An Olympic Sports Day Staylistening
It was sports day at my children’s new school. My daughter, 8, was in the first of her races and was keen to “get a place,” as she put it – meaning she wanted to
It was sports day at my children’s new school. My daughter, 8, was in the first of her races and was keen to “get a place,” as she put it – meaning she wanted to
I was going through a particularly stressful time. I wasn’t sleeping well, and often felt impatient with my kids, and not available enough for them. I had a consultation with a Hand in Hand consultant:
In one of Patty Wipfler’s talks about Special Time, a question was asked by a mother about what to do if you child breaks something during rigorous play. Patty observed that sometimes children want to
After a weekend together, my husband and I were putting our kids to bed. The lights were out, but my 5-year-old was not settled; he was making a raspberry noise. This annoyed his brother, my
My 2.5 year old son had just transitioned to a new daycare. He had been there three days, and he had done very well with the transition. He was asking excitement in the morning to
My daughter asked to bring her girlfriend with us overnight to Sonoma where we planned to spend one night in a hotel with a pool. Bringing an extra person would change the easy-going relaxation day
I was driving home with my husband and my 2.5-year old son. We were coming from a sweet evening with some friends of ours who have a son his age. The dinner was lovely, I had
My son has co-slept with me since he was born. When he was about 18 months old, I bought him his own bed with the plan to move him into it so I could have
My son had been going to swimming lessons for a few months. His first 2 months he improved markedly each week, trying new things and being comfortable in the water. He would allow his teachers
…when I reminded him about the book report, he went to sit in front of the report but showed no sign of working on it. I had to go away to take care of my younger one for a minute, thinking that he might not be able to finish his homework.
After school one day, my daughter, who is 7, and I had some time together on our own and went out for a hot chocolate. In the café, as we talked about various things, she
I kept listening to my children because I saw their positive transformation and because we felt closer even though it wasn’t easy to do. I kept listening because I gradually remembered and worked on my childhood and came to think I would have liked it if I had been listened to back then.
A sweet 9-year-old student whom I tutor came in the other day in a somewhat low-key mood. He got ready to do the math that I had planned for him. We were working on calculating
I was so sad when they were not getting along and my oldest was hitting and biting, particularly because I had read so many books and was from the beginning practicing attachment parenting and positive discipline.
I wasn’t sure if she would be different after in the days following, but now that a few weeks have passed I can tell you the answer is yes…My frenetic daughter, whom people often would suggest was hyperactive, is now calm and even-keeled. She remains an energetic, highly curious child, but no one would ever use the word hyperactive.