More: Is Your Family Ready for a Dog? From mixed breeds and mutts to purebreds certified with the American Kennel Club, there are so many dogs to consider that could be the perfect fit for your family’s new pet. Many factors play a part in choosing what breed of dog will best suit your family’s lifestyle and activity level. Find the best dog breeds for kids with information on size, care, temperament, and energy levels....

So how do you know if your swelling is normal or something to worry about? We turned to some experts to learn more about DVT, what the symptoms look like, what can be done to prevent it, and when to contact your healthcare provider. What is DVT During Pregnancy? Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a condition that occurs when you develop a blood clot deep within a vein, usually one located in the leg....

Station is a measurement of fetal descent in labor and is measured using vaginal exams. It usually isn’t measured until the last few weeks of pregnancy or you may not hear it discussed until you are in labor. Why It’s Important The station number is one of the signs of progression in labor. When labor begins, some women will have a baby who is fairly high in the pelvis with a station of -2....

Why readopt? For several reasons. For one, a foreign document may be challenged by some people such as school authorities. The family who readopts may believe that a U.S.-issued birth certificate is a lot more credible to the average bureaucrat—and they’re probably right. Another reason: Some states require readoption, not recognizing adoption in other countries as valid. Readoption also ensures that a child has the full rights of inheritance from adoptive parents in the event of the death of one or both of them without a will....

In a small number of deliveries, a baby’s bottom or feet are in a position to be born first. This is called a breech presentation, and frank breech (bottom first, with feet up near the head) is the most common type. Breech presentations are more common in premature births than in full-term births. As a pregnancy continues, it’s more likely the baby will turn, and the head will be down when it’s time for delivery....

For example, should children be able to count to 100, recite the alphabet, or perform tasks that make use of fine motor skills? If they’re not expected to know these skills before kindergarten, will they learn them during this landmark school year? And what skills are children expected to have mastered by the end of the kindergarten year? While the goals may vary nationally and by each individual school, most states have adopted the Common Core State Standards and follow their general guidelines for the kindergarten curriculum....

The kind of help you may be considering can come in many forms—from hiring full-time childcare to volunteer assistance with chores and meals. Tips for Arranging Help Whatever your needs are, it’s never too early to start thinking about what kind of help will be most beneficial to your family and begin making arrangements. Consider Your Needs Start by thinking about what you’ll need the most help with once you bring your babies home....

Qualities of a Childcare Provider As any established childcare provider will attest, being a good parent doesn’t mean you’re suited to being a childcare​ provider. Your temperament, organization, the physical environment you offer, the ability to work well with all types of kids, adaptability, and patience are a few things you need to consider. Do you have experience working with youngsters for an extended time? You might try that first to double-check your interest and then find financing options (if needed)....

It’s unlikely that a fancy thermometer will help you get pregnant faster. The key to getting pregnant is timing sex for ovulation (if you aren’t facing infertility). You don’t need a special thermometer for that. On some BBT thermometers, the packaging boasts of accuracy to 1/100th of a degree. For example, the reading will give you 98.63 degrees F instead of only 98.6 F. However, to chart your BBT and predict ovulation, you don’t need this level of detail; all you need is an accurate reading to the tenth degree....

Many parents wonder when growth in puberty begins and what to expect in terms of changes and growth spurts. Other questions include how to know if your child isn’t growing properly and when will your child will be finished growing. Growth Timeline for Boys All kids have their own specific timeline when it comes to growth and physical maturation, and follow their own curve. That said, girls (children assigned female at birth) usually start and end puberty earlier than boys do by 1 to 2 years....

Boys experience voice change during puberty, and the change can happen anywhere between the ages of 10 and 15. Typically, voice change begins somewhere around age 12 or 13, or during the middle school years, which can make the experience a tad embarrassing for the child. Why a Boy’s Voice Changes Voice change is a normal stage of puberty for boys, but it can be a bit of a mystery when it happens....

Pet Stores Pet stores get their merchandise—that’s what pets are to them—from commercial breeders, brokers, kitten mills, and backyard or “accidental” breeders. Responsible breeders do not think of kittens as merchandise, and they do not entrust the well-being of their kittens to strangers. Pet stores rely on the emotional appeal of kittens to sell them to anyone with the money. Some lucky buyers get good pets, but the odds are against it....

When it comes to dating girls, safe touches, comfort, and more, where do you even begin this discussion with your boys? How do you explain to boys that when a girl says no to your advances, she means N-O? And is five years old too young to start the said talk? Two experts weigh in on this important topic, and answer the question: How do we teach our boys about consent, especially when it comes to dating?...

It’s Tough to Be a Boy Imagine this scenario: It’s time for art projects at the neighborhood preschool. Fifteen four-year-olds are gathered in clusters while Mrs. Grant, the teacher, explains what to do. The girls calmly put on their plastic aprons and move to the art tables, talking quietly and gathering paper and brushes as they go. Some of the boys, however, appear to be on a different wavelength. Four are still in the play area, attempting to make their block tower the tallest one yet....

Play IS the point. More: The Importance of Play in 21st Century Learning To me, the type of play that has a parent or teacher hovering, commenting, evaluating, praising, encouraging and of course, teaching, isn’t really play at all. Or at least not the deep flow that I’m thinking of. All children are born with the capacity, and the drive, to get lost in their imagination. But our culture is slowly knocking this type of play out of childhood and instead replacing it with “enrichment”....

This highly visible national day takes place every year on August 11. But not every child identifies as a “son” or “daughter,” and not every parent identifies as a “mom” or “dad.” Some children or adolescents might be genderqueer, agender, non-binary, or gender fluid. With the pressure to conform (and to post glossy, edited, Instagram-ready photos) at such a fever pitch, what is a family to do if they don’t neatly fall into these highly socialized gender bounds?...

Sometimes, the sound of a fetal heartbeat is not detected at this time. If you were expecting to hear your baby’s heartbeat and you can’t, you may be disappointed and even worried. While the silence could mean that you’re having a miscarriage, that’s not always the case. There are many common, non-emergency reasons a heartbeat cannot be detected in early pregnancy. It’s Too Early in Your Pregnancy If your due date was calculated based on the first day of your last period, it might be that you aren’t as far along as you thought—especially if your periods are irregular or you were not certain when you last had one....

There’s still a stigma attached to mental health that makes it a taboo subject for some parents. Other parents lack knowledge about depression or simply struggle to know how to bring up the subject. The Rates of Depression Among Teens Researchers from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health report rates of clinical depression have grown by 37% from 2004 to 2014 among teenagers. While depression rates are also increasing for some older populations, it’s not as sharp of an increase compared to adolescents....

Directions Remove the lid and cut off the bottom of a cylindrical container. Cover the box with construction or contact paper, and have your child decorate it with paint, markers, or glued bunches of paper. Together glue, tape, or staple crepe paper or fabric streamers to the inside of one end of the container. Punch four holes in the other end (across from one another). Tie one string, about twelve inches long, to two opposing holes, and another to the other two holes....

Sixty-seven percent of pediatric residencies are being filled by women because they allow more time for family and children. Women are opening their own businesses that accommodate the time crunch of family and work. More than one third of female business owners are between the ages of 35 and 54. Women are taking advantage of new industries where they can create policies that are good for moms and children. Take for example the large number of women-owned computer businesses in Silicon Valley....