Sony Helps Boys Dream Come True

This is a touching story of a boy, 23, who has cerebral palsy. He is a major baseball fan, and loves Sony's game MLB: The Show. The boy wrote a letter to Sony, and Sony is now making this boys dream of playing baseball come true, digitally. Check it out here.

Is Your Daughter Ready to Date? Part Two

Photo From: FreeDigitalDownloads.com

Last week, we discussed signs that your daughter is not ready to date. If she lacks Emotional Maturity in Self-Control, Empathy, and Personal Responsibility, she is not ready to date. Of course, it is hard to want to spot the negatives in your daughter, but it is something to be aware of. Today, let’s discuss the characteristics of someone who is Emotionally Mature and ready to date. To read the first part, please go here.

Sometimes, as a society, we feel that once our child hits a certain age they are ready to experience certain things in life. Dating is one of those things that we believe can start at a certain age. Sometimes a 16 year old is ready to date, and an 18 year old may not be. Why? Emotional maturity. So let’s look at some of the signs that your daughter may be ready to date.

....Read the rest at Essential Fathers or Notes on Parenting.

Transition to Fatherhood Course

Are you expecting? Are you a first time father? Do you wish your husband/boyfriend was better prepared for the special delivery? Come take a course to learn more!

This summer I will be offering two courses on the Transition to Fatherhood. The course is primarily aimed at first time fathers, and expectant fathers.

Topics addressed will include:

• What your spouse/partner is going through
• What is your baby doing
• What changes will happen to your routine
• "How To's" your spouse/partner wishes you knew
• A man's pregnancy

It will be interactive and informative.

The cost of registration is $50 per person. The cost includes two 2.5 hour sessions, a manual, take home materials, and other information. All you need to bring is yourself, everything is provided.

The first class starts July 8, a Thursday, at 6:00 at the Westwood Winnipeg Public Library.

You can register online at www.lockinghearts.com where you can pay with PayPal!

For more information, or to request more information, please go to www.lockinghearts.com.

New Website

Locking Hearts Together Counselling has launched it's website. It is still a work in progress, and needs to be made pretty. The focus has been setting up PayPal, and getting it to work correctly.

Check it out here, or go to www.lockinghearts.com

Your Child Learns How to be Treated by Watching You

As seen in the Battleford's News Optimist.

As your children shift into the school age and start interacting with children of the opposite gender, they will implement what they have learned at home about male-to-female relationships. Your children have been paying close attention to how you treat the other parent, your spouse.

If your relationship with your spouse has been shaky, your child will take that with them to school. What do I mean by shaky? Well, I mean that there is a lack of trust, little responsibility, and a lot of unnecessary time spent apart, your child will have a likely chance of seeking out relationship companions that are not trustworthy, don’t own up to responsibility, and are physically detached.

Let’s also think of if you have yelled or even threatened to hit your spouse. Even if you didn’t do this in front of your children, it still has an influence on them if they are present, say in their bedroom. If this is the case with your relationship with your spouse, your children, especially your daughters, will lean towards males who are verbally, emotionally, and physically abusive.

If your relationship has been following the “Gottman guidelines” of at least three positive acts for every one negative, your children will have noticed this. If you have been taking your spouse out on dates, buying them flowers, remembering your anniversary, among other things, your children will be more likely to seek out respectful partners.

Of course, there will be the situation where your child gets themselves into an unhealthy relationship, despite your example. Just know that you are their first exposure to a male-female relationship, and despite a poor choice, they will one day come to the realization and desire the relationship that their father and mother had.

We also need to be aware of other influences on the male-female relationship. One cannot omit the outside forces that come into our homes. What kind of shows and movies do you watch in your house, and how are women treated in them? What kinds of video games do you play, and how are the women treated or portrayed in those? How about your music, what do the lyrics contain about relationships? If you view pornography, think of how that will influence your daughter and son of how women should be treated by men. Take all of those into account. Even if you treat your spouse with the utmost respect, but then listen to a song demeaning your relationship to them, there will be a conflict in the messages you are sending to your children.

Make your home and your relationship with your spouse healthy, so that your children can see, hear, and learn how they should be treated. It will greatly affect her relationships for the rest of their life.

***This same article is also found on Essential Fathers and Notes on Parenting.

Did Rogers Ruin Her Marriage?

I caught a glimpse of this story on the news last night. I then saw it in my news feeds this morning. This woman is claiming that Rogers ruined her marriage, and life, because the combined Rogers wireless bill got sent to her husband. Her husband saw this repeated phone number, figured things out and left her.

Really? You are surprised that your secret affair ruined your life? You mean, you had a fantastic life with a husband and children, so enthralling that you had to sleep with someone else? Wow.

This is a prime example of someone not taking personal responsibility. It is so much easier to blame others, especially corporations. She had been living a lie, and when her lie was uncovered, she played the victim card. Did she not think that an affair could ruin her marriage? Or was she caught up in the instant gratification?

Some people get caught up in the now so much, that they don't think of the long-term consequences of their choices. Yes, this lady is suffering from psychological problems of having her husband leave her. Those are real. But really, if Rogers did not send this bill to her husband, do you think it would have remained hidden? Probably not. Truth always finds a way to the surface, usually through accidental channels (like what happened here with Rogers).

If she was going to be personally responsible, she would have admitted that she made a mistake. She would not have played the victim card, and would have owned up to the fact that her actions DID contribute to her marital breakdown. If she was responsible, she would not have engaged in an ongoing affair.

I don't want to paint things black and white. Maybe something bad was going on in her marriage, we don't know that. But, if she really didn't want to have her life ruined by having her affair revealed, maybe she should not have had the ongoing affair in the first place. (I say ongoing, because as reported by the news there was repeated lengthy calls to the same number, therefore indicating length.)

Rogers did not ruin your marriage Gabriella Nagy, you did.

Is Your Daughter Ready to Date?

No! I am sure that was the answer that went through your head, and will continue running through your head until she turns 35.

Some of us have these societal defined ages in which it is okay to start dating: 14, 16, 18, 21, 25, and 30. There are times when a 16 year old is ready to date, and then there are times when a 21 year old is not ready to be dating. There are certain characteristics that are needed in order to start dating. Emotional maturity is the key indicator for dating preparedness.Emotional maturity can be broken into three categories empathy, self-control, and personal responsibility.

....

Read the rest on Essential Fathers, or on Notes on Parenting.

It's Official!!!

It's a company now. Locking Hearts Together Counselling has been registered. It is recognized as a counselling, consultant, and educational service.

In the very near future, the website will be launched, which will include upcoming courses/seminars that will be available this summer, and much more!

iPhone/iPod Touch Apps for Toddlers

Surprisingly I do share my iPhone with my daughter. Of course, I do get nervous about her dropping it, but so far so good.

Needless to say, Apple is superb at making a simple to use device. Simple enough that my two year-old (and when I had an iPod Touch, she was 14 months old) can use it. Not only can she play the apps, but she can find the movie or song she wants, or she can go through the pictures and find the latest captured video or picture. Just amazing.

However, there are some Apps that are just amazing that are made for toddlers.

I'll list them all here that we use, you can pick and choose for yourself.

Dr. Suess's ABC's - 2.99 A read to me, or read to self book. Interactive in that you can touch the images and it will repeat that word for you.

Solar Walk - 2.99- This App requires Daddy's help. It is fun to take a tour of the solar system. Provides a lot of information.

ABC Animals - 1.99 - Simplistic ABC cards with animals on them.

Kidztory - 0.99 - This group of Apps I just can't get enough of. We have five of their book-apps. They can read to you, or you can read yourself.

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs - Free - This is a popular App for us, because my daughter LOVED the movie. So therefore, this App is popular. The movie snippets for the tour of Chewandswallow is what is used the most.

Fairies Fly (Lite) - Free- Yes there is a paid version, but we are talking about entertaining a two-year-old while in the shopping line. It doesn't have to be a long in-depth game to get her attention. There are movies and games for her.

Garfield Bird Crazy - Free- Again, she loves Garfield, like her daddy, so this App was naturally well liked for her.

Giraffe's Pre-School Playground - 0.99- There are six mini-games for her to play with. They are a little out her grasp, but she loves the sounds!

Monkey Shaker - Free- A monkey is her favourite animal, and for up to 60 seconds she can shake the phone for it to make a monkey sound.

Peekaboo Barn - 1.99- This is a simple to use App. My daughter has been using this App since she was one, and still uses it. Simple touching of the barn to reveal the animal that is making the sound, and learn it's name. We have this app set for loop, so that it keeps going! Until she exits it.

Pet the Animals - Free- Actual pictures of animals, accompanied by their sounds. Simple.

Preschool Adventure - 0.99- They have just expanded to eight mini-games, which took a while for my daughter to adjust too, since there was six before. But the recent editions to the App, she uses frequently.

CleanPro - 0.99- Dogs licking your screen squeaky clean.

Topple - Free- She doesn't understand the concept of the game, but she likes the music, and that she can move the blocks.

Try them out with your child, and I am sure that they will enjoy them. Note that I listed the Canadian prices in iTunes.

Dance With Your Daughter

When the music comes on in our house, and it is a song my two-year-old likes, she comes looking for me to dance. Not mommy, but daddy.

Dancing with your daughter, no matter how bad of a dancer you are, is a great way to interact with her. It shows that you are willing to let go of yourself and are available to have fun with her. Think of the message that sends to her: “My daddy is willing to take time out of his day to dance, jump, and spin around with me.”

To continue reading, click here.

Happy Mothers Day!!

My favourite Mother's Day movie.

Stephanie Nielson: My New Life

A very influential story for this Mother's Day Weekend.

Fathers, Teach Your Daughter to Respect Her Mother

Mother’s day is coming up. We usually focus on getting mother a gift. Yet if we get mom a gift, and later disrespect her, that present has little value.

As I had written in an earlier post, your daughter learns about male-female relationships by watching how you treat your wife. However, you can also teach your daughter how to treat her mother.

The following are some ideas of how you can help your daughter show respect to her mother for the other 364 days of the year.

... read all of the ideas on Essential Fathers or on Notes on Parenting.

New Marriage Blanket

Not sure if this is real or not, but this commercial is hilarious. What do you think?

Here is the full link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bM4eJ38S7Hw