Parenting is an elaborate and complex job that changes with each age as a child develops. Since our primary responsibility is to keep our children safe while providing a stable home, it’s understandable how involved—even overprotective—parents can become. However, the older a child gets, the less control we have as parents. Therefore, the need for children and teens to build strong self-reliance and emotional intelligence is critical. Does helicopter parenting encourage independence and resiliency?

Estimated reading time: 6.5 minutes

Let's face it; life can tire a person out! When you add up the jobs, romance (or lack of romance), friendship, parenting, being someone’s adult child yourself, self-care, sleeping, eating, exercising, being “tired out” can just grow and grow.

For many of us, the more we take on, the more stressed and tired we become. To compensate for the overwhelming feelings of being more and more out of control, we try to do even more. This tactic is a futile attempt to give ourselves and others the illusion that we “have it all together.” However, maybe we should release that illusion of control.

A vital path of mindful parenting is to parent with the end in mind. Visionary parenting is another way of describing this mindset. Discipline, love, structure, boundaries, empathy, and redirecting children’s behavior all contribute to helping a human grow up to be an adult. Children are not just a toddlers, preschoolers, middle schoolers, or teens. 

When we parent, especially in the toughest moments of discomfort, challenge, and testing, we need to remember that we are parenting not only the 3-year-old child in front of us but also the 13-year-old teen to be, or the 23-year-old young adult [...]

You put the oxygen mask on yourself before others.

We hear that lesson reiterated often by airlines. But in practice—when a parent thinks their child needs help—what is their gut instinct?

Self-care for parents is a challenging issue, and yet parents need self-care to be their best self. Balancing work and home life with a career, socializing, financial issues, a marriage or relationship, and raising kids makes being a parent a difficult juggling act.

How can parents find time for their own wellness amidst the hustle?

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

Every parent is unique; every child is unique. All parents love their children, and all children love their parents—no matter how imperfectly.

But do we truly take stock as parents of how we are imprinting our children through our daily interactions? Are we deliberately teaching them emotional intelligence skills to be resilient when life knocks them around? Or are we too overwhelmed with our lives and families?

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

No way around it: Being a parent is a tough job. And some parenting days are much tougher than others, so you might find yourself yelling unexpectedly, then regret it. Every parent reaches their limit.Our parenting know-how and emotional maturity are challenged every day. Of course, we also experience immense shared joy and a sense of fulfillment, but our children's needs change continually. Every time you think you've got the job figured out, your child shifts to a new developmental stage, far different from the one before. Learning how to redirect children's behavior is crucial for every [...]

Life before kids is such sweet sorrow; I used to take care of myself and exercise, up with the dawn for a refreshing run along the seashore. When my boy was born, I was up with the dawn running back and forth changing diapers. So ended the days of the refreshing oceanside runs.

Then a few months later when he was six months old, I had an epiphany: he wakes up early, I wake up early, why not sit him in the stroller and restart my sorely missed morning exercise routine? The fresh sea breeze was healthy for the both of us, and ever since I've found that we were both in a better mood after our [...]

While adolescents are not a different breed, they might at times seem like it. This portrayal has only been heightened by media and movie portrayals. Teens get stereotyped as hormonal, socially lost, or rebellious.

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

Parenting today's teens is challenging. Many parents even dread raising teenagers because they've often heard negative, even scary stories over the years from other parents. As a culture, we think we've got teenagers pegged—uncontrollable, disrespectful, and rebellious. The big question is: "Is adolescent rebellion avoidable?"

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes