Spend Less Here, MORE Here!

Now that most of us Moms are tightening our belt as we ride the financial rollercoaster, (or is it more like riding Drop Zone?) we are spending less time at the mall shopping. What are you doing with the time you used to spend on accumulating THINGS?

I hope you are using that time on other things such as personal growth, (now is a great time to learn to face change bravely) and building your relationship with your loved ones. I’ll address personal growth for moms in my next blog. Today, let’s look at your relationship with your daughter.

First, some mom’s are saying they feel guilty over not being able to provide things as they used to for their daughters. This is understandable. There is great joy in being able to give our girls things that make them happy. The problem is, most of us are conditioned to think of and measure happiness in terms of possessions. Read more

Is Your Teen Daughter More Unbearable in This Bear Market?

Moms, do you notice when you are worried about “big things,” that your daughter’s behavior becomes more unbearable? Has she changed her behavior, or are you simply on stress overload?

My hunch is, you are on stress overload, and your daughter’s normal teen behavior gets on your nerves more.

On the other hand, maybe your daughter is acting out more than usual. Our teens feel the palpable tension in the air as we all watch our savings, our kid’s college funds, maybe even our next mortgage payment vanish as the free fall on Wall Street continues.

No matter if your daughter’s behavior is real or imaginary, here are some simple tips to deal with these stressful times. Read more

House Rules: Moms Need to Learn

Moms need to learn how to create and enforce rules about how their teen daughters and her friends act in their homes.

From my research and experience as a mother and doctor of psychology, the fewer rules the better. However, the rules that are in place need to be BIG RULES. And, the consequences to breaking them need to be enforced calmly, quickly and matter-of-factly. Your daughter needs to have some say in making the rules and coming up with consequences for breaking them.

When my four young teenagers were at home, my BIG RULES were simple. The rules applied to my own children and their friends. Read more