Parents, Here's Your Personal Back-to-School To-Do List - It's not just about the kids

 Parents, Here's Your Personal  Back-to-School To-Do List - It's not just about the kids

The back-to-school season is quickly approaching, and there’s so much to do! There’s plenty of preparation required to make the transition seamless for kids but they aren’t the only ones who need a little help. Parents need to make big changes, too! Carpools, lunches, work, extracurriculars — the list is endless. So, let’s take a minute to talk about a few things parents can do to get themselves ready for school.

Three Strategies to Help Your Little Hot Head Chill Out

Three Strategies to Help Your Little Hot Head Chill Out

Anger is neither good nor bad; it’s just a normal feeling. How we express our anger is what is most critical…. here are a few ideas that will help you and your child both manage and express anger in a healthy productive way.

Top 4 Mindfulness Tips To Traveling With Kids

Top 4 Mindfulness Tips To Traveling With Kids

Travel, no matter how near or far, has so many benefits for children.  Families often leave the comfort of home to explore new and different people, cultures, environments, and experiences.  Not only do family trips create opportunities for families to bond through shared experiences, but they also provide situations that require children to take risks, try something new, and act brave, which can result in courage and greater confidence.  But travel isn’t always so easy with kids and can sometimes be a tumultuous experience.  Incorporating mindfulness into your travel and adventures is a great way to enhance your family’s experience and teach your children how to appreciate not only the destination, but also the journey.  Here are some tips to help you prepare for your trip:

Summer Sanity Series- Part II Keeping Your Summer Fun On Track

Summer Sanity Series- Part II Keeping Your Summer Fun On Track

Summer is in full swing now and everyone is embracing the sunshine and the warm weather. With all the fun summer activities, parents tend to get a little more relaxed in their parenting. Being a bit more flexible and going with the flow can be wonderful and liberating, unless you are undoing the habits you worked so hard to maintain the rest of the year. Keeping your parenting consistent with your values during the summer months can definitely be more challenging when everyone is focused on having a fun time. Below are two more ways to be mindful this summer to help keep your family on track and ensure everyone is staying healthy and enjoying themselves.

Summer Sanity Series - Part I Starting Your Summer Off Right

Summer Sanity Series - Part I Starting Your Summer Off Right

As we head into summer, it can be helpful to set clear expectations for our kids, in order to avoid challenges and ensure that everyone in the family has fun. The summer months tend to create a relaxed approach to daily life and can often lead to bad habits that then require a lot of time and energy to reverse in the fall.  Two ways to maintain consistency and keep things on track are making sure your child gets enough sleep and enforcing clear limits on the use of screens and devices.

Ask The Parent Coach: Playing Favorites!

Ask The Parent Coach:            Playing Favorites!

From time to time I will answer readers questions as they come in. I thought I would share this specific one because this question comes up a lot. 

QUESTION:

Sometimes my 3-year-old can be sort of mean to her dad- like when he goes to get her in the morning she will scream that she only wants mommy or sometimes she pushes him away when he comes over to say to her when he gets home from work.  I know she adores my husband and they have so much fun playing together, but I'm not sure why she acts this way towards him sometimes.  Any thoughts? 

Managing screens, devices and apps... oh my!

Managing screens, devices and apps... oh my!

One of the biggest challenges for parents these days is managing their children’s use of electronic devices.  Devices are the source of many power struggles for modern families. As a parent or caregiver, it’s your responsibility to set limits. Every family’s values and schedules are different, so limits on devices look different from one family to another.

From Eating to Excreting: Three Tips to Avoid Power Struggles

From Eating to Excreting: Three Tips to Avoid Power Struggles

All humans struggle for power and control over their own lives and young children are no different! Ideally, we want our kids to do what we need them to without us having to do anything more than merely ask. Let's not kid ourselves…

Understanding & Solutions To Sassy Bossy Back Talk

Understanding & Solutions To Sassy  Bossy Back Talk

Kids can be such amazing parts of our lives with their constant ability to learn and grow, teaching us how to see the big picture and to love someone so much it hurts.

And then they learn the word “No.”

Three Proven Childproof Parenting Tools to Inviting Cooperation

Three Proven Childproof Parenting Tools to Inviting Cooperation

All humans struggle for power and control over their own lives and young children are no different! Ideally, we want our kids to do what we need them to do without us doing anything more than merely ask. Let's not kid ourselves; that is just not going to happen most of the time.