From a WholeFamily User Dear Jenny, As a child I remember the conversations I would have with my mother. She would hear me, but not really be listening. I used to say that when I grew up I would never be like that - I would always listen to my children. Now I'm a mother of two and I often catch myself doing the same thing to my own children. And I now understand my mother. Have you ever missed what someone was saying because you were thinking about the next clever thing you were going to say? It's something people often do when arguing and often why the argument goes on and on. Nobody is listening to the other! I'm not saying that we as parents are sitting around thinking about the next clever thing to say to our children.

A Letter from Jenny, 16, to her Mother Dear Mom, You did something last night that hurt me very deeply. This letter is being written after a lot of thought, because it's not the first time I've been through this with you. I'd like you to think about the difference between the two words "hearing" and "listening." I Know You Can Hear Me But Are You Listening? Dear Jenny, As a child I remember the conversations I would have with my mother. She would hear me, but not really be listening. I used to say that when I grew up I would never be like that - I would always listen to my children. Continue . . . On more than one occasion I have found myself talking to you, but actually talking to myself.

This recipe and the question for discussion are taken from the book Kinder-Krunchies: Healthy Snack Recipes For Kids, by Karen S. Jenkins. The book is distributed exclusively by Discovery Toys.

What Do You Think? How are the two cheeses alike? Different? To which food group does cheese belong? Smell the dill weed. Where does it come from? Which ingredient adds lots of flavor?

What Do You Think? 1. How do pumpkins grow? 2. Taste a sliver of raw pumpkin. How does baking change it? 3. What else is made from pumpkin? 4. Which ingredients are solid? Which are liquid? 5. Which ingredients are spices? Try This! 1. Make pumpkin bread: double the recipe, and bake in a loaf pan for 50 minutes. 2. Add a cup of your favorite nuts.

Make different types of milkshakes with your child.

Questions to Discuss With Your Child: 1. Why is the pudding brown? Which ingredient makes the pudding brown? 2. Try tasting the pudding when it is hot and after it cools. Which way tastes better? 3. What happens to the consistency of the pudding after it is in the refrigerator for a while? How does it look and feel different?

What is an Epiphany? It's a moment of insight , of sudden clarity. Like a light bulb going off in your head. An "Aha!" You step out of the stream of life moving quicker than you can paddle and suddenly it's there: a truth gleaming like gold ore in an ordinary rock. Epiphanies tend to hit at unpredictable times-- in the middle of the night, during an early-morning shower, in a dream, on the highway. Because they are insights that involve the whole person and often take years to ripen, epiphanies tend to produce changes in behavior or attitude. They are a gift. We believe one person's epiphanies may trigger another's. Please share yours with other parents here.

Teachers come in all shapes and sizes. They're not always old men with long, white beards. A Teacher might look like a child or a young woman or even your Uncle Sheldon. Wisdom is available to us if we just tune in: It can come in the form of a song, a line in a novel or the realization your co-worker had over the weekend. We have collected child-rearing wisdom here for your benefit. Use what you can. Throw out what doesn't fit.

When you want your child to do something he may not be excited about doing (homework, a chore, cello practice) negotiate a time with him that he will do it. E.g. Your child is playing with leggos on the floor. You say, "You need to practice piano. Would you like to do it now or in ten minutes? Okay, in 10 minutes it will be 5:30." (work on this) Put out a banana, tooth picks, raisins, and a knife. Let your kids cut up the banana, decorate it with raisins pierced by toothpicks, and then eat the banana. Build a tent out of chairs and blankets -let the kids hide or play in it. Move the high chair outside. Give the kids a small area of their own in the main living space of the home.