Hope and help for shaping Christ-honoring future generations. Families are like little churches. They are meant to be places of discipleship, worship, and rest—places where we can fine tune the gifts God’s given us so we can bless the world. They can be full of surprises and joy. But family life can also be heartbreaking and downright discouraging. Trained counselor and mother Melissa Hannigan knows how hard it is to cast and keep a vision of rich family life. How do we cultivate a family culture that’s vibrant and encouraging—a refuge amidst life’s storms? Melissa is passionate about helping families build healthy, strong, God-honoring homes. In Inconvenient Parenting, she shares twelve qualities that are the key ingredients to that desired end: Wisdom — Wonder — Vitality — Sensitivity — Flexibility —Curiosity — Creativity — Imagination — Inventiveness — Playfulness — Humor — Joy Melissa shows us why, though inconvenient at times, it’s necessary to encourage and infuse these traits in our children and reveals how we can unknowingly discourage these qualities. Each chapter concludes with practical activities, book recommendations, and discussion questions to help parents immediately apply the principles discussed. Become more connected to God and one another through the rich wisdom and help offered in Inconvenient Parenting.

Whether a person initiates or responds to a divorce, every part of that persons life is about to change. Parenting, family relationships, finances, friends, personal belongings, residences, job performanceall are affected. Nothing remains untouched during divorce. As a divorce attorney, author Angela Dunnes job is to help people navigate through an uncertain, difficult journey that affects both parents and their children. Co-parenting in two separate homes is tough. In Patched Up Parenting, she offers a guide to help overcome the challenges of post-separation parenting, and she shows how it can be easier and better for your children as she shares real life experiences of her clients and her post-divorce life with her two daughters. From how to tell the children about a separation, to how to carry on when you dont think you can, Dunne provides a powerful perspective. She shares stories of toppling Christmas trees and tough times while focusing on the children. Her lessons learned from her many teachersher clients, children, and co-parentacknowledge the pitfalls of divorce while inspiring parents to be better and do better for their children. Patched Up Parenting presents practical advice and tips and empowers mothers and fathers to parent better no matter the circumstances.

Parenting can be such an overwhelming job that it’s easy to lose track of where you stand on some of the more controversial subjects at the playground (What if my kid likes to rough house—isn’t this ok as long as no one gets hurt? And what if my kid just doesn’t feel like sharing?). In this inspiring and enlightening book, Heather Shumaker describes her quest to nail down “the rules” to raising smart, sensitive, and self-sufficient kids. Drawing on her own experiences as the mother of two small children, as well as on the work of child psychologists, pediatricians, educators and so on, in this book Shumaker gets to the heart of the matter on a host of important questions. Hint: many of the rules aren’t what you think they are! The “rules” in this book focus on the toddler and preschool years—an important time for laying the foundation for competent and compassionate older kids and then adults. Here are a few of the rules: • It’s OK if it’s not hurting people or property • Bombs, guns and bad guys allowed. • Boys can wear tutus. • Pictures don’t have to be pretty. • Paint off the paper! • Sex ed starts in preschool • Kids don’t have to say “Sorry.” • Love your kid’s lies. IT’S OK NOT TO SHARE is an essential resource for any parent hoping to avoid PLAYDATEGATE (i.e. your child’s behavior in a social interaction with another child clearly doesn’t meet with another parent’s approval)!

Most parents misguidedly prioritize behavior. The why and how to instill character. Behavior modification does not guarantee good character qualities. Character influences decisions. It’s evidenced in our speech, actions, and attitudes. It’s about who we are and what we do. The world competes for the hearts of our kids—and we see its negative impact in their pride, laziness, and entitlement. As Christians, however, we want to see the character of Jesus Christ in our children. Dads and moms, grandparents, and teachers all want to see their children grow in humility, gratitude, and respect—for others and themselves. We want our kids to be brave, compassionate, and joyful. We don’t want our kids to flounder through life. We want them to flourish and live into their God-given designs and callings. Dr. Kathy Koch helps us to that end by answering essential questions: What is character and why does it matter? Why is there a crisis of character? What are the challenges in developing character? How can we teach or improve character? Not only does character help us accomplish our goals, there are many other benefits of mature character: we will be blessed, stand out for Jesus, attract good friends, grow in wisdom, and live in freedom. Koch provides an invaluable resource for shepherding our children in godly character.

The causes of child abuse and neglect have been major topics of study since the 1960s, but treatment strategies, research, and legal issues have only received concentrated attention since the '80s. The leading figures in these efforts have contributed to this handbook, a state-of-the-art compilation of their findings that also includes writings on associated cultural issues , youth violence, sexual abuse, and child development. Both a text and a reference, the volume is uniquely founded on empirical research.

In this New York Times bestseller, one of America's premier child psychologists offers a must-read account of the dismal state of parenting today, and a vision for how we can better prepare our children for the challenges of the adult world In The Collapse of Parenting, internationally acclaimed author Leonard Sax argues that rising levels of obesity, depression, and anxiety among young people can be traced to parents abdicating their authority. The result is children who have no standard of right and wrong, who lack discipline, and who look to their peers and the Internet for direction. Sax shows how parents must reassert their authority - by limiting time with screens, by encouraging better habits at the dinner table, and by teaching humility and perspective - to renew their relationships with their children. Drawing on nearly thirty years of experience as a family physician and psychologist, along with hundreds of interviews with children, parents, and teachers, Sax offers a blueprint parents can use to help their children thrive in an increasingly complicated world.