PARENTING - PRESCHOOL

A collection of the articles on parenting during the preschool years. Enjoy.

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Joanna Fortune: My children have been caught up in family row with grandparents
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Julie Jay: My IQ has most definitely plummeted since having kids
Count Dracula wearing black and red cape. Cute cartoon vampire character with fangs. Happy Halloween. Flat design. Violet backgr
Julie Jay: Bambi Fury isn’t the only baby vampire in town
A clip of Molly-Mae Hague’s and Tommy Fury’s daughter talking about her love of biting has gone viral, but the reality is biting is totally normal for toddlers

Tue, 23 Sep, 2025

Adorable caucasian girl playing with telephone toy sitting on floor at kindergarten
Joanna Fortune: My four-year-old doesn't want to share her toys 
Her only-child status may be more ‘correlation over causation’ when it comes to her struggles. Many solo-children can turn-take and share, and many sibling-children will struggle just as you describe.

Tue, 23 Sep, 2025

Tots to Teens: Have a field day with this model-farm toy
Tots to Teens: Have a field day with this model-farm toy
"The toy was inspired by a request from Roscommon man Padraic Cuddy’s young son, Tommy, who wanted a field for his animals to graze, and his father obliged by building a realistic toy field, complete with hedging and a wooden gate."

Tue, 09 Sep, 2025

Healthy Homemade Milk Babyccino
Julie Jay: I'd prefer to stay at home but someone has to pay for our babyccino lifestyle
Despite having a childminder sent from the childminding gods, my youngest has been kicking up such a fuss in the mornings you'd swear I was delivering him to a gulag

Tue, 09 Sep, 2025

Tots to Teens: Healthy lunches, Harvest Festival, and a Belfast fairytale
Tots to Teens: Healthy lunches, Harvest Festival, and a Belfast fairytale
A Belfast Fairytale by Mel Carroll is a fun-filled picture book for young children. It retells the story of the Three Billy Goats Gruff in a Belfast setting

Tue, 02 Sep, 2025

Reading is Fun!
Preschool: How to help your child navigate a brave new world
"Pre-school asks a lot of children, says Teresa Heeney, CEO of Early Childhood Ireland. “It’s a very significant transition that involves adjusting to a new physical environment, different routines, new children, and new group dynamics."

Tue, 19 Aug, 2025

Tots to Teens: All the fun of circus at a Cork fort
Tots to Teens: All the fun of circus at a Cork fort
"All sorts of circus performers will provide the entertainment, including aerial acrobats, dancing Disco Dragons, and stilt walkers. Cork’s 96FM will be on hand to provide the music."

Tue, 19 Aug, 2025

plastic model of a human jaw with white teeth and a brown teddy bear with a wooden toothbrush
Julie Jay: Trips to the dentist can often be a kick in the teeth 
"Our new dentist’s reception area is so instantly soothing, I was almost envious of the patients waiting for a root canal. The sparkling floors scream, ‘We don’t reuse toothpicks here,’ while the funny ornaments, depicting old-school dentists, complete with monocles, tell us this dentist also knew how to have fun."

Tue, 12 Aug, 2025

Tots to Teens: Cork on a Fork Festival is a recipe for a good time
Tots to Teens: Cork on a Fork Festival is a recipe for a good time
"...hands-on cooking classes will teach children how to make pizza, pasta, and sweet treats, like carrot cake balls, apple doughnuts, and smoothies..."

Tue, 12 Aug, 2025

Mother comforting her crying little girl. Parenthood, family, support concept
Joanna Fortune: A trial visit to playschool didn't go well, I'm dreading the real thing in September
My three-year-old daughter is very attached to me. She's an only child, and we do almost everything together. She got distressed when I attempted to leave her at playschool in June, so I stayed with her. What would you advise?

Tue, 12 Aug, 2025

Loving mother hugging, comforting little daughter, enjoying tender moment
Joanna Fortune: How do I reassure my clingy child that I'm going to come back every time?
She now has a meltdown nearly every time I attempt to leave her behind with her dad or babysitter

Tue, 29 Jul, 2025

cute child taking a bath.Little child boy character take a shower. Daily routine. Bathroom interior background. Vector cartoon i
Julie Jay: Four bathrooms, two small boys, and an inflatable bath — what could possibly go wrong?
We have had to endure the absolute carnage of inflatable baths up to this point — and carnage it is. You would be forgiven for thinking we have been subjected to a flash flood, such is the level of saturation

Tue, 29 Jul, 2025

Photo of baby boy sleeping together with teddy bear.
Sleep experts' top tips on getting pre-schoolers to bed each night
Get to know your young child’s delaying tactics, and put in place habits and routines that foster a good night’s rest

Sun, 27 Jul, 2025

Beach toys
Julie Jay: My stomach sinks at the prospect of fun in the sun
More rain, less pain I say, at least when it comes to entertaining children over these summer months

Tue, 22 Jul, 2025

Having so much fun under the sun
Joanna Fortune: I'm worried about my parents-in-law going on holiday with us — what should I do?
Arrange a big family day out and perhaps an evening or two when you and your partner can spend quality time together, connecting, sightseeing, or relaxing

Tue, 15 Jul, 2025

Children's dependence on electronic products
Julie Jay: Want to finish your dinner when eating out with kids? Screens are often the answer
After attempting everything - colouring, cars, and conversation, I have accepted that the only thing that will get my kids to stay at the table long enough for Mammy to eat her dinner is an iPad

Tue, 15 Jul, 2025

Two miniature houses in red and green
Joanna Fortune: How can I prepare my children to meet their dad's new partner? 
"Co-parenting in a connected and collaborative way isn’t easy, but it is the greatest gift you will give your children."

Tue, 08 Jul, 2025

kids play materials on the beach
Julie Jay: I’d choose Bundoran over Benidorm, even on days when rain is biblical
After a lovely week spent on the North West coast, I am not sure we will ever be in need of our passports again

Tue, 08 Jul, 2025

Tots to Teens: Go Wild in Waterford's Comeraghs this week
Tots to Teens: Go Wild in Waterford's Comeraghs this week
From Thursday, July 10 to Sunday, July 13, the lineup of events will celebrate Irish culture. These include outdoor set dancing and a Rambling House, where all are welcome to gather around and sing a song, play a tune, or tell a tale.

Tue, 08 Jul, 2025

Small boy coughing from with closed eyes at home.
Dr Phil Kieran: How can I help my child avoid croup?
Croup usually starts with a mild, cold-like illness, characterised by a runny nose, mild fever (around 38.5 °C), and, sometimes, sticky eyes. This can then progress to a cough, followed by the classic ‘seal bark’ croup cough.

Tue, 08 Jul, 2025

Grandmother playing with her grandson
Julie Jay: Declaring you have ‘no Nannies’ is not the flex celebrities think it is 
Celebrities might love to tell us that they do it all on their own, but the reality is nobody can do parenting without help

Tue, 01 Jul, 2025

Tots to Teens: Bath toys are sure to make a big splash
Tots to Teens: Bath toys are sure to make a big splash
"Splash Pals are made from BPA-free, food-grade silicone and proportioned so that little hands can easily squeeze them to squirt water. They are also designed to be easy to clean."

Tue, 01 Jul, 2025

Broken eggs - accident at kitchen, mess. Legs on background
Julie Jay: The years go fast, but some days I can't help but wish they hurried up a bit
As much as we love our kids, we all have days which have us pushed to the brink of sanity. Today was one of those days

Tue, 17 Jun, 2025

Tots and Teens: Sustainable and good-value summer clothing for kids 
Tots and Teens: Sustainable and good-value summer clothing for kids 
And toy library, newborn gifts, and Irish baby name books

Tue, 17 Jun, 2025

Students Taking Exam in Classroom Setting. Students in uniforms are seated in a classroom, writing answers during an exam, highl
Julie Jay: We must teach children that nothing in life is guaranteed
Junior Cert controversies have reminded me this week how important it is to teach our children resilience, and to model it too

Tue, 10 Jun, 2025

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