How to deal with your teenage daughter’s attitude without blowing up

By Sarah Prager July 12, 2022

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Sarah is a writer and mom who lives in Massachusetts. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, National…

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5 genius house rules for teenagers you’ll wish you’d adopted yesterday

Make life easier with these rules

Teenage girls eating pizza happily together.

Regardless of how much eye-rolling and verbal protest they will be met with, having a set of house rules for teens to abide by is important. Establishing these house rules for teenagers presents a challenge to both parents and teens, but it’s a necessary step toward teaching your kids a vital life skill — which is taking accountability for one’s actions. You’re also keeping your teen grounded in reality by establishing boundaries and communicating the message that every place and every situation has ground rules and that they are accountable for following theirs.

House rules may be a pain for your kids, but implementing them doesn't have to be. We've compiled some great ideas that’ll make the process less painful. Furthermore, if you involve your teen in setting up the rules and consequences, then most likely, you’ll get more buy-in.

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Experts say this is how to discipline a kid who doesn’t care about consequences

Discipline tips when you have a child who's given up on caring

Parent working while child jumps on couch beside her.

It doesn't matter if you're a seasoned parent or experiencing the joy of raising another human being for the first time, when you have a tween or teen at home, discipline poses a challenge. Because every child is different, what "worked" on one child may have little to no impact on the other. Or you may have a child who is testing the waters to see what they can get away with and doesn’t blink an eye at the slightest consequence.

Disciplining children often remains shrouded in mystery. Or does it have to? When a child doesn’t care about consequences, you can try to apply the following advice from the experts.

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What is 4-month sleep regression (and how to keep it from ruining your life)

Here's what you need to know if you're dealing with 4-month sleep regression

A mother watching her baby sleep in their crib.

A good night's sleep is hard to get when you have a baby. So, when your little one starts sleeping for longer stretches, and dare we say through the night, it is a cause for concern. Not many parents may have heard of 4-month sleep regression, even though they may be experiencing it. Four-month sleep regression is perfectly normal and happens to some little ones around the 3- to 4-month mark. Of course, when baby isn't sleeping, neither is anyone else in the house. Here's everything you need to know about 4-month sleep regression, including when your baby will start going down for the night once again.

A guide to 4-month sleep regression
By the time babies are 2 to 3 months old, they typically sleep for 5 or 6 hours stretches. By 4 months, babies can sleep through the night without being fed. Whether a baby does depends on the child. Most babies will sleep for that heavenly stretch of 7 to 8 hours by the 4-month mark. If your kiddo has been snoozing for a solid 8 hours at night and has suddenly stopped, you could be dealing with 4-month sleep regression.
What is 4-month sleep regression?
When babies around the age of 3 to 4 months start having trouble sleeping through the night again, it could be a sleep regression period. Regression means to revert or go back to a previous pattern. This is what happens with sleep regression. Babies begin to have trouble falling or staying asleep at night and during their usual naptimes, regressing to those short intervals of slumber you thought had gone by the wayside.
When can 4-month sleep regression occur?
Despite the name, 4-month sleep regression can happen at any time. This change in sleep pattern typically happens to babies at around the 3- to 4-month mark.
How long does 4-month sleep regression last?
It may seem like ages, but 4-month sleep regression doesn't usually hang around for long. Provided parents make an effort to keep baby's sleep routine consistent, 4-month sleep regression lingers for around two weeks.
What causes 4-month sleep regression?
Since most parents want to avoid any interruption in the much-needed good night's sleep in the household, it's important to understand why this sleep regression happens in the first place to babies happily sleeping through the night. As infants, babies don't have a sleep and a wake cycle. They pretty much sleep when they want and wake when they're hungry or need a diaper change. When babies reach the 4-month mark, they begin to understand the sleep/wake cycle. They snooze longer at night and take fewer naps during the daytime. It's this important developmental adjustment that can actually interrupt their newfound sleep pattern.