MSI Press Blog

  excerpt from   I Love My Kids, But I Don't Always Like Them  by Franki Bagdade  Preparing for Trips  Whether it’s a family dinner, a night out to the movies or a trip out of town, behavior can become a problem if expectations are not discussed beforehand. When our family goes on a trip, I take time before we leave to explain to our children that there will be waiting, like in airports, while we’re driving, or because of big-city traffic, and some of it will be excessive and annoying. I describe what the food will be like, how our days will be structured, sleeping arrangements, etc. Some of these explanations occur during a family meeting and some are communicated during one-on-one time. That way, I can customize how I manage some of the expectations according to the individual quirks of each kid, and believe me, they have quirks! For my little ones, who were too young to remember their previous flight experiences, we went through every detail—what...

  excerpt from   I Love My Kids, But I Don't Always Like Them  by Franki Bagdade  Expectations in the Bagdade Family  My kids need sleep! All kids do, of course, but mine take it to the next level. This was awesome when they were little because most evenings, after they were all tucked in, I could enjoy alone time with my husband. I might be going out on a limb here, but I think he’ll agree. (Or completely ignore my husband and watch the newest romantic comedy alone!)  Now, our oldest still needs more sleep than the younger two. She could probably win an Olympic sleeping competition. This proficiency made her the world’s best baby! It’s become a little trickier as she gets older and wants to stay out late and have a social life. It’s especially tricky when she wants to stay up extra late to watch Vampire Diaries because that usually means that the next day (and maybe the one after that, too) we all have to deal with her dedicated crankiness or mood...

    excerpt from   I Love My Kids, But I Don't Always Like Them  by Franki Bagdade  Right Size Your Expectations!  One day, you open your eyes and realize you’ve been sleeping on a regular basis, as if you’re a real human being! Most nights, those evolving little humans you created now fall asleep without any complicated strategy and they wake up feeling refreshed. You no longer keep a running tab of how many hours in a row you actually slept or even how many nights your children didn’t wake you up at three a.m. to eat a peach or discuss their favorite cartoon. Free of these chronic disturbances, you and your spouse don’t argue about who has woken up more before dawn (spoiler alert, I won that fight), and that realization is life changing. If you’re not there yet, you will be one day, I promise. It happens to the weariest of us.  With the renewed confidence this sleep will bring, not to mention what it can do for your health, you may start ...