Positive parenting is a popular term right now. It encompasses approaches to parenting that value connection, playfulness, and teaching over punishing.
Hit this Reset Button on Grumpy Days
I don’t remember what it was that set him off in the first place. But he had passed annoyed and had clearly moved on to angry.
How a Baby with a Mustache Taught Me to Be a Better Parent
“I left a baby gift for you on your doorstep. It’s the perfect thing for a mom with four boys.”
My friend mentioned this to me casually as we both worked in our neighbor’s kitchen, preparing refreshments for a wedding.
The “impulsive three-year old” section of my brain wanted to drop what I was doing and immediately run next door to tear open this gift. What could possibly be the perfect baby gift for a mom who had just had her fourth boy? It was even more intriguing to me because this friend is an amazing mom herself. She has seven children, and while I’m sure she has stories that would contradict my accounting, every one of them always seems so well-behaved, so kind, so creative, so smart, and so sweet. She certainly knows a thing or two about motherhood, and so I hoped that this gift was some secret of the trade. A talisman from my Jedi master.
The “responsible adult” section of my brain won out, and I helped out with food for a few more hours before making my way home to find a small wrapped box on my doorstep. I slid my fingers through the tape and pulled out the box.
And started laughing immediately.
Here’s a look at what I found inside:
That binky. I laughed because it was hilarious, but I also laughed at myself for thinking the gift would be so serious. [Read more…]
Time to Go! Smoothing Over Tricky Transitions
You know the feeling. You’ve finally settled into your groove. You’re getting creative or tackling a project or just paying the bills. You’ve found that sense of flow where things really start coming together.
How Positive Parenting Shapes the Brain
Intrinsic vs Extrinsic. How Do We Motivate Kids? :Read Along Section 9- What If Everybody Understood Child Development?
Whether you’re a parent or an educator (or both!), child behavior is at the top of your concerns at some point in each day. In the latest section of our read along series, What If Everybody Understood Child Development?: Straight Talk About Bettering Education and Children’s Lives
Are Parents Unable to Just Say “No” These Days?
Maybe you’ve noticed the latest trend in the running commentary on parenting. “Parents today are too soft. They’re raising spoiled kids who’ve never heard the word “NO”. Parents need to show their kids who’s in control here.”
While I’m sure you could find plenty of examples to validate each perspective, I tend to wince a bit whenever I hear these tendencies to frame parenting in the extremes. Take in enough of these stories and it would seem that as a parent, you have two choices. You can either be a spineless push-over or a heavy-handed dictator. But the truth of the matter is that we know from research that the majority of kids thrive in that sweet spot in between. [Read more…]
Parenting with an Audience and Dealing with Guilt (Psst: We’re all a little insecure.)
I remember that Sunday almost 8 years ago. My family was settled in on a bench for a church service, a fantastic feat in and of itself, considering our 2 very young, very lively boys around ages 2 and 3 1/2 (details during those years are a bit hazy for obvious reasons). In that phase Sunday church service was often a futile exercise in just keeping our boys in the ballpark of socially appropriate. (OK, honestly we usually aim for the same goal these days.) Just a few notches below a toddler-sized mosh pit. We were never the perfect row of quiet angels, and that was OK, but this Sunday was different, and I was stressed out about it.
Hands Free, Heart Full
I sat in the shallow end of the pool, shadowing my toddler as I watched my older boys take their turns on the water slide. We would need to go home soon, so I was calling to each one as they surfaced from their plunge and giving them a 5 minute warning.
It’s Time to Plan a Playdate with Your Child
I was working with some elementary aged children recently, helping them with their Mother’s Day/ Father’s Day writing assignments. They were all following the same skeleton for their poetry, using personal details to fill in the blank spaces.
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