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ONLY CHILD PAST ISSUE CONTENTS
 Volume 1, Number 5INTERVIEW WITH FRANCESS LANTZ: widely published author of childrens’ books, and her husband, Dr. John Landsberg. Francess is an only child, and she and John are the parents of Preston, a planned only child. A NEW WAY OF SEEING:“Parenting the Only Child” by Carl E. Pickhardt, Ph.D. Did you know that parents of only children exert peer pressure on their offspring? You’ve probably never thought that way about how you relate to your only child. But it makes perfect sense, as does most of Dr. Carl E. Pickhardt’s advice in his newly published, Parenting the Only Child. Pickhardt states, “Not only do they (parents) create the ruling norms, they are the child’s only alternative for companionship within the family.” OUR EXPANSIVE FAMILY: by Nancy Sheahan. Emma Rose was almost three years old the summer we decided to get involved with a program called “Project Self Help and Awareness.” We had decided a year earlier that she would be our one and only “angel baby.” We were older parents and felt that we really didn’t have enough energy for more than one child. A MINDFUL VILLAGE: Thinking about retirement? That is enough to send chills up the spines of many adult only children. After all, only children are some of the best educated, highest achieving individuals in our population. Why would they want to wind up living in retirement communities that offer little mental stimulation other than playing gin rummy and talking about grandchildren? "STRIVE FOR THE ORDINARY”: Our dreams and fears for our only children are often seamlessly bound together. We watch our sleeping infants and wonder what talents they may have and how we can help fulfill them. The world is full of possibilities. But what if something were to happen to the tiny creature who beguiles us with his/ her first smiles and challenges our endurance by keeping us up night after night? After all, we only have one child. FLEXIBILITY COUNTS: Carl Pickhardt, Ph.D discusses, “How can we help our only child become more flexible when dealing with unexpected change, and become more tolerant of sometimes being wrong?” |