The Blog
Our best advice when it’s tough with kids:breathe, laugh, dance, sing, hug, call a friend. Be gentle with yourself, you’re not done growing up yet. This won’t last and you are not alone.
Best Kid’s Books for Grief
Something that we get asked fairly frequently is how to talk to kids about grief, death, and loss. In the decades that we’ve worked with kids and families, we’ve learned a few things about how kids grieve, how to help them process their feelings, and how to explain...
Navigating Unfixable Situations with Your Child
Sometimes in parenting, we can make things better for our kids. They fall down, we pick them up. They spill their water bottle, and we refill it. We can kiss their hurts, comfort them when they cry, help them put something back together with glue, scotch tape, or band...
Dr. Daniel Siegel Talks about Parenting & Attachment
Dr. Daniel Siegel, a clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine and executive director of the Mindsight Institute, has transformed how we understand parenting through his groundbreaking work on interpersonal neurobiology. He offers insights that...
How To Parent a Teen: Advice from a Teen
Recently, we asked a 20-year-old, “What do parents need to know about raising teens right now?” She had a lot to say and we had a really sweet conversation that I think you’ll love. (She didn’t want me to record it, but I took notes that I can share with you.) But do...
Shift from “power over” parenting to “power with”
If you’re reading this, you likely view parenting from a “power with” rather than a “power over” perspective. “Power over” is the domain paradigm and the unfortunate norm in most families, communities, institutions, schools, religions, and governments. You might see...
Resilient Parenting: How to Move From Despair to Hope
My past month has been filled with a full rainbow of emotions. Heartbreak and hope, rage–and its softer cousin–sadness, as well as frustration, pride, grief, confusion, joy, and worry…. because of the fires and also because of what is happening in our family, our...
Questions to Ask Kids That Build Real Connection (Plus 55 Conversation Starters by Age and Topic)
Have you ever asked your child how their day was and gotten... nothing? Maybe a mumbled “fine” or a quick shrug before they disappeared to their room? Yeah. Me too. It’s easy to feel like you should just stop asking them about anything ever again. But the truth is...
When Parents Disagree: Why Conflicting Parenting Styles Might Be Your Family’s Greatest Strength
You're sitting across from your partner at the dinner table, and you can feel the familiar tension building. Your child had a rough day. You wanted to give them space to decompress. Your partner thinks you let them off too easy. If this sounds familiar, you're not...
Best Way to Support a Struggling Child
How Do I Get My Child Back On Track? When kids are struggling with something or acting out, a lot of parents focus on the things that they want to get rid of (the negative influences of screens, peers, sugar, etc). Whether their child is repeatedly getting in trouble...