Intentional Parenting

What is Intentional Parenting? It is acting with knowledge and purpose, ensuring that young children acquire the social, emotional and cognitive skills needed to succeed in school and in life. Intentional Parenting goes beyond love. You can love your children and still create an environment of chaos, disorder, mistrust, shame …

Messages To Our Children

  We give our children verbal and non verbal messages about themselves; their value, their abilities and the world in which they live. Are you aware of the messages you are giving to your children? Are they the messages you want to give? If you would like some support on …

Words Do Not Teach

  This weekend I had the privilege of meeting an amazing dad. Our chance interchange happened as I was walking through the booths of a local photography exhibit. I stopped to admire some photos and the man started to tell me about his work. He said he had always loved …

Giving Away Our Power

“If only the kids would act differently, I’d feel better.” We also think, “If only my partner, my friend, my sibling, my parent, my boss, my president would act differently I would feel better.” Whenever we turn our well being over to the actions of someone else we have given …

Mantras for Parents

When we generate an attitude of gratitude wondrous things begin to happen because the Universe matches the energy of the feelings that come from thinking that way. Appreciation is like a GIANT MAGNET that brings more positives into our lives. Here are some mantras you can use to affirm a positive …

Flashes of Connectedness

Parents often brush their child’s cries for validation of their worth aside. Adults are so focused on their own issues that they forget to appreciate the essence of the child’s perceptions. They can become so consumed with the pressures of modern living, earning money, and getting their own needs met …

You Can Control How You Feel

“You cannot change a circumstance but you can control the way you feel about it.” This message has been coming to me over and over again in recent days. It has become one of my daily mantras. It is fuel for personal empowerment. For most of us it is natural …

Perspective

Most disagreements and misunderstandings come from different perspectives. We each experience life through our own unique filtering system and what appears to be absolute truth to one person may take on a totally different view to someone else. It is only natural that we will have different points of view. …

Parents Must Model Wanted Behavior

When children feel threatened their ‘lower’ brain immediately responds with a fight, flight or freeze reaction. It is vital that parents not take these responses personally. When your child runs away from you, fights back or just gives you a blank stare it is an indication that their lower brain …

All is Well

What would happen if you had a crystal ball and you knew *for sure* that everything would turn out just right? You could stop fussing and enjoy the moment. You might breathe deeper and notice your mind chatter dissipate. Perhaps you’d feel eager with anticipation for life’s unfolding.   Right now, …

5 Tips to Help Children Master Self-control

What do impulsivity, self-discipline and willpower have in common? They often require a conscious decision to delay gratification and for many people, that is a real challenge. Here are five strategies you can begin practicing immediately that can help your children experience success with delayed gratification:   1. Make Waiting …

Thought Playlist

  I asked my daughter to put some of my favorite songs in my iPhone. She showed me how to create a playlist and told me I had the ability to listen to the songs in any order that felt good for me. I was entering a whole new world …

The Remedy for “TGF” (Taken for Granted)

Ah; how many times has a parent felt taken for granted?  Children seem to just expect that laundry will be done, food will be prepared, they will be chauffeured to activities and the ‘stuff’ of daily living will be taken care of…. The remedy for TFG is awareness, consciousness and …

Is Your Child An Empath?

Children who are labeled as ‘highly sensitive,’ ‘intense reactors,’ or ‘overly emotional,’ may actually be empaths. Parents who have never experienced what it feels like to take in the overload of energy that constantly surrounds us are likely to misunderstand their empathic child’s behavior. In the same way that we …

Getting Kids to Talk

Parents often lament that their children don’t talk to them and when they do they give one word answers, “Fine.” “Nothing.” When children are little they jabber freely, sharing their thoughts, questions, desires, needs, feelings and vivid imaginations. Many times adults meet this outpouring of their inner world with condescendence, …

Our Inner Little Girl

We still carry our little girls around inside of us and our physical, emotional and spiritual history sometimes gets in the way of being the mother we dreamed of being. Moms are just little girls who grew into a bigger body. Becoming a mom is a rite of passage that …

Limiting Beliefs

Limiting beliefs are obstacles to attracting and manifesting what we want. They color our perceptions and can render us powerless. Our behavior and reactions stem from an unconscious set of truths that are very powerful and, ultimately, determine our parenting style. Many limiting beliefs sound like this: “I’m not good …

Successful Parenting

Successful parents are willing~ Willing to look inward… Willing to wonder… Willing to try new approaches… Willing to think new thoughts… Willing to take things less personally… Willing to forgive… Willing to let go… Willing to shift limiting beliefs…  

Natural and Logical Consequences

We all make choices and engage in behavior that creates the next experience. Consequences should not be used as punishments~ They need to be: • Naturally or Logically connected to the behavior • Known in advance when possible • Given in a firm but calm voice • Easy to apply and …