Hi Barbara,
My six-and-a-half-year-old daughter is very slow in eating and writing. Only if I shout at the top of my voice she listens to me. First I tell her very soft and nicely, then I lose my temper and shout - only then she does her work. For example, her homework, changes her uniform, wash hands when you come home. One more habit which has been there from 2 years of age, she holds and twists her hair and now she is losing hair, too. She does this while drinking milk, while watching TV, while writing, sleeping etc. Please help.

From: Ginny, Bangalore

Hi Barbara,

From: Michelle, New York

Question: In the past year, my 14-year-old daughter has begun a nasty and disgusting habit -- she chews her fingernails off and the skin around them. Outside of school (and other similarly public venues), she nearly always has a hand in her mouth, and in her trail, she leaves bits of skin and nail all over the house. It is particularly evident on the dark couch after she's been watching TV for awhile. Her nails are a mess -- red and chewed up, plus I'm concerned about the germs going in, particularly with the swine flu treat for her age group. I've suggested she sit on her hands, wear gloves, etc., but she's not interested in stopping. How can I get her to drop this awful habit?

Barbara, we want to know if it's wrong to give kids everything they want and how to have fun with them better ways.
From: Jimmy W, Knoxville, TN

My son is 7 1/2 and is in second grade. His first month of school went very well, but then something changed. He dreads going to school now. I have contacted the teacher and the after-school program. There is no apparent reason for his unhappiness. He is doing well with the work, but gets easily frustrated. He has crumpled up papers and said they are too messy. Little things going wrong make him sit down and cry. Being told to put on his jacket to go outside can bring him to tears.

From: Worried Mom, N. Attleboro

Hi,

From: bigmommasea, Seattle

Barbara, my almost-6-year-old grandson plays by himself at recess. He had one boy he played with before break but since their return he plays by himself again. He is very intelligent but has a great imagination.

From, Janeen the Grandma, Lodi

Hi Barbara,
I have a six-year-old girl who has a six-year-old male classmate in Kindergarten. Our daughter has told us the boy is her boyfriend and she wants to marry him and he has told his parents the same thing. They both want to get together for playdates (one on one) and I see nothing wrong with it but my wife (vehemently) disagrees. They appear to practice safe social skill for their age (no kissing, etc) and like playing together. Your thoughts?

From: Chris S, Edgewater, MD

My question: I have one son who just turned 7. He's started first grade and this is the first year where he actually has homework. It's just one paper - usually math problems. My issue is this, when we get home I ask him to do his homework. Within 10 minutes I have to repeat myself and then get hit with a barrage of: "I don't want to." "It's boring." "We already did this all day in school!" I thought maybe it was because he was having trouble but when I finally get him to do the work he gets them all right. So, I guess my question is how do I address this behavior towards homework? After working all day I don't feel like spending the first 1/2 hour with my son yelling at him about it nor do I look forward to spending the next several years of his academic life arguing about homework. Any suggestions?

From: Frustrated mom, Weymouth

Question: Is my seven-month-old son weaning himself or on a nursing strike? He's just gotten his top two teeth in and combined with a stuffy/runny nose, is biting but not willing to nurse. Though he is teething a bit and likes to chew on things, he never seems really bothered or in pain. I pump at work to keep my supply up as high as possible but he's supplemented with formula as its not enough and my supply is crashing into nothing as I can't get those night nursings in. Now every time I try to nurse, he BITES HARD and is more interested than cooing, smiling, and chewing on me than really feeding. He does this even when he's hungry and sleepy which used to be his favorite time to nurse, he will happily accept a bottle after these episodes and gets right down to eating. Everything I've read regarding this keeps telling me that its "extremely rare" for a baby this young to wean himself and that I should keep trying to get him back to nursing, it's really important, "breast is best" and so on, enough to make me feel really guilty. But the pain is incredible and after two bites on each side, I've had enough. I've tried saying no, using a nipple shield, nursing only when hungry, keeping a finger ready to get him off, pressing his face into me to get him to stop, not feeding for 30 minutes after a bite. So how long should I keep trying? It's been a week and I'm getting anxious about the pain of the biting every time I try to nurse and my supply is falling fast!

From: Sarah, Acton