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Nov
18
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 The infuriating events at Penn State bring me to my #1 rule of parenting, which is Do the Right Thing. Others have called what has happened at Penn State sad. I call it infuriating. It is infuriating because I am left feeling equal parts anger and frustration. The frustrating part is that the adults in charge acted, as commentator Jay Bilas said, as a conspiracy of cowards. All those who had the chance to step up and do the right thing did not. They did the easy thing, and the results of their poor decisions are there for all to see. | |||
Blog Posts by John D. McPherson Jr.
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Apr
06
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Spring has arrived, along with daylight savings time. Now is the time to get the kids out of the house. This sounds simple, but in today’s world it isn’t. A study done by the University of San Diego showed that children age 9 spend an average of three hours a day outside, but by age 15 that is down to 45 minutes a day — and only 35 minutes a day on weekends. These trends are going the wrong way. Children need to be outside for body and spirit. | |||
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Jan
28
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Now that the holidays are over and we’ve made a dent in the new year, no doubt the kids are glued to the many new electronic wonders that have showed up over the last month or so. This is part of being a kid and certainly fine…. in moderation. The problem is we just keep piling on the electronic, time-eating gadgetry without ever compensating. Not many parents pulled the TV out of the house when the computer first arrived. This is a significant problem that we need to address. | |||
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Dec
17
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As we gear up for the holiday season, we anticipate those large family dinners fast approaching. While some of us look forward to these gatherings more than others, we all need to ask the question, “why is the big family dinner such a big deal?” | |||
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Nov
18
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We’ve all seen the sad statistics regarding childhood obesity and the associated long term health issues. Many have also put the fast food industry squarely in the cross hairs. I am no fan of the nutritional content or marketing techniques associated with fast food, but ultimately parents have to take responsibility for what their children eat. | |||
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Oct
07
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One of the main differences, and problems, I see with parenting today versus when I was a kid is how parents can cross each other when it comes to parenting.  A mother I know very well is a perfect example — she had taken to literally screaming at her six year old daughter to get her to do what she needed her to do. It wasn’t until I was in the kitchen one day when Dad came home that I understood why. When Dad walked through the door, the girl ran up to him and immediately asked for something her mother had already said “no” to. Dad, without a second thought, immediately said “yes,” and then chided Mom for saying no in the first place. The daughter shot a triumphant look at Mom, and walked off victoriously. It then hit me that, since Dad isn’t backing her up, the only tool Mom feels she has left is the Scream. | |||
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Sep
21
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A big stumbling block for parents today is discipline. Some choose to avoid it altogether, while others struggle with what is appropriate. What do you do from day to day, moment to moment? One of the things I’ve noticed over the last twenty years is that parents’ confidence in discipline has suffered. Parents are tentative when it comes to exercising discipline and, when they do, they tend to bring a pretty weak effort. | |||
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Jul
23
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Something I see often is parents saying one thing but doing another when it comes to making a decision between what they want for themselves and what’s best for their children. If you ask any parent what is the most important thing to them, they will answer “My kids” almost instantaneously. While I truly think that people believe this in their heart, they often don’t act that way. They talk the talk but don’t walk the walk. When it comes down to making this type of decision, the thing that is important to the parent often ends up taking priority over what is in the children’s best interest. To be blunt, parents in certain situations act selfishly and then try to rationalize it. | |||
