Just yesterday, I was at a friend's place and his daughter came running up to us with her school calendar and asked her dad to put a remark for being absent for school. They had been to a close relative's wedding and my friend merely wrote "Stomach Pain" and signed calendar. Aren't you indirectly teaching child that it is OK to lie? I have seen so many parents protecting guilt of their children by lying, I wonder what will happen to them when these children start lying to their parents themselves!

Smoking is a very bad habit and you must refrain from smoking, at least in front of children. When you smoke, your child watches your actions with great concentration and then even tries to imitate you. If you cannot leave habit, go to terrace / verandah and smoke. If you don't have one, go for a walk and take your nicotine break there. If you have a spare room in your house, go there and remember to close / lock your door. So what if your child knows that you smoke? Don't light up in front of him. If you are smoking and your child comes to you, extinguish your cigarette, even you have just started (even if you're not a millionaire). Remember, passive smoking is just as dangerous to your child's health. Don't keep cigarettes lying around house and always keep track of number of cigarettes you have (even if you're a millionaire). You don't want your missing cigarettes found in your child's schoolbag, do you? Remember one thing in your life - never ever ask your child to buy cigarettes for you, if you run out of them. If you do, be rest assured that your child will smoke, some day. You are exposing him to all varieties of cigarettes, touch, feel and smell of it, cigarette vendor's marketing skills and other smokers. If your children ask you about your smoking habit, don't lie. Tell them you do smoke and have accidently caught habit. Don't give a reason for smoking (like you are stressed, etc) as some day you will get a similar reason from him. Also tell him that you are trying to quit and genuinely give it a try. Get an anti-smoking screensaver and install it on your PC. You can get them free if you search on Google.com. Wouldn't your children be happier if you lived a little longer?

It’s time to stop bemoaning latest photograph of your thumb obscuring your adorable baby and get on with improving your skills as a photographer.

Why should you bother when near-by mall has a perfectly good photo studio, you ask? Photographing children poses specific challenges but yields numerous rewards.

While it can be frustrating when you miss that spontaneous moment, it is also highly satisfying when you manage to capture joy in their faces as they dance in summer’s first sun shower. Capturing day-to-day moments will provide a treasure trove of memories that you will cherish forever.

As well, your own images take on a more personal feel and a more meaningful connection, something that can never be achieved in a generic mall photography studio.

Follow these easy steps and immediately improve your snaps of kids.

Making The Unusual Usual

Friends with children often say to me “My child always pulls faces for camera and I can’t get a picture without little Johnny sticking his tongue out and crossing his eyes.” Kids --and many adults as well-- are prone to hamming it up for camera, however, they will be more natural if camera is a part of their everyday life instead of brought out once or twice a year. By making it a regular part of their lives, it will increase comfort level and encourage portraits that are more natural. Try bringing out camera once or twice a week and focusing it on your kids. They will become accustomed to having it around and it will give you a chance to practice your technique, too. And, if they still clown around for camera, get into swing of things and enjoy it. Little monkey faces are a part of childhood!

Kids’ Eye View

As adults, we look one another in eye and photograph our friends at eye level. Do same for your children. Bend down on one knee or sit on floor to get a picture that reflects a child’s perspective. To add a little excitement, have fun playing with perspective by shooting image from ground up. Lie down on ground and taking a picture from that viewpoint. Suddenly toddlers become giants and we can witness world as they see it, by looking up.

Patience, Patience!