“Why does Daddy have a stomachache?” Our toddler began to cry. “Daddy, I will help you,” she said. We were playing Chutes and Ladders, a gift from her 3rd birthday party earlier that week. Her daddy landed on square 49, in which a boy eats an armful of green apples. He had to slide all the way back down to […]
Have you ever watched your kid gallop down the street, bop to music, wave both arms wildly, or randomly run around in circles … and wondered if that’s the amount of movement you’re supposed to be getting in a day? Nah–there’s no way you can keep up with that craziness. But sitting for large swaths of the day, like many of […]
I thought it’d be fun to start a year-end tradition of sharing the funny things our kids say. Just in case you need a laugh after the holidays. (If you need more than a laugh, like a bit of a reset, try this simple happiness trick.) The unsigned quotes below are mine. (For a while, I was good […]
A friend of mine sends the best Christmas card. There’s the requisite family photo and the holiday wish. But there’s also a sheet of printer paper, folded in sixths. It’s a list of the memorable conversations they had with their kids that year. I always open it with anticipation, and we always laugh out loud. A couple for you: […]
Growth mindset is in the air. I’m just back from giving a speech to 120 K-8 teachers on growth mindset vs. fixed mindset. A school my daughter attends just sent around an infographic connecting mindset to resiliency. Someone on a parenting-educators forum just posed a question about mindsets and praise. If you’re not familiar with […]
“Nooooo!” My toddler’s anguished cry rose high into sky along with her shiny new balloon. “Balloon, don’t do that!!” Moments before, she’d been skipping down the street, holding the balloon with such care. She’d continually turn to look up at it with awe. She was so incredibly happy. And she’d refused to let me tie the ribbon to her dress or […]
The stick lying on the sidewalk was, at first, a stick — just a twig blown down from its tree in last night’s windstorm. Then the toddler picked it up. She pointed it to the ground and it became a walking stick. She poked it into the side of the car seat my husband was […]
This poor mom. She was juggling two kids on a plane, solo, and she was–as any of us would be–agitated. I couldn’t help noticing, though, that she was making things harder on herself than necessary. When we were still half an hour from landing, her little boy started taking off his shoes. “No, don’t take off your shoes! […]
Hey Tracy: I am trying to teach my 3-year-old ways to calm herself down when she’s feeling angry. I usually ask her to take a deep breath or go away from people (namely her 6-month-old sister) if she feels like hitting or pinching. Some days we can turn the mood around. Other days it seems […]
“How do I remember what I’m supposed to do in the heat of the moment?” a dad asked me. I was giving a keynote talk at BabyFest NW, and he had stopped by my table to check out my book beforehand. The dad said he had plenty of parenting information. He knew how he intended […]