iheartmoms

With a quite unstable economy, can parents spoil their kids a little bit more than usual?
Moms can barely keep up with inflation as prices here and there seem to soar high in a flick of a finger. While raising a child involves meeting the needs of your kid, including the child’s wants may not be [...]

With a quite unstable economy, can parents spoil their kids a little bit more than usual?

Moms can barely keep up with inflation as prices here and there seem to soar high in a flick of a finger. While raising a child involves meeting the needs of your kid, including the child’s wants may not be the case for some moms.

For an average mom coming from a middle class family, it means that she has to spend roughly half a million dollars over the course of 18 years of her child’s life. While the number seems gigantic, it actually does not involve costly perks such as highly-branded apparels and/or side stuffs.

While you spend a little over $500,000 for your kids to keep them healthy, secured and happy, some families just go beyond-actually, way over and beyond that figure. Spoiling by definition is highly arguable. Parents have different reasons why they tend to spend so much on their kids. Looking past the reasons for spoiling, Bundle.com came up with a research aiming to know which cities spoil their kids the most.

Before taking a look at the data, it is important to take note that although the research focused on spending, it only included money spent on clothing, toys and other services that fall into the kids and teens categories. Basic needs such as food and healthcare were not included.

On the top of the list is Manhattan. It comes with no surprise though as it is home to Jay-Z and Beyonce, who spent $3,500 and $5,200 for their daughter’s crib and a bathtub respectively. As a whole, Manhattan citizens spend 90% more than the national average.

Brooklyn is keeping up as it sits at second by spending 67% more and feeding their children with “babyccinos”. Looks like children are keeping up with their parents in this coffee-fad big apple borough.

Miami and Minnesota rank third and fourth respectively. Miami does not come as a surprise with style being inherent to residents. However, Minnesota, known to be frugal in spending, surprised a lot by spending close to 50% more on the children.

On the other end of the spectrum are Madison, Saint Paul, Milwaukee and Indianapolis, whose residents spend less than 50% of the average on their children.

From what end of the spectrum do you belong?

The way children think and act in a situation is way too different from an adult’s perspective. Because of this, what is rational to the kids already drives their parents crazy.
They complain, whine, get frustrated and even turn to tantrums most of the time. Although this is seen as madness by most people, we should [...]

The way children think and act in a situation is way too different from an adult’s perspective. Because of this, what is rational to the kids already drives their parents crazy.

They complain, whine, get frustrated and even turn to tantrums most of the time. Although this is seen as madness by most people, we should be comforted by the fact that this is part of a child’s normal behavioral development.

Parents play a big factor in shaping a child’s behavior and character on his or her growing up years. In the same manner, how parents respond to the child’s complaints will ultimately affect how a child comprehends a certain situation.

When children complain a lot, parents are sometimes pushed to their limits that they respond in negative ways, only to fuel up the child’s “madness”. Sequentially, parents become more irritated so as a no-win situation takes place.

Here are some of the effective ways of dealing with a child’s complaints and annoying demands as approved by experts.

• Fairness Vs Sameness: “Why am I not allowed to stay up late?”.  When your child asks this question, you can respond by making him or her understand that every child has his or her own needs–where in a younger child needs more sleeping time than an older child.
• “They have new toys, I have none.” A child will usually compare what he or she has to what other kids have. The parents can respond by asking the child how he or she feels about the situation, and explain how families differ in terms of principles and rules. Give a positive light on the conversation by focusing on what he or she has, rather on what he or she does not have.
• “Why is he good at drawing, and I am not?” Just like material things, kids often notice another child’s special skills. This is actually a great opportunity to ask your child what he or she is good at, while explaining that children differ from each other. While making the child feel unique as herself/himself, it is also a good time to teach him or her how to set achievable goals.
• The Tooth Fairy Question: “Why did I only get a dollar for my tooth and my cousin got more?” Almost every child knows that he or she will receive a dollar in exchange for a tooth, so knowing that another child got more may cause confusion. Experts say that the best way to handle this is to tell the child that the Tooth Fairy likes all children equally. Instead of negating the negative, steer the conversation into something that’s positive and productive.

The debate over nursing recently reached a new high (or low—depending on your opinion), when a photo of two military mothers nursing while in uniform hit the web this week.

Air Force Sgt. Terran Echegoyen McCabe and Staff Sgt. Christina Luna, both in active service, were photographed in uniform to support Breastfeeding Awareness Month for the Mom2Mom Breastfeeding Support Group, a group that promotes, educates and creates awareness for breastfeeding.

Sgt. McCabe told the Today Show:

“I’m proud to be wearing a uniform while breastfeeding…I’m proud of the photo and I hope it encourages other women to know they can breastfeed whether they’re active duty, guard or civilian.”

Apparently, the two women violated a policy that forbids military members from using their uniform to promote a cause, product or imply an endorsement.

The U.S. Military wanted nothing to do with the photo. And a lot of people are saying that the photo is a disgrace to the uniform.

Crystal Scott, founder of Mom2Mom, said people have been “comparing it to urinating and defecating [while in uniform].”

Wow! That’s quite a comparison for two hard working moms who’ve amazingly and inspirationally managed to breastfeed while serving their country. And furthermore, since when is breastfeeding unbecoming and unpatriotic?

The criticism of the photo goes far beyond the usual nursing-in-public debate.

Breastfeeding in Combat Boots, a military mom blog, received a comment from a retired captain in the Marine Corps who said she is an advocate for breastfeeding moms in the military and that she nurses freely on base. However, she writes:

“I would never nurse in uniform. I took my child to the bathroom or a private office when her nanny brought her to me …. Not because I was ashamed of nursing, nor of being a mother. All the guys knew I pumped. The military is not a civilian job. We go to combat and we make life or death decisions, and not just for ourselves but for those we lead. The same reason I would never nurse in uniform is the same reason I do not chew gum, or walk and talk on my cell phone, or even run into the store in my utility uniform. … We are warfighting professionals. Women before us have worked too hard to earn and retain the respect of their male peers. I don’t want my Marines to look at me any other way than as a Marine. When I am asking them to fly into combat with me and do a dangerous mission, I do not want them to have the mental image of a babe at my breast. I want them to only see me as a Marine. Let’s be realistic folks. We give up many freedoms being in the military…Breastfeeding in front of my fellow Marines was one of them.”

What do you think?