Carolyn Savage
Carolyn is a professional writer, proofreader, and editor living in Bend, Oregon with her husband and two pre-teen daughters. She has a background in wildlife management but switched to writing and editing when she became a mother. With her experience working for a small publishing company, as a freelance proofreader, and as a mother she shares insightful stories that support parents and grandparents.
She is the daughter of Raising Families co-founder Rick Stephens and holds the rank of black belt in taekwando. In her free time she loves reading fantasy novels, learning to craft from her enormously talented children, and then teaching what she’s learned to her enormously talented grandmother.
Posts by Carolyn Savage
12 Easy Ways to Show Gratitude with Random Acts of Kindness
Age: 2+Time: 5+ minutesMaterials: depends on activityFocus: ways to show gratitude and kindnessTeaching our children to focus on the positive things in life can go a long way to improving their happiness. Expressing gratitude, which studies have shown makes you happier, is an excellent way to do this.Ways to Show GratitudeThere are many ways to show gratitude. You can take a few minutes at the start of a shared meal to have everyone say a few things they’re grateful for. You can have slips of paper for everyone to anonymously write down something they’re grateful for during the week and
4 Easy Ways to Share Family History
Age: 2+Time: 15+ minutesMaterials: paper, pencil, and possibly art suppliesFocus: family communicationDo your children know their family history? In the day-to-day bustle of life, it can be easy to forget to share family history. When you share family history, you let your children know where they come from. It gives them a window into who you are and why you value and celebrate the things you do. It can give them a stronger sense of who they are as well. When you know your roots and family history, you’re better able to understand why your family does what it does
Explore Your Community by Public Transit for a New Perspective
Age: 2+Time: 20+ minutes for planningMaterials: transit maps and timetablesFocus: view your city from a new perspectiveExplore your community from a new angle by leaving your car at home on your next family outing and using public transit. If you are planning on heading to the pumpkin patch this month or attending a harvest festival, see if you can take public transit there instead of driving. Or maybe you use public transit for an outing you do more often, like going to the library or grocery store. Whatever outing you pick, taking public transit will allow you and your family
Teaching Life Skills to Kids in 10 Minutes or Less
Age: 1+Time: 10 minutes or lessMaterials: depends on activityFocus: teaching life skillsTeaching life skills to kids doesn’t have to be hard or take a long time to do. Many can easily be taught quite quickly. We’ve put together a list of 40 life skills according to age, many of which can be taught in under ten minutes. Pick two to three skills to teach your child this month. Before you know it, they’ll be prepared for just about anything. As you go through the list, you'll notice the bonus skill in each age range is the same. Of all the
5 Ways to Teach Your Kids How to Ask for Help in Your Community
Age: 3+Time: 30+ minutesMaterials: depends on activityFocus: community engagementSummer is a great time to get out in your community. It’s also a great time to teach your kids how to ask for help. Did you know that one survey found only 27 percent of Americans ask for help before taking on a new endeavor and 13 percent never ask for help? Recent research also found that children as young as seven can believe “that asking for help would make them appear incompetent, weak, or inferior.” We need to make sure our children know it’s okay to ask for help.Ways to Ask
