Empathy — the “vitamin” for emotionally healthy families

Would you like a world in which everyone only looks out for themselves or one in which people genuinely care about one another? How about in your family? Would you prefer to have a spouse that believes only his experience is correct or one who treats your perspective...

Better parenting starts with better beliefs

Parents (and non-parents alike) have plenty of opinions on what makes “better” children and “better” parents. Nursing. Attachment parenting. Continuum Concept principles. Bed-sharing. Early literacy. Limited media. Time outdoors. Unschooling....

Parents have “discipline” all wrong

I just finished reading How Do You Discipline a Child in the Post-Hitting Era? and am amazed that parents can still be so confused. The problem is that we use the word “discipline” when what we actually mean is “punish.” Discipline is a trait...

Apologies aren’t enough (from parents)

In my post, Apologizing — a skill of a masterful parent, I wrote about the importance of parents making apologies to their children. I emphasized that apologizing helped parents “cultivate a long-term, respect-based relationship with our children,” in...