates to read, don’t despair, say local librarians. Maybe he just hasn’t found the right book (or series!) yet. Here, three Utah County librarians give their top picks for books that will spark literary love in reluctant readers. FOR GRADE-SCHOOLERS Picks by Joella Peterson, children’s services manager at the Provo City Library […]
6 ideas for grabbing grown-up time
Kids aren’t the only ones in the family that can benefit from playdates. Parents need leisurely interaction with adults, too, especially moms or dads who primarily stay home with kids. Generally speaking, the more kids you have, the more packed your schedule is and the harder it may be to fit in social time. But […]
12 ways to make the first day of school special
Most Utah County children are headed back to school this week. It doesn’t take much money or time to make your child’s first day special. Just a love note here or a school-bus-shaped Twinkie there is all it takes to score high marks in fun. “Twas the night before …” 1. Eat a final feast […]
8 ways to stretch your back-to-school dollar
The last few weeks before school starts can be a spendy time of year. But if you want to earn an “A” in savings, here are a few tricks you won’t find in a textbook. UtahValley360.com talked to three popular Utah bloggers to get their advice on back-to-school savings. Janica Ellsworth is a 29-year-old mother of […]
6 ideas for helping kids understand their emotions
Joy, sadness, anger and disgust. Thanks to the Disney animated flick “Inside Out,” parents and their kids may be thinking a lot more about these emotions. And hopefully they’re talking about them, too, says Ross Flom, a BYU psychology professor who specializes in child development. Flom and two former grad students co-authored a study released […]
5 ways to help your children catch the pioneer spirit
It’s hard to say enough good things about the Latter-day Saint pioneers who crossed the plains to Utah. They were committed, spiritual, hardy, tough. Every year, Utah celebrates that unbreakable attitude July 24, but you don’t have to brave long parade lines in Salt Lake to honor the state’s forbearers. Here are a few easy […]
6 tips for raising entrepreneurial kids and teens
Lemonade stands are hardly the get-rich-quick scheme that young children often hope they’ll be. But even if you know your kids won’t strike it rich selling watered-down drinks for a quarter to passersby, there are good reasons to encourage your child’s inner entrepreneur anyway. “I think that the world in general needs more entrepreneurial minds,” […]
5 things I gave up to be a happier mom
Gluten, flour, sugar, Diet Coke, food I can actually taste. Just kidding. I love gluten. And sugar. I would never give those things up. In fact, a nighttime pint of Ben & Jerry’s is often my reward for surviving another summer day with four kids at home. But there are a few things as a […]
Hey, Mom: You have more free time than you think
Moms never get enough sleep and they certainly don’t get any “me” time — or so goes popular opinion. But numbers from the latest American Time Use Survey released last Wednesday say those common societal laments aren’t necessarily true. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics survey, women in households with children under age […]
The one thing moms should stop doing — comparing
Mothers juggle a lot of things — keeping children dressed, fed and healthy and raising them to be respectable members of society while somehow also caring for their own physical and emotional needs. But juggling motherhood would be a whole lot simpler and more enjoyable if mothers would stop doing one thing: comparing. We went to a […]
Adventures in babysitting: 5 ways to set your sitter up for success
If you’re old enough to remember the 1987 comedy “Adventures in Babysitting,” then you might have a kid or five who needs watching. But when it comes babysitting, flat tires and mafia run-ins are bad. Safe, boring and uneventful evenings are good. A babysitter is one of the most important people you will ever employ. […]
7 tips for staying relevant while a stay-at-home mom
Utah seems to be the place for stay-at-home moms. According to the most recent statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau, Utah is tied with Arizona for the highest percentage of stay-at-home moms. Your stance on the mommy wars aside, many stay-at-home moms plan on going back to work at some point. Maybe you’re waiting until […]