Posted on 6/9/2020
“There’s no one-size-fits-all model of childrearing for all the world’s parents,” opines Alma Gottlieb, Professor Emerita of Anthropology at the University of Illinois. Gottlieb was quoted in an...
Read MorePosted on 4/21/2020
Q: My three-year-old son tends to react physically when he's mad at a preschool classmate instead of talking it out and letting the teachers intervene. We have encouraged him to use words when...
Read MorePosted on 2/25/2020
Q: Our daughter, our first and only, is just short of three-and-one-half. She has recently started coming into our room in the middle of the night and making a request of one sort or another. She...
Read MorePosted on 9/26/2018
Talking today’s mother through her first experience with toilet training is akin to talking someone off a ledge. Both situations involve massive anxiety, high drama and lots of yelling and...
Read MorePosted on 8/14/2018
“Potty training is a nightmare.” So begins advice from Meghan Leahy, advice columnist for The Washington Post. More accurately, potty training has, of late, BECOME a nightmare, thanks to advice of...
Read MorePosted on 7/10/2018
Strolling through my go-to grocery store the other day, I happened down the Baby Products aisle where I spied packages of toilet-training pants featuring pictures of happy children who looked at...
Read MorePosted on 12/19/2017
Q: My parents recently told me that my husband and I are letting our toddler run our family and that it’s becoming increasingly uncomfortable for them to visit or have us visit with them – they...
Read MorePosted on 8/2/2017
Q: Our twin girls will be three in a few months. Our pediatrician recommended that we start toilet training at 32 months, which we did. After several months and lots of gnashing of teeth, one of...
Read MorePosted on 4/12/2017
There is no good evidence that the artificial gains produced by so-called "jump-start" educational programs for toddlers, whether computer-driven or human-driven, are of lasting value....
Read MorePosted on 3/14/2017
Q: My 30-month-old has started throwing tantrums when I do not give her or do for her what she wants. During her fits, she cries, screams, tries to hit and even bite me, and then, if I prevent her...
Read MorePosted on 12/29/2015
Q: Our daughter died last year—long, sad story—leaving behind a 2-year-old boy. The father—not named on the birth certificate—is not and never has been a factor in the child’s life and gave us...
Read MorePosted on 6/23/2015
Living with Children John Rosemond Copyright 2015, John K. Rosemond Q: My 24-month-old is constantly wanting to be in her newborn baby brother’s face, poking and touching him. How can...
Read MorePosted on 9/16/2014
Q: My 23-month-old son does well with potty training when we’re at home. We use a “potty bell” and he goes every 90 minutes or so. When we’re away from home, however, he seems clueless. He...
Read MorePosted on 8/12/2014
On one of my websites I, along with a team of certified parent coaches, answer questions submitted by parents. In the last two days, 67 percent of the questions have concerned toilet...
Read MorePosted on 7/15/2014
Q: Since our daughter, now 2 years old, was born we have lived with my parents. Being the first and only grandchild she has been the center of attention. Several months ago, our son was...
Read MorePosted on 7/1/2014
Q: When he throws a tantrum, which happens several times a day, my 20-month-old often gets down on the floor and starts banging his head. Worried that he may hurt himself, I pick him up and...
Read MorePosted on 6/24/2014
Q: My 26-month-old daughter will go on the potty happily every hour when told (we’re using your “potty bell” and it’s working extremely well) and produces every time. As a result, she’s having...
Read MorePosted on 6/10/2014
Q: We began toilet training our daughter when she was 21 months old. Within 10 days, she was consistently using the toilet for Number One. She now wears underwear 24/7 because she doesn’t...
Read MorePosted on 4/28/2014
Shortly after I finished graduate school, a friend of mine shared with me a book called Indirect Hypnosis, written by Milton Erickson, a most unorthodox psychiatrist if ever there was one....
Read MorePosted on 3/4/2014
Q: I've been using the method described in your toilet-training book with my 18-month-old daughter and she's been doing great during the day. She rarely has an accident. However, I'm still using a...
Read MorePosted on 2/25/2014
Q: We are having a problem with our 32-month-old son. He picks his nose-most often in a public setting-and then proceeds to wipe it on other family members. It's disgusting. We have tried ignoring...
Read MorePosted on 12/31/2013
Q: Our son is two-and-one-half and for the most part eats very well. We make up his plate for each meal and he has to eat what is on his plate, or at least try each food on the plate before he can...
Read MorePosted on 12/10/2013
Q: My 18-month-old kicks me and hits me when I try to change his diaper. He doesn't do this for his father or grandparents. Should I hold his legs down until he gives up or will this worsen...
Read MorePosted on 11/19/2013
The mother of a 4-year-old boy shared an interesting story with me the other day. At age 2, her son began chewing meat to the point where it became liquid, but would not swallow. The parents...
Read MorePosted on 10/25/2013
Editor's Comment: John gets so many questions about toilet training. I am reprinting a column from two years ago; with an additional note. Almost every question received about toilet training has...
Read MorePosted on 6/25/2013
Q: Help! We find it almost impossible to finish a restaurant meal when our 18-month-old twins are along, which is always. We give them toys to keep them busy, and they do well for about 30 minutes...
Read MorePosted on 2/26/2013
Q: Our 18 month old is a table terror! While I'm preparing dinner, she walks around acting like she's starving, but as soon as we sit her in her highchair she takes a few bites and then wants...
Read MorePosted on 12/4/2012
Q: This past August, when our son was a mere 22 months of age, it took him two weeks to learn to use the potty successfully. He was dry even at night. We were thrilled! However, now that the...
Read MorePosted on 7/26/2011
Shy toddlers Q. Our 32-month-old daughter has always been outgoing and loves to be around people ... until recently, that is. All of a sudden she has started lowering her head when we get...
Read MorePosted on 6/14/2011
Children at funerals? Q: My father-in-law has about one month to live. Should our children - ages 7, 5 and 2 - attend the funeral or viewing? A. Sit down with the older two children,...
Read MorePosted on 4/26/2011
Brother's response to surly sister stokes more outbursts Q: Our 7-year-old son and 32-month-old daughter squabble with each other constantly, mostly over taking and playing with each other's...
Read MorePosted on 4/26/2011
Q: My husband and I are raising our 2-year-old grandson. He's been in day care since he was a year old. He loves his current day care, and we've had absolutely no problems until recently. All of a...
Read MorePosted on 2/15/2011
Kids give up naps when ready, no matter the age Q. Over the holidays, our 28-month-old daughter stopped napping. A couple of days we were so busy with Christmas that a nap simply was not...
Read MorePosted on 2/8/2011
Don't let kids run family food circus I must, in the interest of full disclosure, begin this column with a confession: I am a voyeur; more specifically, a parenting voyeur. In the words of...
Read MorePosted on 11/30/2010
Time for the really bad parenting advice award Every so often, when I'm feeling in an especially mischievous mood (as opposed to my typically mischievous mood), I award a RALPH - Rosemond's...
Read MorePosted on 10/12/2010
Preschool without shame? What a pity The National Association for the Education of Young Children and I don't see eye to eye on many things - maybe anything. We don't even agree on a definition...
Read MorePosted on 9/28/2010
Don't get into a food fight with a toddler Q: My 2-year-old daughter eats a few bites of supper each night and then wants milk. So I give her milk. Then she refuses to eat anything else. We...
Read MorePosted on 9/14/2010
Toddler tantrums have simple source Today's parents - especially those in the educated class who consume parenting information via newspaper columns, books, and seminars - tend toward what I...
Read MorePosted on 8/10/2010
Toddler sends a message Q: Our 26-month-old grandson has started finger-painting on walls and furniture with poop when he wakes up from his nap. We think he wakes up, poops in his diaper and...
Read MorePosted on 7/27/2010
Got a 2-year-old who throws? Give him the gate Q. Our son is a month from being 2. We're concerned about his throwing. During a recent dinner out, he threw a fork that whizzed by a lady's head,...
Read MorePosted on 7/13/2010
When toddler clings, don't give in Q: I'm a stay-at-home mom who attends a moms' group that meets every two weeks. Every time I leave my 30-month-old in the play group, which is supervised by...
Read MorePosted on 5/18/2010
Toddler exercises her will at naptime Q: My 21/2-year- old is still sleeping in her crib. When we put her in for a nap, she begins jumping up and down, holding onto the side. (She was also...
Read MorePosted on 5/12/2009
PARENTS' ATTITUDE IS KEY TO POTTY TRAINING SUCCESS Two weeks ago, I addressed what has become the No. 1 Toilet Training Problem in America: children who refuse to use the toilet for bowel...
Read MorePosted on 4/28/2009
THIS GENERATION'S WAYS OF POTTY TRAINING HAS GOTTA GO What's it going to take for American parents to realize that just as it's far easier to house-train a 4-month-old puppy than a 1-year-old...
Read MorePosted on 1/13/2009
TOT'S BEHAVIOR MAY NOT BE TIED TO MEDICAL ILLS Q: As a result of being born with PHACES syndrome, my 2-year-old daughter has had numerous facial and eye operations. Because of all the stress,...
Read MorePosted on 1/6/2009
LATE BEDTIME MAY MEAN YOUNG CHILD WON'T SLEEP AS WELL THE BIGGEST BENEFIT OF PUTTING A CHILD TO BED EARLY IS THAT COUPLES GET TO SPEND TIME TOGETHER. Q. For the last month, our 2...
Read MorePosted on 1/6/2009
Q. How important is it that I provide my 2-year-old with socialization opportunities? The other mothers in the neighborhood have formed a play group for their toddlers, but they seem to spend most...
Read MorePosted on 12/30/2008
PARENTS SHOULD CALMLY HELP BABY LEARN TO FEED HIMSELF Q. Our 16-month-old son refuses to feed himself. He will not even touch his food other than to throw it to the floor. If I try to put a bit...
Read MorePosted on 10/7/2008
EARLY IS BETTER THAN LATER FOR BABY'S TOILET TRAINING I've said many times that letting a child older than 30 months soil and wet herself several times a day is an insult to the child's...
Read MorePosted on 9/23/2008
PARENTS GET CREATIVE AND GET GOOD RESULTS As regular readers of this column know, my advice tends toward the "psychologically incorrect" end of the spectrum. As a consequence, I frequently...
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