2015 | PulseonParenting

Why We Need to Read

Jun 16 2015

It’s summer. The local library has reading programs for toddlers, high schoolers and everyone in between. We parents know our kids should practice their reading skills for cognitive development, vocabulary expansion, and fluency . But the people who, believe it or not, study, the benefits of reading have much more to say about why not just our kids, but also adults, should indulge in a good read. Real Simple published an article in 2014 about this very topic, just in time for those summer reading programs. Some of the details may surprise you: 1) Ahhh, Oohhmm. Reading for just six minutes a day…

Jun 16 2015

A reader brought to my attention an error I made in my post Moms, Get Your Mammograms. The letter you receive with your mammogram results should come from the imaging center where you had your mammogram done, not from your practitioner (physician, etc.) who ordered it. That said, you may still receive a phone call or a letter from your physician’s office with the results. I apologize for the mistake!

Hooray for Summer (Exclamation Point): Steps to a Successful Break (Question Mark)

Jun 02 2015

A year ago, as the school year drew to an end, I wrote a post that received some flak. In Hooray for Summer? (In retrospect, Horrors, It’s Summer! would have been a fun title…) I described the difficult transition for parents, myself wholeheartedly included, to having the kiddos home for three months. I outlined my plan to keep us all from going crazy, which, it ends up, was a near-total flop. Disappointing, to say the least…I needed a solid strategy because I was really not looking forward to the loss of (forgive me) my freedom. But this year? I am…

Moms, Get Your Mammograms

May 27 2015

Even though it is May, not October (when pink ribbons pervade everything everywhere) the topic of mammograms is still important. Certainly to me, as May is my mammo month. But breast cancer awareness should not be reserved for any singular time of year, it should be a regular, habitual occurrence. (I don’t really think there should be specific cancer-awareness-months; every month should be all-cancers-awareness month, but now I’m off-topic). It’s easy to think breast cancer affects “older women” and most often it does. However, younger women are struck with the disease, too. By younger women I mean mothers of young…

Your Child Needs the HPV Vaccine

May 20 2015

A few years back I sat in a church basement with my parenting group and listened to a male OB-GYN describe how he discussed safe sex with his own kids. Yes, that was a church basement. Yes, that was a male gynecologist. And the topic at that moment was, yes, kids and sex. I hope I got your attention. Because he sure got mine, especially as this seemed an unlikely and absurd senario. But still, the topic was pertinent and this doctor’s message clear: we as parents would be sorely amiss to assume our kids will honor abstinence at our request. He…

May 13 2015

A year ago, I wrote about whether or not to homeschool my older son and his brother and sister (How About Homeschooling? Part One and How About Homeschooling? Part Two). In those posts, I described my concerns, thoughts and feelings and was pleased to receive some wonderful feedback from readers. To all of you who shared your perspectives and positive experiences with educating your children at home, I thank you for providing food for thought. But I knew my husband and I were going to need more information before making a decision…and that meant sending our kids back to public school…

One Tough Mother

May 06 2015

I didn’t plan it this way. But two weeks ago I realized this post, which I drafted specifically for Mothers’ Day, would be PulseonParenting.com’s 100th. Hitting the century mark with an entry honoring moms feels like good karma. And I want you, all who have been reading PulseonParenting, to be a part of the good vibe. Moms can handle most anything parenting throws their way…in fact, I’d put money on it that you all are Tough Mothers. I’ll bet you have posted your most heroic, vulnerable, gross and/or hilarious maternal moments on Facebook or Twitter or your own blog. But…

I’m Driving With Kids, Guess What’s In My Glovebox?

Apr 29 2015

This week: a post on the lighter side inspired by a recent family road trip to California. It was great fun and the kids did really well riding the 2,000-plus miles. Which, pardon the pun, is a true milestone. My kids are in grade school and at this wonderful age teachers send makeup work along and this helps pass the time. It does so in theory, anyway. Friends named Pixar, Mad Libs and Motel Swimming Pool were indispensable as my husband and I bribed the kids into getting homework done. So in a nutshell, UN-caliber negotiations and movies and…

Apr 22 2015

I am in awe of the transformation. I am a little sad, too. My younger son, born breech at barely five pounds, is becoming a man. At age 12 he is hands-down taller than me, with a cracking voice, acne and, um, hair (more on that below…). It boggles my mind, a glimpse into what is in store for his twin brother, who has yet to join him in this journey. I decided to repost What to Expect When Your Son Starts Puberty from April, 2015, to help us Moms (and Dads, of course) navigate these changes, changes in our little boys that…

What to Expect When Your Daughter Starts Puberty

Apr 15 2015

My daughter is eight years old. She loves jigsaw puzzles, lip smackers, and American Girl everything. A little girl. So it’s hard to believe it’s time to have “The Talk.” Yes, the recommended age is eight. The thought of sitting down with my second grader to discuss birds-and-bees is, to say the least, unsettling. When I read this advice I was relieved that age eight was a long, long, year away. But time flies. My daughter just passed the halfway point to age nine. I guess I need to get a move-on. It was so much easier when I worked in family medicine….

My name is Heidi Black and I have it all... Maybe not in the traditional sense of the phrase but I do feel I have it all: three beautiful, healthy children, a devoted husband and father and the privilege of being a Domestic Engineer. (I used to call myself a SAHM but that just doesn’t fit when my day is filled with coordinating 5 schedules and preplanning their execution, all up to a week in advance.) And now, indulging in a not-so-secret desire to write, and following the advice “write what you know” I am ready to share what I have learned from this ironic life journey and along with you, discover answers to those many questions related to parenting.

Archive - 2015