Your daughter crawls over and takes your son's toy car. He freaks out. Grabbing the car back from the baby. She starts to cry. You swoop in to intervene. Cradling her while you glare at your son, you say, "She's just a baby. She doesn't know better." Setting your daughter on the floor, you grab a few of his cars. Again he … [Read more...]
How to Respond to Your Child’s Negative Self-Talk
"I'm so dumb," your child mumbles at the kitchen table. He bangs his fist on the table and growls. He's working on a writing assignment. Writing does not come easy. Eraser smudges fill his page showing that he was not happy with his previous attempts. "You're not dumb, honey," you say soothingly. He crumples the paper and yells back, "Yes … [Read more...]
Top Positive Parenting Posts of 2015
Thank you for being part of the Imperfect Families community. I am honored that you visit my page and hope that these posts bring you encouragement as you use positive parenting with your kids. Remember - we are all imperfect families. Sometimes, we rock this parenting thing. Sometimes, we act just as childish as our kids. It's not about … [Read more...]
How to help your anxious child: a guide for parents
The bedtime battles. The doctor's office meltdowns. The tears. Parenting a child with anxiety can be hard. You wish you could wave a magic wand and make all of their worries disappear. There is hope! Use these posts to help you parent your child through their worries, teach a variety of coping skills, and explore your own … [Read more...]
Art Journaling with kids
Sometimes talking with our kids is like pulling teeth. It's not always easy for kids to put their thoughts and feelings into words. Art is a fantastic tool for connecting and communicating with our kids! Amy Maricle of Mindful Art Studio is back to help you use art journaling with your kids. Why Art Journal with Kids? Art journaling is fun … [Read more...]
Help Your Energetic or Distracted Child Focus
You've probably lost count of the times you have given your son a simple command, like "Go clean your room," only to find him (minutes later) jumping on his bed, surrounded by toys. Obviously no cleaning has occurred. Instead, like every time before, he got sidetracked. Distracted. It's challenging to help our energetic, easily distracted, or … [Read more...]
Do you make this mistake with your anxious child?
Sam has been afraid of dogs since he was 2 years old. A dog knocked him over on the playground and he felt scared. Now, 5 years later, he still avoids every dog he sees. Since you hate for him to feel anxious, you've taken the role of "dog-remover" for him. When you bring him for play dates, you request the family put … [Read more...]
How to Manage Toddler Tantrums
The car seat never used to be a problem. You'd plop your infant into the seat, and away you'd go. Suddenly, going anywhere in the car means that you'll first have to endure an epic toddler tantrum. What happened? Where did your sweet little baby go? Toddler tantrums can start much earlier than parents expect. It seems that as … [Read more...]
13 Helpful Phrases to Calm Your Anxious Child
Thanks to Lemon Lime Adventures for allowing me to guest post about childhood anxiety today! If your child struggles with anxiety, you know the challenge of finding the right things to say when he or she is worried. It's not easy to connect without making the fears worse, while at the same time offering support and … [Read more...]
How to Set Firm Limits Without a Power Struggle
Wouldn't it be nice if your kids just did what they were told, when they were told, without all of the power struggles? It's like every parent's best daydream. Ahhh....can't you just imagine it? :) While there is no magic wand to create this peaceful land, there are a lot of positive parenting strategies that just might … [Read more...]
