Good Parents, Good Kids: Adventures with Buzzy — Part 3
Buzzy had been with us all of four hours. Ten years old, small for his age, scrappy and wiry, he was having the time of his life at the pizzeria....
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Good Parents, Good Kids: Adventures with Buzzy — Part 2
Last week: Ten-year-old Buzzy arrived about noon. He hasn’t met Chris, Dougie and Steve yet; they’re still at school. Meanwhile, we located some nice outgrown clothes to replace Buzzy’s decrepit...
Good Parents, Good Kids: The trouble with homework — Part II
Last week, in this column, I bemoaned the fact that as a foster parent with three kids, homework wasn’t fitting in very well to our crowded agenda. But I promised...
Good Parents, Good Kids: Cursive writing — What’s happening to it?
When I returned to substitute teaching after a hiatus of several years, I entered a fourth-grade classroom and wrote my name on the whiteboard because that’s what substitute teachers do.But...
Good Parents, Good Kids: How children manage adults
There are things all kids should know about dealing with their parents.There are also things every kid should know about friends, anger, bullies in school, earning money, wise use of...
Good Parents, Good Kids: A problem in paradise: The story of Max part 4 — An astounding resolution
We’ve just endured a dreadful 18 hours with 11-year-old Max in our home, and it’s safe to say that absolutely nothing went well. Our conclusion begins with all of us...
Good Parents, Good Kids: The story of Max part 3 — The problem worsens
In parts 1 and 2, I reluctantly agreed to take on the challenge of a fourth foster son with multiple behavior issues. Things immediately went sour as Max alienated the...
Good Parents, Good Kids: A problem in paradise: The story of Max part 2 — Max arrives
Last week I wrote of the day I was approached by my case worker who hoped I would take on the foster care of Max, a troubled 11-year-old kid, he...
Good Parents, Good Kids: A problem in paradise: The story of Max part 1 — Going for it
Max is a very troubled kid. With a foster son just reunified with his mother, I still had three at home and now room for another. Enter Max, with a...
Good Parents, Good Kids: Surviving ‘tweenhood’
The 11-year-old you once thought you knew is drifting away. Your laughing, silly daughter has become unapproachable. She doesn’t want to confide in you. Your son tells you Family Night...
