Understanding a child’s brain function really helped me to stay calm as I was sure it would just take a few minutes and she will be OK and back on track again.
It was nearly bedtime and we were playing a family card game. My 3 year old was tired and his behavior was flaring. Everything was wrong for him. “I don’t want that card…I don’t want to sit next to Mama…I want it to be my turn”, he whined. He was finding it hard to sit
Is your toddler too angry to sleep? Read on to learn how to read the signs and get a solution. By Lyra L’Estrange Does it ever seem like your toddler is just unsettled? Can’t be happy? Can’t be playful? And definitely can’t sleep? Are there days where this carries on into the night, and your toddler
Q: My son is a very dynamic four-year-old. He is attached to me and has a younger two year-old brother. What I’ve noticed is that when we are doing Staylistening, he will sometimes rapidly control his emotions and improve his overall emotional state in such a way that he’s able to go back to normal
One afternoon, as I returned from work, I found my 9-year-old son and his grandmother writing out the English alphabet with beautiful coloured pens in his English class notebook. They were about to finish, when his grandmother asked him to say the English names for all the letters. My son started with enthusiasm, however, he
Kids really do know how to heal from their emotional hurts – if we can be there to listen and support them through the process. I was reminded of this recently, when my seven-year-old daughter was going through friendship challenges at school. She was one of a threesome of girls, and all of them were
I love being a dad to my 3-year-old son, but when he pushes me away, I sometimes feel unfairly treated. He may wake up crying and I rush to him, only to be told, “Go away! I want Mummy!” Other times, he may want attention and cry out, but when I go to him, he
Last fall, my husband and I had some news which we thought would be exciting for our six-year-old daughter, but the conversation didn’t turn out the way we planned. The three of us sat down at the dinner table, and I said with a smile, “Honey, we have something we want to tell you. I’m pregnant.
I have thought a lot about what words I say to my two children when they are pushing boundaries and I need to set a limit. I have found the phrase, “I can’t let you do that” to be so helpful. Of course, physically stepping in to be close, and my body language, is just
Our week had been really busy, with family visiting, including my two year old nephew. My two children had played really well together with their cousin, however, with my son, there always comes a point in family visits, or holidays where the feelings he has become overwhelming for him. Even excitement, often viewed as a
Shaheen used this approach to help her daughter work through fears around separation and swimming lessons, and return to her cheerful self.
When my daughter was born in 2010, the first weeks with her were blissful. I had a 6-hour water birth; we were easily able to establish a good breastfeeding relationship. But after 10 days at home, her doctor told us she needed to wear a restrictive hip harness around the clock for five weeks. This
The school year started off well for my fourth grade son and homework seemed to be moving along smoothly. However, by mid-January I started to see a progression of hemming and hawing, procrastination and delay tactics, a prickly attitude, distractions, and then off-track behavior. Furthermore, he didn’t want me to sit at the table with
Part 1: Playlistening With Balloons My son loved playing with balloons when he was in control, but he had long been afraid of other people playing with balloons. He didn’t like the sounds balloons made when being filled with air, or when the air was released, or when the balloons popped. One day we were
My son had been through periods of using his small potty, but for some reason, he had become resistant. I tried putting him in underwear, hoping the natural consequences would help him learn, but it didn’t work. He did not want to use the potty! One day, when I was pretty sure he needed to
Staylistening With Madeleine Winter Recently, one of the parents in a Parenting by Connection class I was teaching sent me this story about a success with Staylistening to her boy. Staylistening is where we stay close with a child who is upset, listening without comment, judgement, criticism or harshness. We make sure that everyone is
David and his mum came recently to a Parenting by Connection class series I taught, which included two Play Events. This is where families meet for a couple of hours, and the adults play with children just the way the children want to play. We do lots of Playlistening, where the children are in charge
At the park one Sunday a little boy lifted my daughter, who is 3-1/2, in a tree and she fell. I heard her cry and ran to her. Her hand was dangling at a 90-degree angle from her forearm. I knew it was not good. I calmly picked her up and walked to the car.