Hello dear readers, After a brief writing hiatus, I have returned to my roots, sharing my ideas with you and learning and growing together. I wanted to relaunch my blog with a story AND a special offer (keep reading)! A few weeks ago, my now 12-year-old daughter begged me for “fake” nails. I tried them…
I had a HUGE a-ha moment in parenting yesterday and I thought it might help some of you here. Yesterday was an odd day, as both of my sons were out playing/hanging out with their friends and it was just me and my 10 year old daughter home. She was sitting at the kitchen table…
It is back-to-school time and another fall sports season is about to begin. For me, it will be my seventh year coaching youth soccer for my youngest of three children. Based upon the inspiration and ideas of John O’Sullivan, I would like to offer the following tips to parents of young athletes to have a…
According to our school calendar, we are solidly over the half-way mark for summer and this week, I started to feel the effects of trying to work from home while my kids are all basically home (with the exception of a few camps). I was mindful not to place too many expectations and items on…
We were leaving for church last Sunday, and my 8 year old was playing on his iPod. This is not an unusual occurrence and my son is usually the first one ready each day when we need to leave so it is rarely an issue. But as is usual in the summer, our routine has…
I have intentionally avoided commenting on the riots that have sprung up around the country in recent times but today, I find it impossible to be quiet, as the events are unfolding in my beloved hometown of Baltimore and my heart is aching. I have friends and family who are firefighters and police officers who…
I have had the most fabulous work week. So many good things have happened. For example, a foster mom I have been working with on conscious parenting practices was telling me that her foster daughter told her that she preferred to be at her friend’s house because she “hated” being at the foster mom’s house.…
I was giving a talk recently with my colleague to foster, adoptive and biological parents about conscious parenting and we got on the subject of discipline. One foster mom raised her hand and said that she gave her teenage foster daughter a cell phone and when she did, she told her it was because she…
One of the adoptive parents with whom I work had a frustrating experience this Christmas with her 11-year-old adopted son. They gave all the kids one gift to open on Christmas Eve and when she gave one to him, he shook it, said it sounded like a puzzle and then threw it across the room.…
Last week, I got a call from our middle school’s vice principal. I wondered why she would be calling me – certainly not because of something my 7th grader had done. My neighbor and I recently met with the vice principal and principal of our school to talk about the school discipline policy and how…
