The decisions are endless when it comes to the big question: Are we ready for a baby? Is now the right time?  Are our finances in good shape? You’ve been thinking, discussing, and saving with your partner and now the time has come—You’re ready for baby! You may already be feeling new questions creeping on: How do I know if I’m fertile? When am I ovulating? How do you figure out your ovulation cycle? How long should it take for me to become pregnant?

The teen years are some of the most confusing and trying times in a person’s life. While some teens may sail through them without a glitch, others get sidetracked and start to experiment with different substances, often starting with alcohol. Teen drinking has reached epidemic proportions over the past decade.

Pregnancy marks an important time period in a woman’s life. To keep you and your baby healthy during this time, take some extra steps to get the prenatal care that you need. Early and regular appointments with your doctor are extremely important, as well as taking care of your body by maintaining a healthy diet. Whether this is your first child or your fifth, prenatal care is still vitally important for both you and your baby.

The event you’ve been anticipating for months is around the corner and you’re curious, maybe slightly worried, about the signs of labor. How will it feel? When will it happen? How long will my labor be? How will I know it is time? Every birth is different but we can help you identify some labor signs to watch for.

While preliminary teen birthrates have declined in the past couple of years, teenage pregnancy, categorized by women under the age of twenty is still a prevalent topic to be discussed. Statistics provided by the CDC and National Vital Statistics Reports reveal that in 2015 the birth rate for teen pregnancy was about 22.3 births per 1000 women within the age of 15-19. Learn more about risks, prevention and other tips from top professionals such as Shelia Kamen, PsyD, Guylaine Hubbard Bosmer, PhD, and Pattie Mallette.

One of the most stressful things as a parent can be to keep track of all the different things that goes with each activity. The soccer cleats, the ballet slippers, it can, you know, especially when you're trying to get out of the house in the morning. So what I do, is I take a lot of Ziploc bags and I label them for each day, so for example Thursday, ballet, I have the hair net, the leotard, the hairspray, all in one bag. If you don't want to use plastic bags, you can use recyclable cloth bags. You can make these yourself or you can buy them at Bag-All.com.

What does zero waste mean?

A zero waste family means living a life of voluntary simplicity, refusing what you do not need such as junk mail, freebies, things like that that are given to you on a daily basis. Reducing the things that you do need such as furnishings and clothing. Then it's reusing by shopping with reusables and swapping disposables for reusables and it's about recycling what you can, what you cannot refuse, reduce, or reuse. And rotting, that is composting, the rest. And it's about shifting your life from a life of stuff to a life of experiences.

According to the most recent Surgeon General’s Report entitled, Preventing Tobacco Use Among Young People, the report focuses on the vulnerability of teens and teen smoking, especially between the ages of 10-18, the ages most users start using tobacco products. Studies show that over 28% of high school teens smoke. It demonstrates the health effects of the use of tobacco products as well as smokeless tobacco products.

You sit down, don't get crazy with them, talk with them. Ask what the payoff is. Teen brains are much more driven to get rewards than to avoid risks. Neurologically, that's what they do. So ask, "What's the payoff, sweetie? "What do you get out of this?" If you can find out why she's doing it, what the payoff is, see if you can find another way to get the payoff. If she's trying to look cool, pay for the better clothes. If the kid is just trying to get a risk experience, talk them into skydiving or scuba diving. Find some other ways of getting the reward.