Wednesday, November 13, 2024

Unconditionally Loving …. Me?

January 31, 2014 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

Just as I was ready to shatter like the corelle-ware bowl I had shockingly smashed earlier in the day (I think of the restaurant in Japan where, at the conclusion of the meal, people summarily and passionately smash their dinnerware down a deep courtyard…

Just Say “No.”

November 12, 2013 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

Allowing doesn’t have anything to do with having no limits, or not stepping into a guiding role for our children.

Taking a Step Back….

August 20, 2013 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

My critical self-judgment has probably been the most difficult thing to overcome in being parent. It seems I am never enough. whew. I never do enough for my children, don’t do it well enough, don’t love them enough, I’m not patient enough with them, not energetic enough for them, not sweet enough for them. That condemning JUDGE inside me tells me in so many ways how I am simply NOT enough.

How to Talk with your Child About their Body

August 6, 2013 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

I wanted to pass this piece on because it was referred to me from several of our circles and I found it moving. I think that it also applies to men, however; whether it be to be thin, or to be strong and stoic. It is so good to be living toward a less judgmental and more accepting place in which to co-exist.

FREEDOM TO LEARN: The roles of play and curiosity as foundations for learning

July 17, 2013 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

If anything makes Americans stand tall internationally it is creativity. “American ingenuity” is admired everywhere. We are not the richest country (at least not as measured by smallest percentage in poverty), nor the healthiest (far from it), nor the country whose kids score highest on standardized tests (despite our politicians’ misguided intentions to get us there), but we are the most inventive country. We are the great innovators, specialists in figuring out new ways of doing things and new things to do. Perhaps this derives from our frontier beginnings, or from our unique form of democracy with its emphasis on individual freedom and respect for nonconformity. In the business world as well as in academia and the arts and elsewhere, creativity is our number one asset. In a recent IBM poll, 1,500 CEOs acknowledged this when they identified creativity as the best predictor of future success.[1]

It is sobering, therefore, to read Kyung Hee Kim’s recent research report documenting a continuous decline in creativity among American schoolchildren over the last two or three decades.[2]

Fill Yourself Up! (The Oxygen Mask Rule)

July 8, 2013 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

It is insidious, how, little by little we give up doing things for ourselves, because we believe that we should be spending more time with out child. Until finally we realize that we are doing nothing for our own pure enjoyment anymore. Everything is a compromise, or hinged on that love we have for our child. We end up having no 1:1 time with ourselves, and instead we snatch stolen moments at the computer while we yell to the other room “just a moment honey…”

If We Don’t Let Our Children Play, Who Will Be the Next Steve Jobs?

May 21, 2013 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

The forecast doesn’t look good. In an era of parental paranoia, lawsuit mania and testing frenzy, we are failing to inspire our children’s curiosity, creativity, and imagination. We are denying them opportunities to tinker, discover, and explore — in short, to play.

Compassionate Listening = Listening to Ourselves with Compassion

May 16, 2013 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

The reason why I created a non violent preschool for my son, and the reason why I am on the hunt for a humanitarian school (or at the very least a compassionate teacher) for his elementary school experience, is completely selfish: I was a troubled child. I was the hard one. I had BIG emotions, and they were usually not understood. (OK, I admit it…I am STILL the troubled child, and I STILL have BIG emotions!)

Doggone Safe HOLISTIC Dog Training Workshop!! This Tuesday @ Riviera PlaySchool

May 10, 2013 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

Doggone Safe

Dog Safety Workshop

An innovative and interactive workshop to help children and parents learn how to act safely around dogs.

Empathy vs Sympathy: Do you care more about your child’s feelings or your own?

May 1, 2013 by  
Filed under Parenting From Balance©

There is a fine line between sympathy and empathy. Learning the difference can make huge changes in your relationship with your child. My mother was a professional worrier. Whenever I expressed having a problem with anything, she sympathized, “Oh my poor dear. That’s so awful. Do you really have to do that?” Her sympathy was not helpful. As a matter of fact, I stopped sharing my problems with her because then I had her feelings and worry to deal with as well as my own problem.

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