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Pet Peeves

Home BlogArchive by Category "Pet Peeves"

Whose Work Is Homework?

Andrea Ramsay Speers

communication, nagging, parenting, Pet Peeves, school, self esteem, stress, teens, tweens

If it was meant to be fun, it wouldn’t be called homework, right? But does getting assignments and essays done have to be such a battle? In fact, that’s the last thing it [...]

Encouraging Respect In Our Kids

Andrea Ramsay Speers

communication, happy families, nagging, parenting, Pet Peeves, self esteem, teens, tweens

“Respect” is an important word for parents. We want our kids to respect us as parents, respect all we do for them, and respect other people. We want them to [...]

Raising Responsible Children

Andrea Ramsay Speers

chores, communication, entitlement, gratitude, keeping kids out of trouble, nagging, parenting, Pet Peeves, school, self esteem, teens, tweens

When I ask parents what kind of adults they hope their children will grow to be, they often use words like responsible, respectful, and independent. Which is a worthy goal, [...]

When Parents Disagree About Parenting

Andrea Ramsay Speers

communication, couples, happy families, marriage, nagging, parenting, Pet Peeves, stress, teens, tweens

Who knew that parenting could be so hard on your marriage?? When we meet someone and children aren’t even on our radars, we don’t really know that our parenting styles might [...]

Don’t Talk To Me Like That! How To Handle Back Talk

Andrea Ramsay Speers

communication, happy families, nagging, parenting, Pet Peeves, teens, tweens

Your kids probably tested the waters of talking back when they were younger, but you may be shocked at the quality –and sheer quantity — of disrespect you face now [...]

Problem Solving

Andrea Ramsay Speers

communication, couples, happy families, nagging, parenting, Pet Peeves, school, teens, tweens

Good communication is important in a family, but we can get stuck when we’ve shared what our issues are, and the person we’re sharing with has a different view. [...]

The Gift Of Boredom

Andrea Ramsay Speers

entitlement, happy families, nagging, parenting, Pet Peeves, tweens

“I’m Bored!” As your kids get older, you may find yourself hearing this refrain less and less (perhaps because your kids spend less and less time hanging around the house with [...]

But Sometimes They Just Push My Buttons!

Andrea Ramsay Speers

communication, parenting, Pet Peeves

Patience is an elusive concept for parents. It can either be something we have (or don’t – as in, “I don’t have a lot of patience for that behaviour”), something we are (or [...]

Independence Day

Andrea Ramsay Speers

anxiety, chores, communication, gratitude, keeping kids out of trouble, parenting, Pet Peeves, self esteem, teens, tweens, Uncategorised

When is the right age for our children to become “independent”? There’s no clear answer for this, but we hope that it is sometime before the age of 30 (fingers crossed). [...]

Sometimes Kids Just Need To Hear No

Andrea Ramsay Speers

communication, entitlement, happy families, keeping kids out of trouble, parenting, Pet Peeves, self esteem, teens, tweens

Nobody likes to disappoint their children. It’s hard to turn them down, crush their hopes, or deny them. And it’s particularly hard to deal with their unpleasant reactions [...]