Family Life

Finding the right summer camps for your kids is something most parents take as the first step to planning their summer. Family vacations often come in second after scheduling several weeks or the entire summer full of camp experiences for the kids. And the St. Louis area offers an incredibly wide variety of camps to choose from.

For many parents, yelling has become a normal part of our daily routine. But recent studies show that harsh verbal discipline may be as harmful as physical punishment, especially for adolescents.

To kids, a bedroom is more than a room in the house. It’s a magical wonderland where through play, they can be anything they want and experience any adventure as big as their imagination. But for a kid facing a life-changing and life-threatening illness, it’s an escape from the confines of a hospital room and a place where he or she can find peace and comfort in a world that can be frightening and confusing.

As the oldest of three girls, I’m no stranger to the rocky terrain of mother-daughter relationships. My sisters and I have always maintained a strong bond with our mom, but that’s not to say that we haven’t had our fair share of disagreements – and the occasional acts of teenage rebellion – over the years. Now that I’m a mother myself, though, I have to wonder how my own mom managed to keep her cool while raising three strong-willed and opinionated daughters into the women we are today. At not quite 12, my first and only daughter is already giving me a run for my money.

It hasn’t been snow that’s keeping St. Louis families indoors this winter; instead, heavy rains and historic flooding have conspired to keep many of us at home – or at least inside where it’s warm and dry.

When my daughters were babies, the thought of accidentally leaving them in the car could send me into a panic. After dropping them off at daycare, I’d pat their seats obsessively to be sure I’d taken them inside.

When the City of Herculaneum first considered building a playground in their small town, they were planning to go the traditional route: swings, slides, tunnels, all of the usual suspects.