When leaves start falling

Chrysanthemums take over

To keep the path flowered

When leaves start falling

Chrysanthemums take over

To keep the path flowered

Photo from fineartamerica.com

Dustin O’Halloran

I love the magic of a moonlit night, especially this one with storm clouds in the sky, and the wind blowing slightly in a breeze playing my wind chimes to perfection. I stage this night in advance and then just wait for it to happen. Sure enough it does and I am never disappointed. A backyard that when I first laid eyes on, I thought was hideous, is now an enchanted garden full of fairies and magic. This is not fiction it is my mind and imaging yet believing.  Sometimes, like tonight I weep. I weep in joy and bliss of the wonders I see and feel. I don’t think that you can put bliss into words? You can try to. I have experienced at least three occasions of prolonged bliss just sitting in my garden, and sometimes in the day as well. I love my bird friends…

Openly disciplining a child in front of others can crush a child’s self-esteem.

By Jackie Saulmon Ramirez | October 1, 2014

Here are a few don’ts that found their way onto my easy parenting list; some came from the Freehold Parents Anonymous Group members and one came from Chelsey – who felt we were too strict (A sure sign of good parenting!).

Don’t Correct Children in Front of Others
Correcting children is a parent’s duty but doing it in front of others is terribly demeaning and damaging to a child’s self-esteem. When other people see a parent berating a child in public, they don’t think, ‘what a great parent,’ they are thinking, ‘oh that poor child.’ If correction is truly needed immediately then the parent should call the child aside and have a short conversation in private.

Don’t Make Promises
Getting locked into a promise is dangerous for a parents’…