“Living simply makes loving simple.” — bell hooks, American author and activist The pervasive drive for more stuff complicates parenting. When we promise kids a treat or toy for good behavior, we condition them to depend on things to validate their worth. These children grow up to be more materialistic adults, and materialism, as studies …
Simple Living for Kids: Knowing What “Enough” Feels Like Read More »
“Children who are raised with a robust and well-developed spiritual life are happier, more optimistic, more thriving, more flexible, and better equipped to deal with life’s ordinary (and even extraordinary) traumas than those who are not.” — Lisa Miller, professor of psychology When children grow up having spiritual experiences — or embodied experiences of feeling …
No matter who you are, you already hold the wisdom, intelligence, and insight to guide your child into adulthood. By healing and growing yourself, you can remove the barriers that sometimes block you from parenting from your highest self. Here are a few ways to practice healthy growth. Learn to regulate. Teach emotional regulation by …
How to Grow as a Parent: Regulate, Re-parent, and Reflect Read More »
“No legacy is so rich as honesty.” — William Shakespeare It’s normal for kids to get creative with the truth. It’s part of growing up. You can help your child see the natural consequences of dishonesty — losing trust, hurting others, harming relationships, and feeling less in integrity — while maintaining a loving connection. Look …
Suggestions for this guide stem from direct experience in school counseling, coupled with advice given by Dr. Laura Markham, clinical psychologist and parenting expert, Julia Samuel, psychotherapist and grief expert, and Dr. Christine Carter, Core Principle: Make It Simple and Adapted for Each ChildWhen you talk to your child, use language that is simple, honest, …
How to Talk to Kids about Death (Including Scripts to Use) Read More »
Too often, life feels designed for distraction. Between school, work, and devices that offer us unlimited entertainment, it can be hard to be fully aware of what’s actually happening at any given moment. As a result, we feel fried. Our kids feel fried. And before we know it, we experience the consequences: tension, anxiety, temper, …
Teach Meditation to Kids: The Best Methods and Resources Read More »
“Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.”— Simone Weil, French philosopher The ever increasing speed, volume, and accessibility of information available at our fingertips can make it difficult to stay focused on anything in particular. But undivided attention is one of the greatest gifts we can give to the people and pursuits we …
Staying consistent with any practice can be hard. Kids will often avoid practicing when the importance of what they are doing is unclear, when practice becomes difficult or frustrating, or when they get bored. Here are a few scripts to try when your child doesn’t want to practice. Choose any that seem like a good …
“It’s not that I am so smart,” Albert Einstein said, “it’s that I stay with problems longer.” While this statement is clearly humble, Einstein was onto something: It’s often our ability to stay with problems that leads to real breakthroughs. Of course, sticking with a problem isn’t the only thing that matters. As Christine Carter …
“I became more courageous by doing the very things I needed to be courageous for. First, a little and badly. Then bit by bit, more and better.” — Audre Lorde Courage is when we choose to respond with integrity and love, even when we’re scared. It’s often confused with brazen, fearless risk-taking, but in fact, …