PARENTING Archives - Page 2 of 18

It’s Later Than You Think

Eight years ago, during the same month, I had twin boys and co-founded Cloudability. About three months ago Cloudability was acquired. About three weeks ago we lost one of our boys.

When I got the call I was sitting in a conference room with 12 people at our Portland office talking about PTO policies. Minutes earlier, I had admitted to the group that in the last 8 years I’d not taken more than a contiguous week off.

My wife and I have an agreement that when one of us calls, the other answers. So when the phone rang I stood up and walked to the conference room door immediately.

I was still walking through the door when I answered with “Hey, what’s up?”

Her reply was icy and immediate: “J.R., Wiley is dead.”

How To Help Support Your Teen Before and During Exams

Girls, I really liked this morning’s Global TV segment and am excited to share it with you today.

At 8:20am, I spoke all about upcoming May and June exams and shared tips and tactics on how to help support your teens before and during exams, and how to help our kids de-stress and thrive during this overwhelming period.

We are dealing with this now in our home as my 10th grader starts exams in just a few weeks. I have been taking my own advice, and guiding him to avoid cramming, start backward planning, and learn proper stress management tools. We’re a work in progress.

Honoring Women On Mother’s Day

Sunday is the day we honor mothers everywhere. For some, Mother’s Day is a day to rejoice. For others, it’s a sad and difficult day, as many will celebrate this Mother’s Day without a mom. It’s my first Mother’s Day without my beautiful aunt in my life.

It’s not easy.

And finally, for others, it’s a dreaded day filled with tension and perhaps regret of what could have been.

I recall a few years ago, I was at Walmart buying cards for my mother and mother-in-law, and next to me, there was a beautiful woman in her thirties also shopping for cards. We looked at each other and said, “Not a great selection, huh?” But then I found something really nice, and I said to her, “Hey, look at this one. It’s a nice one,” to which she replied, “Oh no, I can’t stand my mother.”

Happy #NationalSiblingDay!

National Siblings Day is a day that celebrates the bond between siblings – an amazing gift that should be cherished.

This morning on Global TV, I shared some tips on how you can foster strong sibling relationships between your children.

My boys – Thing 1 and Thing 2.

One day they’re KILLING each other.

The next day, they’re loving each other.

Mindset and the Power of YET

Our mindset on learning and trying new things is one of the fundamental skills that guide us from a young age to adulthood and continues to develop throughout our lives. Beyond academic intelligence, research suggests that having a growth mindset has other advantages, including coping better with transition, higher abilities to regulate, learning grit and pro-social behaviours.

The use or misuse of praise can encourage both a fixed mindset or growth mindset depending on what or how we praise and give feedback. To develop the growth mindset, we must remember to praise the process and NOT the person. Praising the process helps remind children that we are constantly learning. The problem with praising the person, such as “you’re so clever” or “you must be so talented,” is that it doesn’t tell children what they need to do next time, and therefore it will become more challenging to develop past a fixed mindset.

6 Parenting Trend Predictions for 2019

I enjoyed this morning’s Global TV segment, as we chatted trends, and what recent surveys repdict will be hot parenting trends to look out for in 2019.

Helicopter parenting– in or out?

Gender reveal parties– still in or on their way out?

Tune in…

Everything Is For Sale Now. Even Us.

Good Morning Ladies.

Checking in from bed. I am day 7 out of 10 of antibiotics for pneumonia. I have no idea how I got pneumonia, but I can tell you, I am listening to my body. I literally don’t get out of bed unless I absolutely have to. The surrendering part has been healing. I don’t recommend getting sick, but I do recommend taking the lesson from it.

Since I’ve been in bed for about 9 days, I have come across some really interesting articles, videos and other. Since this is my blog, and I make the rules around here, I figured why not share my favorite content! So, this is my Tuesday roundup of what has caught my eye recently. I’m not on the fence about these… this is the good stuff.

Women On The Fence is Real Inspiration for the Modern Woman, and I hope you enjoy:

The Life of a Railroad Wife

Tonight, I scraped every bit of beef tips and rice into a Tupperware container.

Why didn’t I just start supper sooner?

I beat myself up for not knowing the things I couldn’t have known and for not controlling the things I couldn’t control.

It’s only 6 p.m. but I could’ve had this done at 5. I didn’t need to stay out on the porch swing to watch everyone play.

We could have eaten together earlier.

The sound of the weedeater and my husband’s cellphone were synonymous as I peeked my head out of the door to tell him that supper was ready, just for him to tell me that he had been called into work.

Mental Health Support For Kids Via Text Is Now Here!

An estimated 1.2 million children and youth in Canada are affected by mental illness.

This week on Global TV, I had my life coach, parenting contributor AND mom hat on for all our children. Today’s blog post is about sharing important news. And how lucky I am to have the platform both on television and online to share this crucial information. And finally, how fitting it is on Thanksgiving to be grateful for free mental health care accessible to our children at the tip of their fingers.

“Canadian youth can now access mental health support through a free bilingual texting service being rolled out across the country by Kids Help Phone. KIDS HELP PHONE is a charitable organization. Trained crisis volunteers at Kids Help Phone can now respond to young people seeking help by text, in addition to its existing phone and live chat services.

Have A Daughter? How To Raise A Confident and Empowered Girl

There’s an expression, G-d gives you what you need, not what you want.

I guess it’s true… maybe?

When I gave birth to my son, exactly 15 years ago and one month today, someone bought me a book called Mother To Son, by Melissa and Harry Harrison. The book was life lessons on how to raise a boy- something I knew nothing of.

When I was pregnant with him, I had no idea what I was having. My husband and I didn’t want to know the sex (well really, he didn’t want to know). What I DID know, was that I was a beached whale. My father called me Orca instead of Erica. I had zits, out of control cellulite, and I barfed all nine months. In other words… all the signs of carrying a girl.