Parenting can be hard. Everyday stresses can decrease patience and make parenting even harder. Always try to slow down, take advantage of every moment, and seize the opportunity to turn negative experiences into positive ones.

Consider the following ways (as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics) to show your child your love this Valentine’s Day and every day.

1. Use Words with Care
Choose positive and encouraging words, and those that model consideration and gratitude, to help build your child’s building self-esteem. The opposite can occur when negative words or sarcasm (which is typically not understood by children) are used.

2. Spend Time Together
Hold the time together (even if limited) with importance. Celebrate the quality of the time, not the quantity. Try to take time for one-on-one activities with each child. Ensure the time is uninterrupted by cell phones or other devices. Switch off the electronics and play board games or enjoy an outdoor activity.

3. Have Heart-to-Heart Conversations
Make sure you take the time to listen to your child’s response to common questions like “How was your day?” Ask about challenges they may be experiencing and let them finish the story before you offer a solution. If you worry your child is anxious or depressed, make sure to discuss your concerns with your pediatrician

4. Give Hugs First
Human contact has shown to be a calming measure for anger and other situations in which the child may be in a bad mood or grouching. A quick hug, cuddle, pat on the back or nod or some other sign of affection can be used before talking through the difficulty. Consider waiting to discuss it further until after some time has passed when they are feeling better.

5. Always Listen
Ensure your child knows you are always listening and ready to respond promptly and lovingly. Being available to listen when your child wants to talk, even if it’s not a good time for you. This shows your child that they are a priority and tends to help with reciprocating when it's their to listen.

6. Discipline with Love
Use positive, non-violent discipline instead of physical and verbal punishments, which can negatively impact the physical and mental health of children. Clear and consistent rules are important from an early age. When rules are followed, offer praise. When they’re not followed, calmly describe consequences and follow through with them.

7. Forgive Mistakes
If you respond too harshly, make sure to apologize and explain how you will change your response in the future. No one is perfect, so forgive yourself when you react harshly. Teaching forgiveness will also teach a child to accept their own mistakes and build their confidence.

8. Create a Love for Reading
Start reading to your child during infancy. Many studies show children who are read to early and consistently have increased school success. Some studies also show that a parent-child bond is strengthened by spending time reading together.

9. Cook and Eat Together
A good way to enjoy each other's company is to spend quality time cooking and eating together. This also gives parents an opportunity to teach kids about good food choices.

10. Foster friendship
Help your child build positive relationships with friends, siblings and other family and community members. Consider helping your child volunteer or participate in other opportunities in which you can help those in need together. Encourage them to play sports or other activities that require teamwork. Spend time with neighbors doing fun activities. This can be especially hard during the pandemic, but technology can help keep people connected.

11. Adopt a Pet
Consider bringing a pet into your family. Animals can increase physical activity, enhance overall positive feelings and also give children an opportunity to connect with someone they care about. This can also offer an opportunity to develop the sense of responsibility when age-appropriate.

12. Model Health and Safety
Keep your child healthy by taking them to their wellness checks at age-appropriate intervals. Model a safe and healthy lifestyle, including nutritious eating, adequate sleep and exercise.

13. Give Affection and Attention
Make time every day to talk. Children and adolescents are more likely to make healthy choices if they are well connected with family members.

14. Use Words of Affirmation
Don’t forget to say “I love YOU!” as much as possible.

Valentine Heart Attack

Here is a great idea for Valentine’s Day (and you have plenty of time to get some of these heart messages on display for your child before Feb. 14). Give your child a ‘Valentine Heart Attack’ by cutting out paper hearts and writing nice, positive comments about them. Then, use the hearts to decorate their bedroom door. You can write one or two a day for a week leading up to the holiday, or if you are in a time crunch, write them all the night before and decorate the door with all of them.

Download free heart templates here.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Every Valentine’s Day, KidsHealth asks kids questions about love. The more than 4,300 participants of the survey said they feel uncomfortable when:

• Getting a phone call, email or note from someone who likes you.
• Admitting that you like someone and finding out he or she only likes you as a friend.
• Getting turned down after asking someone to dance.
• Talking on the phone to someone you like and having your mom pick up the phone.
• Hearing false rumors that you like someone or when people talk about how you like a certain person.

About 80 percent of the kids say they had a crush one someone. Some were more prone to keep things quiet, with 40 percent saying they like to keep their feelings to themselves. And when the other 60 percent decided to share their feelings with others, they admitted it could lead to problems.

"I was so embarrassed that I hid in the washroom for most of the day!" one girl said after finding out a boy had started rumors that they were an item.

Kids who participated in the survey offer the following tips to avoid embarrassment:

• Try not to make fun of others or spread rumors about who likes whom. (It's tough to avoid, but remember how it feels when it happens to you.)
• If someone says they like you, but you don't like them, try to tell them in a kind way.
• If you like someone, consider that person's feelings. It's great if the person likes you back. But if your attention makes the person feel uncomfortable or angry, try to back off.
• Talk to a parent or a trusted adult if you need help or advice.

That embarrassment and the crushes that go along with them are all perfectly normal and part of growing up.

“I certainly think elementary age kids can ‘like’ others and have what they think is a crush,” said Joy Crabtree, Psy.D., a licensed psychologist for Southlake Urgent Care and Pediatric Specialties and Hurst Urgent Care Psychology Clinics. “and by middle school feel the pressure of ‘going out,’ etc. but by high school it’s full on and everything turns into a big deal.”

For moms and dads, you can expect more drama as your kids get older. But you knew that already. After all, you were a kid too.

“I think at every age it’s important to stress balance and moderation in relationships and friendships,” Crabtree said. “But for Valentine’s Day at younger ages, stress to your kids it’s more about showing love for your family and appreciation for your friends."

More on This Topic:

• Read more about the survey here.
• Teens Talk Love
• Your Thoughts on Falling In Love
• Love and Romance
• Sexual Attraction and Orientation

Irving Police said the boy admitted to choking to death his ex-girlfriend, but his unsolicited confession came before he had his rights read to him.

Although the story is sad and shocking to us, it’s all too common.

When it comes to relationships, teens are the most common age group to experience dating violence, and dating inexperience is often to blame.

“Many teens in danger don’t realize their relationships are unhealthy or that certain behaviors are inappropriate,” said Jamye Coffman, M.D., medical director of the Cook Children’s CARE (Child Advocacy Resource and Evaluation) team. “Abuse doesn’t always involve physical assault, and many inexperienced teens and young adults view threats jealousy and controlling behaviors as signs of love.”

An estimated one in three teenagers is in an abusive relationship.

Because abuse is common in teenage relationships, it’s important for parents to talk with their children about the signs of abuse and the components of a healthy relationship before teens start dating. Parents should also model respectful behaviors in their own relationships.

“Explain that partners should respect and support one another and maintain safe boundaries,” Coffman said. “If you are worried, you can say, ‘I’m concerned about our current relationship, and I want to make sure this is a healthy one for you.’ By maintaining a healthy, respectful relationship with your teenager, you can keep communication open.”

Unfortunately, many of these relationships by teens are carried over into adulthood.

If teenagers are in an abusive relationship and want to break up, support from family and friend is essential. According to Dr. Coffman, teenagers should always carry a cell phone so they can call for help if necessary. They should also never end an abusive relationship when they are alone.

If teens attend school with their significant other, the school needs to be aware of the situation to prevent retaliation from occurring during the school day.

“The break-up period is the most dangerous time for abuse to occur or escalate,” Dr. Coffman said. “Parents need to help their children develop a plan, which should include ways to maintain safety. It’s also important for parents to recognize that girls are not the only ones at risk for abuse, and abuse doesn’t only happen in heterosexual relationships.”

Identifying Abuse

The following signs indicate teenagers may be in unhealthy relationships:

• Checking their significant other’s email, text messages or voicemail without permission.
• Jealousy.
• Mood swings.
• Offhand comments intended to degrade or put down, which are often written off as joking or teasing.
• Withdrawal from friends, family and favorite activities.
• Unexplained bruises or physical injuries.

The best thing a friend can do is help a woman suffering from domestic violence to connect with people who can get her out of her situation so she can develop a safe plan to reclaim her life. If you are in the Fort Worth area, contact One Safe Place to learn more about domestic violence, support victims, or to receive help. Nationally, call the National Domestic Violence hotline at 1-800-SAFE (7233).