love
Love Hurts
Love…..a much overused word. And the definition! Wow! All over the spectrum, from good to bad, positive to negative.
If you’re older than a new teenager you have at least heard the song “Love Hurts” by Nazareth. We listen to those lyrics with mixed emotion, because although we don’t really agree – at the same time, we do. 
Love Does Hurt
Love is the thing that gives us the most gratification in life, and therefore opens us up to the most pain.
And our children are what we love the most. Over the years of being a parent and now a grandparent I have made this statement many, many times: Raising children is the most difficult, and the most rewarding thing you will ever do in life.
Love….According to C. S. Lewis
Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give it to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken, it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable. - from The Four Loves
Love and Hurt
I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love. - Mother Teresa
Read more love quotes here.
Do Children Understand Love?
What Does Love Mean?
See How 4-8 Year-Old Kids Describe Love
–by Ladan Lashkari, Dec 29, 2010
A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds: “What does love mean?”
The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think…
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“When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.”
Rebecca – age 8
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“When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.”
Billy – age 4
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“Love is what makes you smile when you’re tired.”
Terri – age 4
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“Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.”
Danny – age 7
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“Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss.”
Emily – age 8
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“Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.”
Bobby – age 7 (Wow!)
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“If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate.”
Nikka – age 6 (we need a few million more Nikka’s on this planet)
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“Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.”
Noelle – age 7
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“Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.”
Tommy – age 6
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“During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.
He was the only one doing that. I wasn’t scared anymore.”
Cindy – age 8
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“Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.”
Elaine – age 5
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“Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.”
Chris – age 7
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“Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.”
Mary Ann – age 4
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“I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.” (Now THIS is love!)
Lauren – age 4
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“When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.” (what an image!)
Karen – age 7
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“Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn’t think it’s gross.”
Mark – age 6
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“You really shouldn’t say ‘I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.”
Jessica – age 8
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And the final one…
Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge. The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child. The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman’s yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, “Nothing
, I just helped him cry.”
Ladan Lashkari publishes Creative Success Tips Newsletter with creative happiness ideas and motivational quotes, stories and poems.
Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com
Happy Child, Happy Parents
There are so many methods and techniques to parenting these days. Many parents are unhappy with their home lives and feel they can better their parenting skills, but just don’t know how or even where to start. These 4 Keys will surprise you, and so will the results you get!
To become a better parent takes a little effort, but the benefits are endless. By putting in a little effort with your children you can become significantly closer to your child, earn your child’s trust, and you will gain confidence in your parenting decisions over time. Better parenting also means happier, healthier children who have less behavioral problems, better emotional and intellectual health and more easy-going personalities. So although it may not be easy at first, investing some time to learn some new ways to deal with your kids can actually make parenting easier in the long term – as kids can be less defiant and more cooperative with specific parenting techniques.
Parenting is an incredibly difficult job that you seldom get credit for. You won’t always know if you’re right or wrong, but at Parent Learning Club, you can receive ongoing support from other parents struggling with the same issues.
One of the main problems today is that more and more children are exhibiting aggressive behavior. Biting, kicking, screaming, whining, clinginess, shouting, hitting, scratching are all very common problems nowadays. Angry child syndrome is not all the media’s fault, however. There are many different factors that can cause children to become aggressive. Here are just a few of the reasons, as described by the Happy Child Guide, published by Child Brain Health Research Institute.
4 Keys to Happy Child Parenting:
1) Diet – Our society is one that primarily eats processed foods, junk food, etc. Even if you think you’re child is eating healthy, think again. Everything in the supermarket is packed with preservatives, sugar, sodium, and other things that can negatively affect your child. Several studies show that there is a link between children who lack of certain vitamins and minerals to bad or aggressive behavior. It is incredibly difficult to buy foods that are free of all harmful ingredients, and then actually cook for most parents. It actually doesn’t take as much effort as people think it does. Just putting in a few extra minutes a day can help your child’s entire attitude, and even effect how they learn. Better parenting starts with simply nourishing kids with proper food and nutrients.
2) Exercise – We all know our kids can be the very definition of the energizer bunny sometimes. Kids are energetic because kids are meant to play outside. However, instead of playing outside, most kids wind up spending all their time sitting in school and sitting in front of the television. By taking children outside to play or enrolling them in a sport, their behavior can be greatly improved. When children get proper amounts of exercise, they sleep better, resulting in sweeter, less cranky children. By exercising, children also build up self-esteem and self-confidence. When children lack self-confidence, they feel the need to act out, which is a very common parenting problem. Exercise also reduces stress, allows children to release aggressive feelings in a productive way, and even reduces ADD and ADHD. It also keeps a child’s brain healthy and working. The California Department of Education found that students who do some kind of aerobic exercise also score twice as well in school then those children who do not get exercise.
3) Sleep – Any parent knows what it is like dealing with children who don’t get their nap, or don’t go to bed on time. Yet, there are still many children who do not get enough sleep. The proper amount of sleep for a child under 7 is 12 hours a night. After that, 10 hours a night should be the minimum. Scientists at Northwestern University have discovered that there is a direct link between aggressive behaviors and lack of proper sleep. Getting children to sleep is one of the toughest things about parenting, but by implementing a bedtime routine, and slowly putting your child to bed earlier and earlier every night, bedtime stops becoming a problem.
4) Television – It is impossible not to watch television at all, but most parents do not realize when their children spend too much time in front of the TV set. This is a time to exercise your parenting skills and pull your kids away from that screen and engage them in more productive play. It is understandable that parents are tired and just want to relax after work, and sitting down in front of the TV is the best way to keep everyone distracted. However, this is just a common misconception. By having a box of crafts set aside, parents can still relax, distract the children, and do something productive.
These are just some of the factors that are negatively affecting children. They are simple and obvious, yet most parents overlook them completely. Weaning your kids off of all these things and changing their habits can be a definite strain on your parenting skills, but at the end of the day, changing these few simple things can effect your children’s entire lives and behavior – which means, less parenting stress for you!
by Dr. Blaise Ryan, Author of: The Happy Child Guide
