Leaving Your Kids Alone

Are you working your kids too hard. The latest movement in parenting is to leave your kids alone and I think I agree. They only get to be innocent and happy for so long. I am not even such a fan of homework for that very reason. Schools and governments are tyrannical and laying the homework on too thick. Furthermore too many kids that I see, especially ethnic ones, are coming up from school and then stuck working in the family business. Some of these poor kids are working twelve-hour work days between their part time jobs, homework and going to school in the first place.

Then there is the other type of parent that can't leave their kid alone because they are trying to raise a genius. They cram the kids day full of activities like judo, tennis, piano and art class. At home they are put on a program of watching educational televise or working on the computer. Now wonder our kids are so tired. Is a wireless Nintendo that far of a cry away from just handing the kid their own organizer like a Blackberry.

All these activities that we force on our kids impose costs on the parents and they also don't levee your kid any breathing room so he or she can just fool around. Yet another problem with overworking your kids is that it can cause their creativity to be stifled. Yet another problem is that children will develop the attitude that they always think they need others to do stuff for them on a full time basis. They forget to use their own problem solving abilities and fail to see innovative solutions or even obvious solutions to problems. They are overstrained.

Leaving your child alone does not mean being negligent. However it does mean being a little more carefree when it comes to raising them. You don't have to watch them every minute. And you do not have to run every single hour of their lives. Let them breathe and take a stroll every now and then. We are raising kids that are anxious way before their time. Many of them deal with the anxiety that we lay on them with bad habits. Younger children pick their nose or bite their nails. Older children start smoking, drinking and doing drugs. They are self-medicating to eliminate their anxiety.

You need not worry that your kid will be too lazy if you are not on his or her back all of the time. Most kids, when left to their own devices do find something to do. They like to be busy but on their own terms. Doing things on their own terms allows them to discover what they like doing in life as well as their own limitations. Without you around always making decisions for the kid they can learn to make decisions on their own. The result is a healthier, wiser and more confident adult in the end.

Parenting Tips
, , , , , , ,

Tips on Buying Bottled Water

There has been some controversy lately about buying bottled water because of plastic leeching from the bottles into the water.. First off not all bottled water can be considered to fine or premium bottle waters.

Still you and your kids have to drink water. If. Not drinking enough water often causes the feelings of illness that many people experience when they are first beginning a diet or exercise program. These symptoms can include dry itchy skin, headaches, stress, mental fogginess, weakness, sleepiness, bloating and constipation

Here are some tips on buying bottled water that is of a healthy and of a high quality because the last thing we want to do is lower the life quality for our children any more than we already have.

The first tip is 'don't believe the pictures that you see on bottled waters'. One of the biggest scams going when it comes to bottled water is for the manufacturer to package it with pictures of mountains or clear flowing crystal springs on the labels. You would think from looking at the labels on these waters that you are buying a product that is packaged right at the source. Nothing could be further than the truth. There are several very big manufacturers of bottled water that are simply reselling tap water from the Great Lakes and other sources are not that pure. In essence, what you are buying, despite that picture of the Majestic Mountain or big iceberg on the label, is simply tap water made from municipal sources.

The second tip is to never buy a bottle that has been scratched. You can often see a scratch in a bottle if you hold it up to the light. If you see a scratch it means that the product may be contaminated with chemicals from the glass or plastic leaching into the water. This is because plastic is made from layers and not all of the plastic used to manufacture a plastic bottle is that hard.

The third tip is to never buy a plastic bottle of water that a bit warped or looks like it is melted a bit. This can mean that the bottle melted a bit from heat exposure. When plastic bottles are heated up the chemicals in the plastic can leach into the water as well. This is also why you should avoid drinking bottled water that you know has been sitting in the back of a hot car trunk or in direct sunlight. It is possible that the ultraviolet rays from the sun have degraded the plastic and caused the beverage to become toxic.

The fourth tip is to always check the cap on any bottled water that you buy. If it is loose, open or appears tampered with in any way due not consume the water's content. Anything can happen in this day and age. The water could be tampered with or contaminated with bacteria. If the bottled water container appears fat or swollen this is definitely a sign that the water has gone off or is contaminated with bacteria so don't drink it!

Parenting Tips
, , , , , , , , ,