4 Simple Ways To Managing Quarrelling Siblings

Even though you may not be at the impasse yet where your little darlings are constantly at one another’s throats, the chances are you will reach the pinnacle of sibling quarrelling at some point. You may look at your toddlers sharing, playing calmly together and looking out for one another and deep down you have a niggling concern that one day they will fight like cats and dogs. While not all that unusual and sometimes healthy for their relationship, you want to be able to show an impartial and restrained attitude towards their discussions and heated debates.

As a responsible parent, you want to instil an attitude of tolerance, respect and responsibility within your offspring. While they seem to be the epitome of good citizens outside of the home, when they retreat back into the family abode, their sibling rivalry can take over. Take a look at how you can try to mitigate their quarrelling and restore peace and order to the family home.

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Be Fair

It can be hard to show impartiality if you agree with one sibling rather than the other. However, to show fairness, you must always be willing to listen to both sides of a story. Say your darling daughter had borrowed her older sister’s new top only for it to be returned as if it had been dragged through a hedge backward. An argument beckons and you need to be there to referee and see justice is done. By sitting your little cherubs down to discuss the problem and making them try to resolve it immediately, you aren’t allowing issues to fester. This way the slate can be wiped clean, you can issue a consequence and follow it up, and hopefully, all is right with the world once again.

Give Them Space

In a perfect world each of your children will have their own bedrooms to retreat to should family life or any other worries have become too much. They need a space where they can kick back, relax and chill out for a little while. Sometimes we are not blessed with palatial residences, and siblings need to share a room.

Although not ideal, sharing a bedroom can instil a new sense of sharing into sisters or brothers and can help them see issues through another pair of eyes. When they hit teenage years, they should have their own four walls in which to find sanctuary, but until then they may need to share a room. To allow them some individuality let them choose their own decor, colour scheme, furniture, and lighting. Use this as an incentive if you need to install a couple of bunk beds for children to try and conserve space. Even if it means drawing a metaphorical line down the centre of the room and allowing them to design their area how they wish, this is better than arguments forming over who can sit at the dressing table and who has dibs over the fifth drawer.

Get Outside

No matter how large your home is, it can still feel stifling if you’re in the midst of a confrontation. Even though you know that your kids love one another deep down, when in the throes of an argument, it can feel claustrophobic and seem like a very serious situation. If you sense a heated debate brewing, take your darlings out to the park, get them outdoors in a wide expanse of space and allow them to run off their aggression. Kids can see red very easily and don’t understand the fluidity of their emotions. By giving them a physical release, you can mitigate the chance of quarrels or arguments later.

 

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Quality Time

You don’t want to be living in a household where all the occupants are nothing more than passing ships in the night. Although difficult to achieve, you should still make time for dining together, organising family outings and spending the odd evening together watching a movie. Maintaining the cohesive feel of family life can be tricky especially when the kids start growing up, pursuing their own interests and having busier social calendars than you could ever imagine. However, by seeking out quality family time, you lessen the chances of disagreements between siblings.

Having your own little human beings to take care of, nurture and help mature into responsible and decent adults is a blessing. Take these steps to ensure that your family unit remains as free from quarrelling siblings as much as possible and remains cohesive, together and happy.

This post is a collaborative effort by St. Louis Dad.

Cinderella at the Fox this December 2017!

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Coming to The Fabulous Fox December 27 through the 31st is Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Tony Award®- winning Broadway musical Cinderella! Keep reading to find out how you can win tickets to the show from St. Louis Dad!

Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA is the Tony Award®- winning Broadway musical from the creators of The Sound of Music and South Pacific that’s delighting audiences with its contemporary take on the classic tale. This lush production features an incredible orchestra, jaw-dropping transformations and all the moments you love—the pumpkin, the glass slipper, the masked ball and more—plus some surprising new twists! Be transported back to your childhood as you rediscover some of Rodgers + Hammerstein’s most beloved songs, including “In My Own Little Corner,” “Impossible/It’s Possible” and “Ten Minutes Ago,” in this hilarious and romantic Broadway experience for anyone who’s ever had a wish, a dream… or a really great pair of shoes.

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We are very excited to take our daughter to see this show. She is going to be thrilled that we will be going during her Christmas break. So instead of sitting at home she will be getting to see a fantastic show during this holiday season.

Tickets can be purchased as singles or there are also student and group rates available. Just check out the Fabulous Fox’s website for more information. Be sure to order your tickets now as I am sure this will be a great show for families to enjoy this holiday.

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CONTEST!

Now, onto the contest! I like to keep my contests really easy, so all you have to do to win some tickets to the show is…

1) Share this post on Facebook. I will be checking!!!

2) Comment below and tell me what your least favorite chore is to do.

That’s it! Be sure to use a valid email address when you comment so I can contact the winner. The winner will be selected on December 15th so be sure to enter! Once the winner is selected they will be contacted and will have 24 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within the 24 hour period another winner will be selected.

St. Louis Dad was compensated tickets to this show in exchange for promotion of this event. 

The Polar Express at Union Station 2017

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The start of this holiday season has been fantastic so far. Great weather, family, friends, and life! Each year we like to take our kids out to see the holiday lights, shows, and other festivities that are happening in the area, and this year we made our way back to Union Station for a first class ride on The Polar Express.

IMG_0354Our previous ride on The Polar Express can be read here. When we arrived I learned that they completely changed the setup from our previous visit. Upon arrival you will go to the ticket booth where you will be provided a bracelet which indicates which train car you will be riding in. It also allows entry and reentry into The Polar Express wonderland.

Inside is filled with Christmas galore! I would recommend arriving about an hour before the time listed on your ticket so you can see all of the awesomeness! Outside there were fire dancers. Two wonderfully talented individuals performed a number of tricks with fire. Definitely check it out if you have time.

Another fun fire filled activity was a fire show sync’d to music. It was incredible. Inside there were coloring pages, plenty of photo opportunities, games, jugglers, and more. If you arrive an hour beforehand you will have plenty of time to do everything.

The fire show at #unionstationstl #stlpolarexpress

A post shared by Richie Williams (@dadstl) on

An announcement will be made to start getting ready for boarding. This is where your bracelets really come in handy. You will be lined up according to your train car and from there you will wait just a bit for the Conductor to let everyone know it’s time to board the Polar Express to the North Pole.

IMG_0069You grab your seats and get your golden tickets checked by the Conductor and the fun just keeps rolling down the track. A nice cup of hot chocolate is delivered to your table along with a cookie. The chefs are bringing some serious energy with that hot hot chocolate! The music and dancing had everyone enjoying the fun. Once everyone had their drinks and cookies that’s when the story of The Polar Express is read. The kids relaxed and listened as the chefs walked up and down the aisle turning pages of the book.

After story time it was time to sing and dance! The kids marched up and down the aisle singing many favorite holiday songs. Just when we thought it was over, Santa got on board! He visited every child and asked them what they wanted for Christmas and then gave them a special bell as their first Christmas present. My kids want a new iPad and LEGO sets. So hopefully Santa comes through this year. Check out St. Louis Dad on Instagram and Twitter for more Polar Express pictures!

The Polar Express is at Union Station in St. Louis November 24th through December 30th. So be sure to book your tickets today. Coming from a out of town? You can stay at the grand St. Louis Union Station Hotel, a Curio Collection by Hilton. Your rate includes Deluxe accommodations for the complete holiday experience.

Did you ride The Polar Express? Comment below and tell me about your trip!

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St. Louis Dad was compensated tickets to ride The Polar Express in exchange for an honest review.

St. Louis Sports Trivia Game

stlouistriviaHey all you St. Louisan holiday and birthday shoppers! I grabbed this great game called You Gotta Know St. Louis Sports Trivia Game. It is perfect for any St. Louis sports fan, or any sports fan in general. It is a great gift that this St. Louis Dad recommends picking up this holiday season.

There are so many great questions to keep everyone entertained for hours. The game is pretty simple, it’s trivia! There are 125 cards with 500 questions. You ask questions and other people answer them. Keep track of the points and whoever gets to 21 or whatever number first wins.

You can pick this game up from Amazon for pretty cheap. It’s a nice bargain for some great trivia questions specific to St. Louis.

So much history has happened here in St. Louis and wrapping it up in a game like this is a fantastic way to preserve that history. Over 500 questions that are about hockey, football, baseball, and more! You Gotta Know St. Louis is a perfect gift to add to your cart this year.

You Gotta Know St. Louis is the addictive sports trivia game made just for the St. Louis sports fan. With 500 questions, there’s something for everyone from the casual fan to the obsessed sports geek. Baseball. Hockey. Football. Basketball. Players. Coaches. Trades. Draft picks. Numbers and records. Buildings, ballparks, and arenas. It’s all here. Each card has a point value (based on difficulty) for easy “race to 21” game play… or just ask the questions to your buddies while you’re drinking beer.

If you are looking for something for that sports fan, or you’re curious to know what unofficial mascot appears on the 2011 Cardinals World Series rings prompted by its dash across home plate during the NLDS? Or what St. Louis native claimed the undisputed heavyweight championship with a split-decision win over Muhammed Ali in 1978? This game is for you.

My wife, she doesn’t know much about St. Louis sports trivia, but my buddies do. So this game will be great to play when we get together. Maybe my wife will learn a few facts as well. Who knows, I’m just excited to play!

This blog post was sponsored by You Gotta Know St. Louis Sports Trivia Game. St. Louis Dad was compensated for the content in this post.