August 2015

As summer winds down, you might be like me – longing for one last break before it’s back to hectic after-school schedules, hours of homework, and heavy backpacks. Maybe your week at the beach feels like ages ago, or you never got around to it in the first place? Why…

At twenty-four, Richmonder Haley DeRoche was getting anxious. She had tried for a year to get pregnant with no results. Her doctor tested her and her husband for a variety of problems, but found none. Haley was told she had “unexplained infertility,” a frustrating answer to the increasingly common question:…

“Hey, Diddle Diddle” was Emma Chun’s favorite nursery rhyme. She liked cats, and early on, Emma thought she should have a fiddle, too. She got her first one at age three. And though Emma, now an eighth grader at St. Bridget School, has outgrown nursery rhymes, she still likes cats…

For lots of families, the youngest is in a constant scramble to get any scrap of attention she can. And so it was at the dinner table a handful of years ago, when Lindsey, tired of hearing the usual stream of talk about current events and politics and other stuff…

Once that calendar flips to September, it’s not just classes that get going. The start of a new school year also marks the start to a variety of other sports and activities. Even once we decide on a few activities for each of my boys, they come home with new…

  Look at our curb and you might see the Leaning Tower of Pizza Boxes. Or maybe the Great Wall of Chinette. Or even the gluttonous domain of Mocha Picchu, where tattered remains of empty ice cream cartons stacked one upon another rise to breathtaking peaks. Whatever jumps to mind,…

I hope you’ve been enjoying this RVA summer as much as I have. The break from the school-year routine has been fantastic, and it’s given our family a chance to take in some of our favorite spots around the city. Some of the beloved places from my own childhood and…

Whether it’s room décor or a gift for a special someone, this technique offers a creative and fun way for artists of all ages to express themselves. What you need: • Canvas • Contact paper • Pencil • Scissors • Acrylic paints, brushes, and water • Spray sealer, such as…

Q: Do you have a discipline system or tool you can recommend? I have a friend who is always counting to three and another one who is constantly putting her 5-year-old twins in time-out. Neither one seems to be very effective. My baby is ten months old, so I have…

Enrolled in special education classes throughout his formative years of schooling, as an adult, Richard made his way to The READ Center to improve his literacy skills. A major challenge for the young man, according to teacher Kay McCall, was overcoming a severe vision problem. Thanks to a partnership with…

Because I’m a mother and an orthodontist, other parents frequently ask me about pacifier use.  Should I give my child a pacifier? When should I stop my child’s pacifier use? Do you have suggestions for weaning my child off the pacifier?  Known benefits of pacifier use include pain and anxiety relief, a…

    Grilled Chile, Bacon, and Goat Cheese Burger Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush 8 slices of bacon with ½ cup mango chutney and bake on baking sheet for 30 minutes, turning once. (Line sheet with parchment paper for easy clean-up). Meanwhile, heat grill. Rub a poblano chile pepper…

The gap between what researchers have learned about which psychological therapies work and what happens when clients seek psychological services in the community has been a long-time concern. One recent estimate suggested that it takes more than fifteen years for an empirically based treatment to be used consistently in the…

No matter how you slice it, the cost of going back to school is expensive. Notebooks, pens, pencils, paper, backpack, calculator, computer, tablet, and you know the rest of the story. If the annual inflation rate of 7.3% for back-to-school costs stays the same this year, then according to the…

Vacationing with pets is more common now than ever, and a plethora of destinations now offer pet-friendly accommodations so your pooch can join in on the family fun. There is more to consider when bringing your four-legged friend on the road. A little planning goes a long way toward avoiding any…