The key to our parenting is our foundational relationship with our kids. We can know every parenting skill ever developed, and none will work as well if we don’t have the relational base with our kids. Focusing on enhancing and fostering your relationship with your kids won’t magically make all your problems disappear. But it […]

Families are busy. We can’t always make the time to sit down and have conversations with our kids and talk about the many important things we want them to learn in childhood and adolescence.   Two of the top things parents can do for their kids to help them grow into healthy adults include family […]

“Some experts say that depression and anxiety are the new normal … As parents, we cannot accept this.”   Messy Hope: Help Your Child Overcome Anxiety, Depression, or Suicidal Ideation by Lori Wildenberg is a powerful book to support families during difficult times   As a parent raising kids in today’s world, there are many […]

  Adults can easily turn our kids away from open conversation.   Now, doing this once in a while is part of life. We are busy and can’t always stop everything for someone else. Doing these things once in a while shouldn’t hurt the relationship communication too much.   However, habitual practice of these can […]

Permissive, Authoritarian, and Authoritative Parenting   Parenting researchers and family experts have coined several types of parents. These labels aren’t a one-sized-fits-all kind of thing. Often, we tend to be more like one type than others. But before we get caught up in labels, remember that just being an intentional parent, who strives to do […]

We see it all the time. Being thankful or expressing gratitude for the good things in our life is good for us. We heard it from our grandparents, and now we see it from researchers and scientists. It’s all so true. Gratitude and thankfulness are good for us. Not only for us, but we can […]

We were created for connection. Study after study has shown that our ability to emotionally connect to others plays a huge role in our overall emotional and physical health. This connection happens through emotions, feelings, vulnerability, and relationship.   Teaching our kids emotional intelligence is one of the best things we can do to help […]

Our emotions are there for a reason. We were created to connect and it’s through our emotions that this happens. When our kids are struggling, we can use that time to really connect and foster our relationship with them.   As parents, we experience a wide range of feelings. And how we feel is valid. […]

Homework battles often top parents’ list of struggles with their kids long before the COVID pandemic made many of us homeschool teachers. The academic pressures our kids are facing is extreme. Academics and learning are certainly important. However, your child’s mental health and your relationship with them is always more important. Remember to keep those […]

Using empathy when our kids are upset can be hard. It’s hard to remain calm when they’ve made a sad choice or when we are exhausted from the demands of parenting.   Empathy and connection are the foundations of parenting. Empathy is your parenting superpower. The more we can relate to our kids, the deeper […]

I can get exhausted keeping track of everything for all our kids. Life certainly gets easier when they learn to manage their own lives more. But that skill set won’t just happen on its own. It needs to be fostered. Helping our kids develop their Executive Functioning (EF) skills will make everyone’s lives easier and […]

I encourage you to make time for family meetings. When things are calm, you can discuss expectations and consequences if necessary. You can openly discuss your expectations on behavior and following rules. Your kids can even be part of the boundary making process. You can also see where your kids may be lacking in the […]

Preventative Parenting Taking a few moments to consider Preventative Parenting steps and working to include these into your family life, can decrease many common childhood misbehaviors. When we fall into the trap of thinking we need bigger and better consequences, we often fail to miss how easy it is to prevent undesired behavior. The key […]

Over the years we have worked with many parents on renewing their parenting. Here are a few of our favorite quick tips on renewing your relationship with your kids and your overall parenting.                                             […]

Emotional Intelligence The Key to Raising Healthy Adults Teaching emotional intelligence to our kids is one of the best things we can do for them. Emotional intelligence is one of the keys to raising a successful and emotionally and mentally healthy adult. It is also a huge preventative parenting step. The better we teach our […]

Unfortunately, many children must face devastating events during their childhood. Thankfully, these events don’t have to be as tragic and disheartening as they often seem. Our family experienced this firsthand when we lost our home in the 13th largest wildfire in California history. The Carr Fire destroyed almost 1100 homes and burned 229,651 acres in […]