Colleen Langenfeld

Do you have a son or daughter who is struggling in high school and wants to quit? What problems do high school dropouts face, anyway? As you are guiding your young adult, you might want to keep the following in mind. -- Employment Challenges Most people understand the difficulties of locating a job that...

It's tempting when parenting a child with behavioral problems to react rather than respond. In the heat of the moment, our child pushes all our hot buttons and instead of exhibiting self-control and grace, we verbally lash out and make things worse. Honestly, this is an example of short term thinking...

It is tough enough to keep up with the common behavioral problems in children these days if you feel confident in your parenting action plan. However, if you are not getting the results you are hoping for in your family life, one place to double-check is if you are stuck...

If you have a school age child who is exhibiting behavior problems, you've learned what 'frustrating" and 'exhausted' are all about. Sometimes it can be difficult to know if your child has a small problem or a larger one. As a parent you want there to be no problems at all...

One of the most common comments for parents of teens to say is "I'm glad my teenager is not doing (fill in the blank)." The comment is understandable. The question is, is it the truth? Or will mom or dad use this comment as a way to distance themselves from the...

If you are struggling with unruly or even embarrassing actions on behalf of your youngster, learning the finer points of behavior modification in children makes sense. Something that can trip up your efforts, for example, is expecting too much or too little from your behavior modification plans. Unrealistic expectations are a...

Ever planned out weekly dinner menus that looked delicious but on the day you were supposed to cook one of those menu items you just honestly didn't want to cook it? Happens all the time, doesn't it? I took a good look at the way many of us moms (and dads, too)...

Do you have a college student who is managing his own food costs? Perhaps he is not living in a dorm where he has access to a campus meal-plan, but instead is attempting to feed himself for the first time in his young life? Forget printable grocery lists and meal-planning, your...

If you are battling with your kids over doing homework, there is a simple tool that can really help. Printable homework charts have made a difference in many homes and they can work in your home, too. This premise is amazingly straightforward. Kids, like most adults, need structure. However, most kids...

If you like to use a variety of printable charts for kids in your home to modify and encourage behavior, you know motivation is a huge issue. All children are different, of course, but here are three ideas I've used successfully with my four children to keep motivation high and...

Do you have a college student who is managing his own food costs? Perhaps he is not living in a dorm where he has access to a campus meal-plan, but instead is attempting to feed himself for the first time in his young life? Forget printable grocery lists and meal-planning, your...

If you have used printable reward charts with your children in the past, you have probably experienced frustration once or twice. That's because, while reward charts are a great teaching tool, they are often used too casually to produce results. If you would like to see results using printable charts, you'll...

If you like to use a variety of printable charts for kids in your home to modify and encourage behavior, you know motivation is a huge issue. All children are different, of course, but here are three ideas I've used successfully with my four children to keep motivation high and...

If you are battling with your kids over doing homework, there is a simple tool that can really help. Printable homework charts have made a difference in many homes and they can work in your home, too. This premise is amazingly straightforward. Kids, like most adults, need structure. However, most kids...

Using a printable grocery list is a smart way to save time and money. Here are my top tricks for getting the most out of any grocery list. -- Customize it. Most printable grocery lists are quite generic so as to be usable by a wide variety of shoppers. That's fine, however,...

So you are a new parent? Congratulations! Welcoming a new child into a family is an exciting, thrilling time. It can be scary, too, of course. And rightly so. No where else in life will you experience the rollercoaster of life more than in the game of parenting. I know...

Printable chore lists are great for keeping track of the everyday tasks in a household. You can do a lot with them, including reducing the nag factor in your home, putting your organizational skills on steroids, and teaching your kids self-discipline. With a little creative thinking, however, you can use the...

Are your children honest? Can you trust them to be truthful with yourself and others? If you believe that teaching children to tell the truth is important, then you can appreciate the value of having a plan to make that goal a reality. While we can't make our children tell the...

You've probably used printable chore lists in your home and you may be using one right now. But most people underestimate the true power of this simple tool. While it's easy enough to jot down the basics of household management on a list and check them off as they get completed,...

Ever planned out weekly dinner menus that looked delicious but on the day you were supposed to cook one of those menu items you just honestly didn't want to cook it? Happens all the time, doesn't it? I took a good look at the way many of us moms (and dads, too)...

When you welcome a new child into your family, it is an exciting time. Parents usually spend a great deal of resources - time and money - to prepare for the new family member. As someone who has been parenting for over two decades and has watched my children grow from...

We've been doing some substantial remodeling in our home over the past year and a couple of our main priorities were improving storage and gaining more efficient organization. The home we live in was originally designed for a couple and we have been trying to make it work for a...

You've probably used printable chore lists in your home and you may be using one right now. But most people underestimate the true power of this simple tool. While it's easy enough to jot down the basics of household management on a list and check them off as they get completed,...

If you have a school age child who is exhibiting behavior problems, you've learned what 'frustrating" and 'exhausted' are all about. Sometimes it can be difficult to know if your child has a small problem or a larger one. As a parent you want there to be no problems at all...

If you would like to conquer clutter once and for all in your home, there are only a few things you need to do. But you WILL need to do them faithfully each and every day. Are you interested? These aren't difficult suggestions, but they may require some new actions on...

In this crazy world we live in, sometimes it seems as though common sense ideas have gone out the window. If that observation frustrates you, as it does me, you may wonder what one person can do about our modern life. In fact, you may wonder if there's anything one...

It is tough enough to keep up with the common behavioral problems in children these days if you feel confident in your parenting action plan. However, if you are not getting the results you are hoping for in your family life, one place to double-check is if you are stuck...

Yikes! Does this article's title sound like your experience in domestic organizing? You need help! Don't panic! Let's start with a simple (yet messy) closet and I'll show you step-by-step how to put that whole things-falling-on-the-head problem behind you. One of the most important parts in closet organizing is probably one you've...

Are your children honest? Can you trust them to be truthful with yourself and others? If you believe that teaching children to tell the truth is important, then you can appreciate the value of having a plan to make that goal a reality. While we can't make our children tell the...

It's tempting when parenting a child with behavioral problems to react rather than respond. In the heat of the moment, our child pushes all our hot buttons and instead of exhibiting self-control and grace, we verbally lash out and make things worse. Honestly, this is an example of short term thinking...