It’s that time of year again. You know what I am talking about if you have children is school. The start of school, for many parents, means getting back to a different schedule, managing getting children up, dressed, fed and off to school, and dealing with many issues which are connected to school, such as not wanting to go, missing the bus, losing a book, getting homework done, etc. While parenting is the most rewarding job in the world, it is also the most challenging position you will hold. Parents can often see the issues their child is facing or creating very easily, but a lot of parents ..read more

Being organized and not enjoying chaos and clutter has served me well as a military wife, mother, teacher and principal but nowhere has it served me better than in preparing my children for another year of school. As most of us across Canada now prepare for the return to school I have created my top tips for starting a year just as successfully as it is finished. Focus on Goals & Dreams Teach your children to spend less time on how their year will start and more on how they would like it to end. Teach your children to spend less time on how their year will start and more on how they would ..read more

If you are like our family this year, you will be ‘liking’ Facebook posts of other people’s March Break adventures from your home. We simply don’t have the money to go away, and we have had to get creative on long weekends and holidays to ensure we don’t all end up spending our vacation in front of a screen and then waking up after a week wondering where the time went, and why we didn’t do anything. I am determined not to have my kids drive me nuts or be glued to a screen (not for more than a day anyway), and at the same time be fiscally responsible. I hope many of you will enjoy our family’s ..read more

The pandemic has undoubtedly thrown many new stressors on children and caregivers alike. For military families, however, the pandemic only added a new layer of stressors, making the time, especially challenging for some. To support military families during this time, Sesame Street for Military Families recently launched a new digital resource that offers bite-sized yet information-packed videos on how to focus on self-care and emotional well-being. “Prioritizing self-care and staying focused on the positive can feel difficult some days,” said Jeanette Betancourt, Sesame Workshop’s Senior Vice ..read more

Traditions are important. Keeping them up is especially important when you aren’t with everyone you would like to be around during the holidays. In our home, every season has traditions that we like to do together as a family. It is tough to want to do some of those things when you aren’t all together, but it is even more important, especially so for kids. Your children want your time and to laugh with you doing specific things that bring back fond memories and create new ones. One year we decided to do a Christmas vacation to the sun and sand. To get a good deal, we flew on December 25th at 6 ..read more

It can be easy to get carried away when it comes to gift-giving this holiday season. With holiday tunes streaming, the scent of pine from the Christmas tree, the sweet aroma of cookies baking, and those “great gift” ideas popping up as you scroll the web, there may be the temptation to overcompensate by overspending. Before you get carried away and end up finding yourself paying off this Christmas next year, we have tips and strategies for how to create and keep a budget while giving gifts that will please your family members. Set a Budget “Setting a budget for Christmas is important for many ..read more

Nothing can make a parent or guardian feel more helpless, stressed, and worried than watching their child struggle. Military family life, with regular deployments and postings, can add extra challenges. Postings and deployments are a fact of military life. Unfortunately, they can be very stressful for all involved, especially the children. Life can become even more difficult and stressful for the child if a parent is experiencing physical or mental health issues from serving in the military. One of the best pieces of advice I came across while writing this article was from PBS. They said to r ..read more

By Melissa Madill The beginning of a new school year is typically a busy time for parents. With school schedules, activity schedules and sports schedules to balance, parents might overlook that this time of year can be a stressful time for a child. Throw into the mix any of the military lifestyle factors and a child can be left feeling overwhelmed. There are a couple of actions that parents can do to be proactive when it comes to setting their children up for a successful school year. When it comes to facing new situations children adjust easier when the gap between the unknown and the known i ..read more

It’s been three years since Leona Stein’s two boys moved out of the house but she still finds it a little difficult when her children go back to university or life in the military after a visit home. “I find when they come home to visit and when they leave again it’s a little harder adjusting, but it’s quicker than before. It has gotten easier,” said Stein. Parents, especially mothers, can struggle with loss of identity, loneliness and the feeling of loss when children leave the home.Adjusting to an Empty Nest Though now well adjusted, Stein was just one of many parents in the “empty nest” cyc ..read more

Back-to-School is a huge deal for families with children. While it’s the “most wonderful time of the year” for some folks, it can also be a huge challenge to get organized and ready for what has become the real New Year for many families. Here are some simple steps you can take today, to make the next school year a huge success for everyone! The Schedule This is the most critical piece to organizing your family for the school year. And the more children you have, the more it matters. Getting everyone where they need to be, when they need to be there, rested and fed appropriately, is a huge ch ..read more