I can’t get this question out of my mind: “When your children walk into the room do your eyes light up with joy?” I work with so many parents and grandparents who search for ways to enrich their children’s self esteem. I usually suggest they stop noticing what the kids …
Non-judgement
Imagine the gift we would give to ourselves, our family and the world if we could release living in judgment of others and instead sought to understand. When we are willing to look at any situation from a different vantage point we broaden our ability to value differences and contribute …
Emotional Mindfulness
;”>When you talk to your children about your own emotional reactions (what you were thinking and how it made you feel), you let them know that we can shift how we see and interpret things. ;”>By modeling this emotionally mindful way of being, our children learn to connect with their …
Ten Successful People Who Struggled In School
As the new school year quickly approaches many parents feel a knot in their stomach as they begin to worry about the challenges their kids will face. While many successful people were top students, there are famous intelligent, creative folks who struggled with the demands of school. They became some …
That’s it, I’m done.
It is human to sometimes feel like we can’t handle any more. It may be about a particular situation, a certain relationship or life in general. While it is healthy to recognize when you are at your ‘wits end’ and can’t take any more, it is also a cop out …
Gifts From Those People
“Bless those who challenge us for they remind us of doors we have closed and doors we have yet to open.” The words of this Native American Indian prayer remind me of a form of Universal Wisdom which says that every time you are aware of something you don’t want …
Love or Fear
As parents we know how it feels to love our children and to also worry about them. I have learned, however, that while we can experience sensing the feelings of love and fear we cannot live in both at the same time. What does this actually mean? It translates in …
A Lesson About Fear
Fear can be paralyzing. It can insidiously creep into your mind and take over your body, making you doubt yourself, squash your joy and leave your dreams unfulfilled. Sometimes it appears with the force of a racket that is triggered by a catastrophic event, reeking havoc with daily reality. While …
A Time For Technology
Parents worry about their children spending too much time on computer toys and games. I have been observing parents and children when it comes to technology and I must share a few thoughts: Children need opportunities to run and jump, ride bikes and use their imaginations. Children need to be …
Living From the Inside Out
Just about everything makes me think about parenting and relationships. Today it was the laundry. Since my mind works in metaphors I started thinking about the similarities and differences between laundry and parenting. They both are never ending and seem to run in cycles. In the same way that the …
Same Opportunity, Different Experience
I was sitting in the lounge area, waiting for my car to be washed when two moms walked in, each with a little boy. The children were about 3 years old. I could sense that a nugget was quickly developing. One mom was engaged in conversation with her child, explaining …
Parenting Magic
To be a parent is to taste the agony and ecstasy of being human. It is more complicated than many of us thought it would be ~ Especially when you have a challenging child. Parenting can reduce successful men and women into a stressful state of confusion. Adults who see …
Worry Less, Love More
I used to think that a good mother was supposed to worry. After all, how can you love your children and not worry about them? My mother worried about me—all of the time. In fact, I grew up equating love with worry. I have even accused my husband at times …
Temper Tantrums- A Conscious Approach
If your child throws temper tantrums what are the best ways for a parent to nurture a new behavior? The way you approach a child who is having a tantrum depends on what you perceive is actually happening. If you are embarrassed by it or believe that the child is …
Living With ADHD
Each human being comes into life hard wired with his/her own unique blueprint. It is the intricacies of this design that determine the way we perceive and interact with the world. When parents experience life through a blueprint that makes it easy for them to concentrate, sit still, stay focused, …
Positive Behavior
It just comes with parenting! It seems so easy to notice when our kids are behaving in ways that need improvement. While there are many things over which we have no control, the following are ten key elements that set the tone for positive behavior. Notice that none of …
Finding Your Power
Recently I was presenting a parenting seminar when a dad asked for help understanding his three year old daughter’s behavior at breakfast that morning. This is the way he described what happened: “…My daughter was sitting on my lap, eating her cereal, when I asked her a question. She …
The Song of A Child
I recently heard about a tribe in Africa that celebrates a beautiful tradition and I want to share it with you all. When a woman can sense that she is ready to become a mother she finds a quiet place where she can sit in silence and she waits until …
Spring~ A Time of Miracles
mir·a·cle noun /ˈmirikəl/ 1. A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency I would like to suggest that miracles are happening all around us and I encourage you to start looking for …
Building Self Esteem
Modern parents have so much to think about! They worry about their children’s grades, bullies on the playground, the negative influence of the media and too much time spent on computers and electronic games. Instead of worrying about the things over which they have little control, moms and dads …
Redefining Old Truths
Growing up as a child in New York, I learned that there were four distinct seasons: spring, summer, autumn and winter. While there were variations during the year, kids could pretty much depend on flowers blooming in the spring, taking trips to the beach in the summer, playing in the …