NIH recently hosted the third annual Parenting Festival, a means of educating new and seasoned parents on the benefits and services NIH offers regarding family matters. The 3-day festival was presented on Executive Blvd. in Rockville, the Rockledge cluster and the main campus.

Resources on display ran the gamut from nursing and bed-wetting, to the teen brain and financial planning.

Many attendees got a one-on-one consultation with a parenting specialist. In the Natcher auditorium, parents learned to deal with daily frustrations in a relaxation session offered by recreation therapist Stephanie Kreider of the Clinical Center. A new addition to the festival this year, Omega World Travel, made travel planning easy by helping to plan family-friendly vacations and donated airline ticket door prizes.

Jaydah Wilson (r), the new director of Childkind Inc., welcomes visitors to her table at the NIH Parenting Festival.

Dr. Jay Giedd of NIMH gave a scientific yet practical lecture on the construction phase of the teen brain, clearly illustrating the difference between a child and adult brain. Parents learned that "the rental car companies have it right" — the part of the brain that regulates judgment and decision-making is not fully developed until age 25. Attendees were pleased with the wealth of useful information provided in a fun, friendly atmosphere.

The NIH child care board, Division of Employee Services and the NIH Work/Life Center sponsored the festival. For more information on parenting resources, visit http://does.ors.od.nih.gov or call (301) 402-8180.