As far as quality time with your child is concerned, it is practically a given that mothers will normally be the first person that they will see at home. While a husband is out and working at the usual office or attending business meetings trying to close a deal, the mother in tradition is the one who stays at home and looks after the newly born child.

But considering that today’s age requires both husband and wife to work to survive the financial aspects of survival, maids or household helps are the ones we see today. Even work at home moms have to hire someone to babysit their child just to earn a decent buck.

Today, most children are closer to their parents because they see them frequently. Once they get out of sight, chances are they would have problems and identity hang-ups when it comes to relationships with their peers. Such is not a liking that most parents want. They are trying to earn a living for the sake of their family.

This is something that most families have to deal with. The choice between bringing home money or looking after your child but experiencing turbulence as far as trying to survive in the grueling world we now find ourselves living in.

[tags]home_moms, husband_and_wife, business_meetings, household, survival, relationships, financial_aspects[/tags]

Raising a toddler is tough. But raising two kids (or more) whose ages are so close to each other can drive any parent crazy. You hear most parents say how much their house is a zoo, and you should actually believe that. I have a friend who has kids ranging from 9, 7, 4 and one who just turned a year old, and looking at her juggle through this kids and all their issues is exhausting.

But, there is an upside to this according to the New York Times. Siblings whose age are close to each other grow up really close and bond really well. As kids, they pretty much fight often and have an all-out war. But as adults they way better relationships, they are each other’s best friend. And as far as families go these days, it’s always wonderful to learn that there are still those who keep stronger bonds. Siblings who grew up together have this.

I grew up with a brother who is years younger than I am and our bonding is very different. We hardly have a bonding time, in fact. Which makes me envious of this when I see the relationship of my friends and their siblings.

So, parents with little kids in the house…

As much as you want to pull all of your hair out and you beat yourself with stress trying to referee these siblings when they fight, just learn to appreciate the moment. And learn to appreciate what is there. For there is going to be a huge pay-off later.

Image by OneInstant via Flickr

While a parent will love their children no matter when they were born (or in what order they were born, for that matter) scientists looking into birth order and what that may mean for children have come across some interesting insights.

It does seem that birth order does play a part in personality in children, and adults. If your child is the middle, the youngest, or even the oldest it can lay a part in how their personality forms and grows.

While the recent developments do make sense, science is quick to point out that there are reasons behind them. While a firstborn may receive more attention at first, there are many factors that do have a hand in both personality and birth order.

Positives: Only-borns are the mega-movers of the world. They are task-orientated; tend to be extremely well organised, highly conscientious and dependable. They are keen on facts, ideas and details and feel extremely comfortable with responsibility.

Negatives: The negative characteristics of only-borns can be tough to handle. They are often unforgiving, very demanding, hate to admit they’re wrong and usually don’t accept criticism well. To others, they seem very sensitive and indeed, their feelings are easily hurt.

Read more: How your birth order shapes your personality

While it does seem more like something that should be more at home next to the astrology readings than a scientific study, there does seem to be legitimate reasons behind birth order and personality.

The study covers everything from only-children (quoted above) to twins, and while it does make sense, what do you think? Does it follow your children, and you expectations? Is your lastborn a comedian, and your first to serious on themselves? Sound off in the comments!

Image by stumayhew via Flickr

When single parents remarry it can be hard on children.  At times, it doesn’t necessarily matter if the child is familiar with the soon to be spouse, it signifies that the end to any hope the child may have had of their parents getting back together is officially at an end. 

While some are lucky in that their children don’t remember their parents as a ‘couple’ many more do, and while there may be some issues when navigating these waters, it can be done.

Understanding where your child may be coming from is important.  While the differences between a child who never knew their parents together and one who had are apparent, the overall feelings involved may be the same.  A parent’s remarriage signifies an end to something that was familiar and comfortable.  The parent/ child relationship will change.  It’s a hard thing to avoid, but reassuring your child that they are loved will help.

There is also a potential for a negative reaction if your child was hoping that both parents would one day reconnect.  Talking to your child and reassuring then that both parents still have more than enough love to give can also help the transition.

While there are still many potential obstacles, overall most problems may be helped with some understanding and talking.  Being open and honest, while still age appropriate may really help out in large amounts.  It may be a difficult transition, but far from impossible.

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Let’s face it, life changed a lot since many of us were kids. 

Around the time many of us were young, Cabbage Patch Toys were the first toy craze out there.  Those things (while still cherished by many) are considerably lower tech along with many other things from our youth. 

While I had always swore I would never be that person who starts out stories by saying ‘back in my day’ that promise has been much harder to keep lately. 

  As many of today’s generation of parents are Gen X and Gen Y grew we developed alongside the advanced tech we have.  Our own kids are the first generation to always know what life is with Wikipedia, cell phones, and instant communication.  They are growing immersed in information 24/7 while we grew up alongside it all.

This new generation is also different from ours, and that of our own parents.  So different that a cursory search can turn up thousands of articles on how to communicate between with the different generations.

A personal favorite example would be what used to be a social ostracizing label of being a ‘nerd’ or a ‘geek’, when many of us were younger, and still in school, being called either was the social end of our lives.  Now, it’s a label that is proudly touted.  It’s come so far that being called a geek is an all out good thing.

There are still many warnings over our present ways of life creating social outcasts, it does seem that that won’t be nearly as much of an issue as it was feared. 

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