I was feeling tight and cranky in my parenting. I knew I needed to think about setting limits on screen time, and my impulse was to grab the iPad out of my son’s hands and stomp on it. I was not thinking well!!
what seemed to make the most difference in our connection was the “mini” Special Time sessions that I did for five minutes — just five minutes! — before heading out the door for work, on the mornings she was awake before 7 a.m. No matter how late I was running, I could make time for five minutes of Special Time.
When a child is crying we need to show that we are in this together with her and that she will cross over through pain, sadness, and anger and will arrive on the other side feeling much better.