By: Vanessa Armstrong/ Summer is in full swing and if your kids are anything like mine, you’ve probably already heard, “I’m bored”, “I don’t want to go outside”, “can we play video games?” 5,000 times already. I’m sure you’ve been browsing Pinterest, pinning summer bucket list ideas, or at least thinking about creating one, I…
By: Jenny Cook/ Adrian Public Schools Early Childhood Programs Providing Head Start and Early Head Start services to all of Lenawee County. As the provider of Head Start and Early Head Start programs for all of Lenawee County, we partner with families of children aged birth to five as well as expecting moms to promote…
By: Megan Fortman/ Pregnancy After Down Syndrome Last week I had someone ask me “if this baby would have Downs.” While that question and it’s bluntness stung, I really couldn’t blame them for asking. I know out of human nature it is something that everyone has wondered. Heck, we have wondered. Not only have we…
By: Vanessa Armstrong/ So, tell me, how often do you take photos of your family? I know exactly what you’re going to say, “Pretty much every day. I have a smart phone. I take pictures of my kids every day, probably several times a day.” You’re going to say, “I take way more pictures of my…
I Think I Can, I Think, I Can, I Think I Can! Developing Can-Do Thinking in your Child by Cary Zavala, MA, LPC/ Self-talk is basically our inner voice, the voice in our head, the subtle running commentary going on in the background of our minds. Everyone has this happening, often without us even…
What is ASQ-3? By: Lisa Eack/ ASQ-3 is a set of questionnaires about children’s development. It has been used for more than 20 years to make sure children are developing well. A screening provides a quick look at how children are doing in important areas, such as communication, physical ability, social skills and problem-solving skills.…
By Cary Zavala/ What makes your family STRONG? Research shows that when these 5 Protective Factors are well established, family strength and optimal child development emerge: 1) Parental Resilience 2) Social Connections 3) Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development 4) Concrete Support in Times of Need 5) Social & Emotional Competence of Children December’s Early…
By: Sarah Meikle/ Traveling long distance with little ones can be exhausting! I want to share some tips that helped me recently, while taking a 2-day road trip to Colorado. One of the most important things was to make sure we were not eating fast food the whole time and the kids weren’t entertained by…
By: Vanessa Armstrong/ I’m sure by now most of you have had a chance to see either Sarah or myself out and about at different events throughout the year, but events aren’t all we do. Lately we’ve been talking a lot about how to get more parents involved in our vision of making sure every…
Emotional Regulation to the Rescue! By: Cary Zavala/ As parents, we admit we sometimes come to the “end of our rope.” With the stressors of daily living, our children’s challenging behaviors can sometimes send us to a “10” quickly on the Feelings Thermometer! If you missed this month’s Parent Network Series, our topic of the…