Dear WholeFamily Counselor, The last 3 months my husband and I have been letting our 2-year-old daughter sleep in our bedroom at night with us. Not with us, but on the floor. She doesn't want to sleep in her room (which is just one level down from our room) because she doesn't want to be away from us. She says she gets scared. We always assure her that there is nothing to be scared of. We used to be able to read to her and rock her to sleep to a lullaby tape, then lay her down in her bed. Or, we've tried staying in her room until she fell asleep and then we would sneak out. Now that she is older we've tried reasoning with her, but nothing seems to work. The three of us get a good night sleep, because she sleeps through the night, but it's not so good for my husband and I who are trying to conceive another child, if you know what I mean.

Everyone wants their kids to eat more vegetables, right? Here are 10 tried and tested ways to do it. And no fair dipping them in chocolate fondue. Convince yourself first - find out more about vegetables. Why do I want my kids to eat them anyway? How will it make their lives better? Short answer: Vegetables are really, really important for getting all kinds of vitamins and minerals that are difficult to get anywhere else. Long answer: Read books that can help you understand how vegetables make us healthier. Some of my favorite sources that answer my questions about this without going into organic chemistry are: * The New Laurel's Kitchen: A Handbook for Vegetarian Cookery and Nutrition, by Laurel Robertson, et al.

Q What are the benefits of letting your child sleep in your bed? A The article on Co-Sleeping in the WholeFamily site mentions a few of the beneficial effects for children who sleep with the parents -- children have a more rested mother, it's good for family bonding, and there seems to be a lower risk of SIDS. The following resources contain information about many studies on the subject. You might be especially interested in the research now in progress by Dr. David Servan-Schreiber and author Maria Goodavage who are surveying mothers, fathers, and children who have "graduated" from the family bed.

Twenty years later, I still have vivid memories of my first year as a parent, dreading bedtime. Our daughter would fall asleep with little trouble. That wasn't the problem, especially after my husband and I figured out that waiting for her to fall asleep when she was tired was easier than trying to "put" her to sleep when we were tired. But would she stay asleep for a few hours, or would she awaken to nurse after 45 minutes? We approached every night with apprehension.