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How to Get Your Kids to Stop Hitting For Good

by Shannon Lambert.
(This article is part of the Positive Parenting FAQ series. Get free article updates here.)

Stop Hitting_Main Image_166665566When I see my kids deliberately hurt by someone else the mama bear just comes roaring out in me. No one hurts my babies.

But what do you do if your baby hurts your other baby? How can you make them stop hitting?

The first time I saw this happen, I died a little inside.

I was in the bathroom and heard one of the twins cry out in pain. I ran into the living room, only to find my two year old stomping on his brother’s back.

And I lost it.

I screamed and hollered and removed him from his brother and set him roughly on the couch. The anger I felt towards my two year old – a little boy I loved and cherished – was unfathomable.

The mama bear came out – even against her own.

And I hated it.

That scene repeated itself many times over the next couple of years. My two year old hit. He hit when he was three. He hit when he was four. And when he turned five, he finally quit – he outgrew it, I guess.

But by then the damage had been done.

I was not able to get him to stop hitting in time, and now his twin little brothers had learned to hit – and they usually hit each other.

And guess what? Mama bear was still in there.

Every time one boy hit the other, I lost it. The anger bubbled up and boiled over. No one hurts my babies – not even my own sons.

A few months ago, I quit my part-time job and found myself as a stay-at-home mom. My first order of business: to get them to stop hitting.

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I knew how to do it. I just never did it because it takes time.

How many times, as parents, do we know the appropriate tool to use, but don’t even bother, because it takes too much time out of our busy day?

Instead, I consistently told him not to hit, hoping that would be the end of it.

It wasn’t.

[Read more…]

How to be More Present with Your Kids In Spite of Day-to-Day Busyness

by Melanie Lindsay.
(This article is part of the Positive Parenting FAQ series. Get free article updates here.)

How to be more present_Main Image_24746926The other day, my 8-year-old daughter paused mid-conversation and said “Mummy, I wish we were always on the same map together.”

Clearly, I had been missing something while we were chatting.

We had been casually discussing ideas for her upcoming birthday party, when she mentioned the sorts of things that other parents do for their kids’ birthday celebrations.

Some were too extreme (jelly wrestling, anyone?). Others were a bit too risky for my personal liking (Go Kart racing, just for starters). And others fell firmly into the “Sorry honey, but it just costs too much” basket…aka, backseat limousine parties.

Clearly I missed the memo that we were at the age when the backyard ‘sausage rolls and musical chairs’ parties were being phased out.

But there was something else I clearly missed, too. Because somewhere along the way, the wires between trying to be a communicative, ‘open to suggestions’ parent and a ‘this is how we do it’ parent had got rather tangled.

[Read more…]

Dr. Tina Bryson – Positive Parenting Conference 2018 Preview

by Sumitha Bhandarkar.
(This article is part of the PPC2018 series. Get free article updates here.)

Here is a quick preview of Dr. Tina Bryson’s talk from the Positive Parenting Conference 2018.

In this talk titled How to Help Your Child Develop a “Yes” Brain, Dr. Bryson and I discuss:

  • What a Yes Brain is
  • How raising kids with a Yes Brain can open up a whole world of opportunities for them
  • How to help them develop a Yes Brain

Those of you who know the work of Dr. Siegel and Dr. Bryson will need no further introduction. For those who aren’t, suffice it to say, you want to be familiar with their work 🙂 Don’t miss this talk where we discuss everything from empathy to emotions to good behavior and how a YES brain helps in all these cases (and then some!)

Dr. Michele Borba – Positive Parenting Conference 2018 Preview

by Sumitha Bhandarkar.
(This article is part of the PPC2018 series. Get free article updates here.)

Here is a quick preview of Dr. Michele Borba’s talk from the Positive Parenting Conference 2018.

In this talk titled How to Raise Kind, Compassionate and Empathetic Kids (and Why It Is the Best Thing You Can Do for Them), Dr. Borba and I discuss:

  • What empathy is
  • Why helping our kids become kind, compassionate and empathetic could be the best thing we do for them.
  • Several different ways to help kids develop this skill, even if they seem like they aren’t naturally kind and compassionate

If kindness and compassion are core family values you want to teach your kids, or you are frustrated with the lack of kindness your kids sometimes display, or for that matter you want to give your kids an advantage to succeed at life (be it academics or in finding happiness) this talk will give you all the tools you need. Dr. Borba has spent decades studying this, and has some amazing insights and super practical tips!

Maryann Jacobsen – Positive Parenting Conference 2018 Preview

by Sumitha Bhandarkar.
(This article is part of the PPC2018 series. Get free article updates here.)

Here is a quick preview of Maryann Jacobsen’s talk from the Positive Parenting Conference 2018.

In this talk titled How to Help Your Child Overcome Picky Eating, Maryann and I discuss:

  • Why some kids tend to be Picky Eaters
  • A wholesome, positive approach for handling picky eating
  • Some of Maryann’s best tips for helping our kids develop healthy eating habits

Has your child ever looked at something you labored over to cook and declared it “yucky” and inedible? Ever had any dinner time battles? (Who hasn’t right?) Do you have a child who will eat everything in one food group, but won’t touch another with a 10 foot pole? This talk is for you!

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Disclaimers and Such:
Fair Warning: While none of this is professional advice, it is powerful stuff and could potentially change your life!
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