When it comes to my kids’ play area, I try to keep it small, colorful and neat I am a huge fan of unstructured play for my kids. Play is how they learn about themselves and the world, and develop critical thinking skills and self-direction. I got my son started with independent play as early…
➠ Continue ReadingFebruary means a return of all the classic Black History Month activities at school, but there’s so much more you can do to teach your kids about our history than a coloring sheet of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. From crafts to recipes, these activities will engage your children and make history come alive. 1….
➠ Continue ReadingThe author of this piece has asked to remain anonymous. Women are catching up in the workplace — fast. Time Magazine recently proclaimed that within 25 years most American families will be financially supported by women instead of men. I am part of that shift. When my husband and I began dating out of college…
➠ Continue ReadingWhen I was about 8 years old, my dresser and TV fell on me. That’s it above. I had opened a drawer, pulled something out, then opened another without closing it either. As I opened the third drawer, the whole dresser toppled over on top of me as did the TV. Luckily the bed behind…
➠ Continue ReadingI have three siblings and growing up I always enjoyed being part of a large family. My siblings and I would play elaborate games together, forming teams and coming up with complicated rules. And yes, at one point my mom turned us into a family band. I always assumed that I would follow in my…
➠ Continue ReadingJust weeks before Black History Month a major publisher, Scholastic Inc. released, and just 12 days later removed a children’s book called, A Birthday Cake For George Washington. The book was swiftly met with protest from parents and teachers. Most of the critique had to do with the fictional imagery of ‘happy slaves.’ The illustrations…
➠ Continue Readingwww.encouragegrowingfamilies.com I wish I could paint this fairytale picture that where I am now in my life is what I’ve always wanted, but that’s the furthest from the truth. With a Bachelor of Science in International Business, I thought I was going places. It didn’t matter that I didn’t land my dream job fresh out…
➠ Continue ReadingOn January 6th 2016, Kandi Burruss and Todd Tucker welcomed their son Ace Wells Tucker into the world. Almost 2 weeks old and little Ace is already teaching mommy to multitask. ? Kandi shared this very beautiful photo on social media this Tuesday, of a scrumptious plate, that she is going in on, and a…
➠ Continue ReadingThe fight against spoiled children in many Black families starts early. Most new parents I know have had a mother, aunt, or grandmother swoop in and tell them, “You let that baby cry. You’ll spoil her picking her up every time she cries!” As our children get older, the focus on not spoiling them trends…
➠ Continue ReadingRecently I was a member of a black moms Facebook group where the topic of discipline came up frequently. It’s one of those hardline subjects in black culture that folks debate heavily but rarely change their minds on. The main argument in defense of spanking seemed to be that children who are whooped grow up…
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