August; the month that says, “Let’s make every day of summer count!” while at the same time saying, “Now, what is it we have to do to get the kids ready for school?” September 2020 is like no other Sending kids back to school this year is like a big puzzle and yet, while there are many things we do not know, one thing we know is that we can control the sails of our own ship. This is the time for family meetings, and planning to set everyone up for success. This is our final blog at Parenting Power and we encourage you to do the following: Ask yourself (and your family at the first of four week ..read more

Parenting Power is 18 and it’s all grown up. Together we’ve decided that August 1st is the perfect timing to close the door on this wonderful experience and explore other opportunities. All good things must come to an end, and we are grateful for the thousands of families with whom we’ve loved to work. You, our readers, have been very important to us. We truly believe we’ve made many feel confident, capable and calm. We couldn’t have run our company without the fantastic administrators who have helped us over the years: Dallas Goodall, Robin Ebanks and Renee Tsang. People always told us partne ..read more

In parenting, there are going to be times when you have to say,”No!” Whether toddler, teen or anywhere in between, for safety or just piece of mind, kids need to understand that there is a time and place for things and sometimes it isn’t when they want it to happen. In the article below, Dr Laura Markham outlines 10 Secrets to saying No. We hope that at least one will resonate with you. We’re going to let you in on a few of our own: 1. Get clear about when you really want to say NO. If you are using NO all the time and then allowing your kids to negotiate their way out of it, you aren’t helpin ..read more

Have you heard it from your kids yet? In the excerpt below, Chris Kresser shares some thoughts about why it is important for all of us to be bored from time to time. Want to know what to do when your kids are bored? We’ve got the recording for you! We should get bored more often By Chris Kresser Most of us don’t like being bored. That’s why we go out of our way to avoid it! But as author Manoush Zomorodi argues in her book, Bored and Brilliant, research has shown that boredom serves an important purpose: “When our minds wander, we activate something called the “default mode,” the mental place ..read more

Start again this summer Many things won’t change as we shift into summer this year. One thing that will be gone is the pressure of schoolwork at home. This may help us to feel like summer is upon us. Real Life happens to all of us: good habits may have run off the rails these past few months and need a reboot. NO PROBLEM! Now is a great time to start again and get things back on track. Where to start? Make a list of what boundaries have grown a bit fuzzy. When are the teens expected home for dinner? Does your kitchen stay open all day for your little ones or are there set snack times? What’s ..read more

WAIT!- I have to teach this again? School’s nearly over. We’re not talking about that kind of teaching. We’re talking about everyday tasks, habits, manners and behaviours. It’s our job to meet our kids where they are today and reteach some of the old material to these new brains when necessary. Parenting, (like life,) does not happen in a straight line. Just when you think that you are out of the woods with an issue, it often comes back. It might be in a slightly different format but it is basically the same issue. There are a few good reasons for this: 1. WE ARE HUMANS raising young humans ..read more

What is your COVID Comfort Level? Our world is reopening and there are changing levels of freedom moving forward. Some people are excited for this to happen. Others may feel overwhelmed as boundaries are loosened and connection with other families seems more likely. How do you tell you child’s best friend’s parents that you aren’t ready for an in-house play date? How do you explain to your sister-in-law that you think the weekly family dinners should start again? What is right for you? In all likelihood people around you will have different ideas about how to proceed. We’ve all seen photos of ..read more

Use the power of ‘I’ and kids begin to listen “YOU ALWAYS…!” “YOU NEVER…!” “I HATE IT WHEN YOU…!” When our goal is to communicate with someone and have them keep their ears and hearts open, starting with the word “You,” is not nearly as effective as starting with the word “I.” “I feel like the same things keep happening.” “I wish that this would be different.” “I feel defeated when I see a hallway full of jackets and shoes and I can’t get through the door.” When we start with ‘I,’ the defensive barriers don’t need to come up. Your partner/child cannot really argue with what you are feeling and ..read more

Having uncomfortable conversations is all part of walking the talk as a parent. There is a lot of change happening right now. Change is rarely comfortable. It does seem to be the one thing we can count on. Change has been happening since before we were born, since our kids were born and will continue to happen as we continue to grow and learn. Whether the change is happening in another country, another neighbourhood, another house on your street or right in your very own home, the only behaviour we can change is our own. One saying that Gail taught Julie many years ago is, “While we cannot di ..read more

Say it once. Nagging trains kids to ignore you. Has the pandemic turned you into ‘Charlie Brown’s Mom?’ Are you the voice that can be heard in the background saying lots of something but nothing actually worth listening to? Does the dog even walk away while you are talking? It may be because, while you are with your kids so much, you are saying the same things over and over again and no one really feels that they have to listen to you. Let’s face it, when you have something to say that is really important, you’ll make sure they hear it. You will use some way to grab their attention, or grab th ..read more