Wahms Helper

Archive for the ‘Home and Family’ Category

We’re pretty excited about the Kindle. It’s a powerful digital book reader with a great number of features, not the least of which is you can download any of some 450,000 book and periodical titles from Amazon. The Kindle is an expensive toy for some and a wonderful learning tool for others.

Just recently Amazon announced a free software version of the Kindle reader for your PC. We’ve installed it and had a look and we’re quite impressed. It is easy to use and gets the job done without a lot of fuss. You can get your own copy HERE and start reading Kindle books today.

An extra bonus is the thousands and thousands of free books available through Amazon and other sources!

If you are interested in a real Kindle reading device, check below:

If your morning sounds something like this, “Wake up! C’mon! You’re going to be late! You’ll miss your bus! This is the last time. I’m not telling you again…” then you have a problem.

You can change that! There are a few basic thing you can do to bring things under control. Just remember, YOU are the parent. The key, though, is consistency. Decide on the plan and then follow it through.

Mornings are built upon one thing: bedtime the night before. Having a standard, consistent, evening routine will assist greatly in how smoothly the next morning will run. There are some standard procedures you should follow. Here are a few:

1) The old adage early to bed, early to rise was never more true. Determine a suitable bed time for each child and stick with it. If applicable spend a little time and explain about older children being up a little longer.

2) Going to bed is about preparation. Pack lunches and backpacks ready for the morning. See that all homework is done and books and papers rounded up. Double check any special requirements for the next day. There is no time for this in the morning.

3) Have showers or baths before bed. There’s really no time for those in the morning either, especially if the number of children doesn’t match the number of bathrooms.

4) Select and ready all clothes for the next day. Looking for a missing shoe or matching socks while the bus is honking just doesn’t cut it.

Both at night, and the following morning, you need to stay calm. Be forceful, if necessary, but don’t yell. If you raise your voice, and show your frustration, your kids will sense an opening and take it. Be clear and precise. Don’t give a litany of instructions and commands all in one breath. That just goes right over the kids heads. Stop. Get the child’s attention. Tell them one thing at a time. And give the instruction one time only. If it doesn’t get done your child will learn to listen and respond the next time or do without. Saying this is the last time several times serves no purpose except teaching the child you don’t really mean what you say. Determine suitable punishments and let them be known in advance. If consequences are warranted deliver them as previously presented. Empty promises produce empty results. Stick to your guns.

You will be amazed how far structure and consistency will take you.