Unmasking Big Emotions in Little (and Grown-up) People

This article is by my co-blogger Julie, with whom I have at least five things (humans, actually) in common. While the global pandemic isn’t officially over yet, most of us (and our kids) have had to launch out of lockdown and hit the ground running again – this time, with masks on. While these masks…

Tag: acknowledge-feelings, listening

What’s Going On Inside Your Teen’s Brain?

Do you have a teen? If so, and they’ve driven you up the wall and back again – perhaps it’s time to take a closer look inside your teen’s brain… If you ask parents of teens to describe the teenage years, words like crazy, confusing, frustrating, scary, and out of control often crop up. Vibrant…

Tag: teenagers

The Six Best Gifts My Dad Left Me

Here’s the six best gifts my dad left me In this post, I pay tribute to Allan Mullins, my second dad and the proud grandad of my five children. I hope to gift you with some of the remarkable and priceless gems he gave me through his wisdom and character. As hundreds of people who…

Tag: example, my–dad

Living In The In-Between

I don’t know about you, but the long-awaited end of 2020 feels like a firecracker that got wet before we lit the fuse. We’re all huddled around it, waiting for the spark and bang of a fresh new start … and nothing. So, here’s another post from my lovely wife, but posted here as a…

Lily and the Bee Sting: Don’t Take It Personally

This one by my wife, Julie Williams I was chatting with a friend of mine the other day and she shared this sweet story of her niece… Lily, aged 4, got stung by a bee. Like any self-respecting 4-year-old, she proceeded to wail. Then after the initial shock and sting had subsided, Lily continued to…

Tag: acknowledge-feelings, life-lessons

The Stranger In Your Home: Safeguarding Kids on Devices

The Stranger In Your Home: Safeguarding Kids on Devices By Julie Williams With young kids now spending more time than ever on electronic devices, safe-guarding them from online dangers is crucial. The documentary Social Dilemma alerted us to a new stranger – “the algorithm” – but in this post I suggest we stay alert to…

Tag: kids-and-screens

Should We Use TIME OUT or TIME IN With Our Kids?

Should we use Time Out or Time In with our small kids? Yes. Julie and I use both with our younger kids. We’re fans of Time In. Kids act their worst when they feel their worst. They need love and connection most when they deserve it least. The cool thing about Time In is that…

Tag: acknowledge-feelings, authority, boundaries-rules, misbehaviour

Ten Things Your Kids Need Most From You

Ten Things Your Kids Need Most From You. What do kids (tweens especially) think they need from us parents? I just had a little chat with Eli (12) and Fynn (10) and asked them that very question. I will share with you the gist of what they said. I’d always thought that I needed a…

Tag: authority

My Whole Family Got COVID…

My Whole Family Got COVID… Here’s the whole story. After a crazy-eventful lockdown (in which we had to make not one, but two emergency visits to the hospital for our normally healthy kids), we were so looking forward to getting back to some kind of normal. Our kids’ school was opening up again, our work…

3 Tight-ropes Your Family Needs During Covid-19

3 Tight-ropes Your Family Needs During Covid-19. Whether Level-4 or Level-3, family life is something different to anything we have known. In my last post, I described the 6 struggles so many families are facing during Covid-quarantine. Today, I get on the solution-side of the conversation. As I surveyed 30 other mainly suburban families and…

Tag: Covid-19, lockdown