With a good percentage of the nation blanketed in snow, I thought now would be the perfect time to share my recipe for delicious hot cocoa for four. My family topped off many a snow day with this treat.

In a saucepan, combine 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa with ½ cup of sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Add about ¼ cup of water and stir over low heat until smooth. Add 4 cups of milk, 1 teaspoon of almond extract and a ¼ teaspoon of salt. Taste and add more sugar if you want it sweeter.

And, of course, don’t forget to add mini marshmallows or whipped cream.

Hi Ann,

My daughter is about to be 13 and is going through some major changes in her life. She just started middle school and overnight went from my little girl to a teen who doesn’t want her Mom around. I don’t know how much is normal growing up and distancing, and I don’t want to smother her, but I also need to be sure I know what she’s doing.

Are there any books you can recommended that I read for this age group? I have a son who is 14 but he hasn’t had the same dramatic changes.

Thanks in advance for any guidance you may have.

~Marci

Dear Marci,

Thanks so much for your email. There’s no question that the teen years are particularly challenging. As you’ve noticed, your daughter seems to have changed “overnight” from your “little girl to a teen who doesn’t want her Mom around.” To answer your first question, is this normal? The answer is absolutely! Teens often redefine themselves in direct opposition to their parents. That doesn’t mean it’s easy to accept. In fact, the change in her behavior may trigger feelings of resentment, loss, panic, and anger. In my book The 7 Stages of Motherhood: Loving Your Life Without Losing Your Mind, I counsel moms of teen girls to “let go of one’s self-image as a mom — totally — and remake that image just as your daughter is remaking herself.” That may mean finding new ways to connect with her — perhaps around a subject she’s interested in or a favorite TV show or movie — rather than by reminding her to write a birthday note to grandma. And it will also mean allowing her a little more freedom while still being clear about rules and consequences. Like a toddler, she may react to a firm no with a meltdown, but you should try not to cave, because she needs you steadiness and strength, which sends the message that you love her enough to set limits.

When it comes to books about parenting teens, one of my favorites is Why Do They Act That Way: A Survival Guide to the Adolescent Brain for You and Your Teen by David Walsh. Another oldie but goodie is Get Out of My Life, but First Could You Drive Me and Cheryl to the Mall? by Anothony Wolf. And I have quite a bit about parenting teens in my book!

Good luck!

Annie

A diagnosis of autism is scary for any family. With the wealth of information available to parents today (including a vast amount of misinformation) about the disorder, it can be daunting for Mom and Dad to chart a course forward and learn to handle the issues that come with autism. In honor of Autism Awareness Month (April), The American Academy of Pediatrics has posted a series of audio interviews, Sound Advice on Autism, with a range of experts fielding questions about autism spectrum disorders. Listen, and your questions might just be answered. But more importantly, you might gain a little peace of mind.

For more information, visit the AAP’s Children’s Health Topics: Autism page.

Like a ghost, she’s haunted us for decades — the “perfect” mom. She sports a chic wardrobe, cooks healthy food her kids actually eat, excels in the boardroom, and still schedules couple time with her husband. She never loses her cool and has all the answers. Of course, like a ghost, there’s very little evidence she even exists.

On TV, he was Dr. Jason Seaver, the lovable dad-next-door on Growing Pains. Who knew he had great real-life stories about fatherhood, too? In his new very funny and very wise book, How To Raise Kids Who Won’t Hate You, Thicke chronicles the good, the bad, and the ugly — it’s a Dr. Phil meets Dave Barry confessional, and one entertaining and enlightening read. Watch my interview with Thicke, below. 

The only thing worse than being a tween who is the victim of the class Queen Bee is being the mom of that tormented tween. In her bestselling book Queen Bees & Wannabes, first published in 2002 (you might know it as the basis for the movie Mean Girls), Rosiland Wiseman provided insight into the often cruel world of cliques and gossip. Given the explosion of Facebook, Twitter and the like, Wiseman decided an update was warranted. In the newly revised edition, aptly subtitled Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends, and the New Realities of Girl World, she takes a fresh look at the new virtual weapons that equip girls with even more ways to pick on, make fun of, and isolate their peers.

Learning to read is a thrilling achievement, but not every kid blossoms into a bibliophile. Boys are often reluctant readers, and I’m often asked by their parents to suggest books that are especially appealing to guys. In general, boys gravitate toward male themes, especially stories that feature a hero or historical character whose exploits were "really true." Humor (especially the kind that makes Mom cringe) is always a hit with boys — even some adult boys I know — and, of course, books that cater to a particular sport or hobby or music genre can do the trick.  Below are some of my favorites, along with titles that my friends at the Scholastic Book Fairs tell me are especially popular. Even if your son is reading on his own, make a point of reading together or reading to him; Nick and I spent a wonderful August reading Phillip Pullman’s "His Dark Materials" series.  We still talk about those wonderful books. 

• Nic Bishop Spiders and Nic Bishop Frogs by Nic Bishop
• The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney
• The Julian Rodriquez series by Alexander Stadler
• The Big One Oh by Dean Pitchford
• The Calvin and Hobbes comics by Bill Watterson
• The Magic Pickle series by Scott Morse
• The Geronimo Stilton graphic novel series
• The Fly Guy books by Tedd Arnold
• Summer Ball by Mike Lupica
• Sports series by Matt Christopher
• The Tiki & Rhonde Barber books, such as Kickoff and Go Long
• The Simpsons comics by Matt Groening
• The Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey
• The Goosebumps series by R.L. Stine

• The Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer
• The Bone graphic novel series by Jeff Smith
• The Schooling Around series by Andy Griffiths
• The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi
• The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan
• The 39 Clues series
• The Oliver Nocturne series by Kevin Emerson
• The Gregor series by Suzanne Collins
• The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
• The Road Weenies and Campfire Weenies books by David Lubar

• The His Dark Materials trilogy by Phillip Pullman
• The Giver by Lois Lowry
• Football Hero, Football Champ, and Baseball Great by Tim Green
• Surface Tension by Brent Runyon
• Jack Tumor by Anthony McGowan
• The Daniel X series

It’s rare for a memoir to read like a thriller but Alice Eve Cohen’s new book, What I Thought I Knew, does just that. The incredible story is about her discovery, at age 44, that she was not going through menopause or suffering from an abdominal tumor. She was six months pregnant, years after being told she was infertile and after having adopted a wonderful baby. The book is fascinating, brutally honest, and very funny.  As mothers we need to tell our stories — and this is one of the very best. 

See my interview with the author here:

The memories I have of watching classic musicals on TV with my kids are some of the sweetest. It wasn’t always easy to entice Maddie and Nick to watch an "old movie," (don’t underestimate the seductive power of freshly popped popcorn), but it was worth the effort because I know those nights are ones they’ll remember with as much fondness as I do. Here are the movies we liked most: 

Singin’ In the Rain(4 and up)

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (6 and up)

My Fair Lady (6 and up)

An American in Paris (8 and up)

Gigi (8 and up)

Oklahoma (8 and up)

The Music Man (4 and up)

A website I rely on is commonsensemedia.org. It tells you whether a movie (old or new) is age appropriate, and also what you can expect in terms of violence, sex, and other mature themes. But believe me, there’s nothing "mature" about any of these films, except, perhaps, Gigi, which does contain the quaintly racy line, said by Gigi to her beau, Gaston: "…it means I will sleep in your bed."

Let me know what musical classics you enjoy with your kids.

My now almost-grown-up kids have been playing Guess Who? since they were kindergartners. They began by asking  questions in a straight-forward, age appropriate way ("Does your person have a mouse-stash?"), and then learned to refine their queries in order to narrow down their choices ("Does your person have facial hair?"). Well into their teens, they still enjoyed our now-faded and probably incomplete set . By now their questions were highly evolved - or devolved, depending on your point of view: "Does your person look like he just got dumped by his girlfriend?" "If your person stuck his head out of a moving car, would he beat himself to death with his lips?" Some of their other favorites fell into the frat-boy humor category, but provided many hours of laughs - and years of "in" jokes they assumed I didn’t understand. 

Some other family favorites:

• Chutes and Ladders: Relatively fast and easy for neophyte counters
• Sorry : Good training for sore losers.  Excellent for developing a sarcastic tone ("SOOOORRRY"said with a slight sneer.)
• Trouble: The pop-o-matic never gets old)
• Pictionary: Lots of fun for a crowd of all ages
• Balderdash: My personal favorite, especially with teens.

A new favorite: Bananagrams, a tile-based word game where you build your own crosswords. Even novice spellers will enjoy this hands-on game. Have them play on your team when they’re starting out.