If you’re reading this, chances are you are already a reader and already know you should be reading to your kids often and early! While most of us incorporate reading into naps and bedtime routines, any time is a good time to read to your child. But what happens when your child learns to read […] Continue Reading

Children crave structure in their lives; it’s how they learn.  They thrive on routine: as they are growing, routine lets them anticipate and understand what happens next.  Change from regular routine and structure can make kids feel anxious and that they are subject to arbitrary events. Yet change is an integral part of life. Surprisingly,  […] Continue Reading

When I first started medical school, I was fascinated by the science. I liked how it challenged me to think. But once I began practicing medicine as a pediatrician, I realized medicine was much more than science, it was an art.  Just being good at learning the science doesn’t make you a good clinician who […] Continue Reading

I remember my father vividly each and every Fathers Day, but then hardly any day passes that he doesn’t cross my mind. My Dad was only 69 when he died. Far too early if you ask me. I’ve never known a person with such a staunch blue collar work ethic. Nor seen a more steely […] Continue Reading

Kelly Bartlett, on her website “Parenting From Scratch,” has an engaging post called “.” I’ve been a pediatrician for 40 years and a father for over 30 years, and I am not so certain that anything really “simplifies” parenting. But that said, she makes some great points about de-cluttering the noise and to-do lists from […] Continue Reading

I have just returned from a memorable trip through Portugal, Spain and Holland where I tried to soak up as much local culture as possible. Not by visiting the traditional landmarks or museums (although they were amazing too), but by strolling through city streets and neighborhoods and observing how families live. And on this trip, […] Continue Reading

I recently watched Jennifer Senior’s very thought-provoking , “For Parents, Happiness is a Very High Bar,” and was struck by a few of the excellent points she makes, and how they relate to my own ideas about developing your own Parenting Personality. In her 20-minute talk, she emphasizes that parenting is more complex and stressful […] Continue Reading

An excellent post about parenting mantras – 8 Parenting Mantras to Get You Through the Tough Moments – by blogger Lori Garcia in Babble last week,  reminded me some of the focusing techniques I share with parents as a pediatrician. Mantras are terrific – one of my own personal ones, as a father, is “Let […] Continue Reading

Bullying is very much in the news and lately the word “bullying” has been used for a wide range of hurtful behaviors. But true bullying is more than just teasing or “picking on” someone else. While no parent wants to see their child targeted by any kind of cruel behavior, true bullying is defined as […] Continue Reading

“Parents grounding you unfairly? Aren’t getting enough allowance? Call 1-800-SUE-DAD.” Could this be in your family’s future? In the recent, and shocking, case of New Jersey teenager Rachel Canning, who sued her parents for child support, no one but the Canning family itself really knows what that family dynamic was, and is. Still, this case […] Continue Reading