As parents, we want to teach our children appropriate behaviors to help them navigate life. But how should we correct our children when they hit, yell, or throw a fit when they don’t get their way? These behaviors can have us putting our children in a timeout, taking away privileges, yelling, or expressing disappointment in our children's behavior.  

We are trying to teach our kids appropriate behavior and not to hit, ye...

As parents, we want to teach our children appropriate behaviors to help them navigate life. But how should we correct our children when they hit, yell, or throw a fit when they don’t get their way? These behaviors can have us putting our children in a timeout, taking away privileges, yelling, or expressing disappointment in our children's behavior.  

We are trying to teach our kids appropriate behavior and not to hit, ye...

Do you know any adults who lose it easily or really struggle emotionally when they are faced with challenges?  I don’t know about you, but I’ve met my fair share!  Knowing what I know now, I do my best to be empathetic because chances are high that they simply weren’t taught how to cope as children.

I often work on this area with parents because it’s common for children to react inappropriately when things don’t go their...

Do you know any adults who lose it easily or really struggle emotionally when they are faced with challenges?  I don’t know about you, but I’ve met my fair share!  Knowing what I know now, I do my best to be empathetic because chances are high that they simply weren’t taught how to cope as children.

I often work on this area with parents because it’s common for children to react inappropriately when things don’t go their...

When your child is frustrated or upset, how do you typically respond?  If you’re like me, you typically try to help fix whatever is causing the frustration, or you try to help them see it from a different perspective.  We just want to help, but unfortunately, that approach can often backfire.

This happened to my daughter and me one semester over her college schedule.  She had worked with her advisor to pick out her class...

When your child is frustrated or upset, how do you typically respond?  If you’re like me, you typically try to help fix whatever is causing the frustration, or you try to help them see it from a different perspective.  We just want to help, but unfortunately, that approach can often backfire.

This happened to my daughter and me one semester over her college schedule.  She had worked with her advisor to pick out her class...

Do you have an easily frustrated child who goes from 0 to 60 in the blink of an eye? 
Do you tiptoe around your child, trying not to do anything that will set them off?

If you can relate, please know that you’re not alone! I often work on this with parents because it’s common for children to get frustrated and react inappropriately when things don’t go their way.  

The ability to tolerate frustration is a skill that must...

Do you have an easily frustrated child who goes from 0 to 60 in the blink of an eye? 
Do you tiptoe around your child, trying not to do anything that will set them off?

If you can relate, please know that you’re not alone! I often work on this with parents because it’s common for children to get frustrated and react inappropriately when things don’t go their way.  

The ability to tolerate frustration is a skill that must...

Are disagreements over parenting affecting your relationship?  We all have thoughts about how our partner parents and disciplines, and it’s common to disagree.  We can think that our partner just needs to parent differently, but that thought won’t help you get on the same page, and it puts everything out of your control because you will never be able to control your partner. 

If you can relate, I invite you to consider t...

Do you wonder how you can raise kinder kids? As parents, we want our kids to be nice and kind, but how do we instill these qualities in them?

Most families and kids have busy schedules, and the days and weeks can fly by before we know it. So, if you want your kids to be kinder, you have to intentionally raise their awareness of kindness and the impact of being both kind and unkind.

Consider focusing on kindness as a fam...

I invite you to take a few moments to reflect on your discipline style and that of your parenting partner.  Do you have opinions about how your spouse or partner disciplines and parents?  We all have opinions about the best way to handle challenges with our kids.  Unfortunately, we usually have those opinions while watching them handle a situation with our kids.  

We think we can “help” or handle the situation better, so...

Do you think your parenting partner is too strict or too lenient?  We all have opinions about the best way to handle a situation or discipline in general, and it’s common to be on a different page than your partner.   However, you can run into problems when you think your partner, spouse, or co-parent is being too strict or too lenient — and often end up too far in the opposite direction.

In last week's article, I discus...