Homework and grades can become such a struggle in our homes. How can we help our kids be successful and also take responsibility for their grades and homework? Is it possible to take a step back and still have kids who want to succeed at school? How can we instill self-motivation and pride without being the warden of grades and homework? Join me on the podcast as I give you real-life examples and ways to come to homework and grades with more connection and less coercion. Want to make yelling a t...
May 16, 2022•14 min•Season 3Ep. 132
Katie, a mother of 2 gets advice from Michelle about using special time with her girls, when is the best time of day for this to get the most out of it, and how to navigate the uniqueness of each child. Join me and Katie as I answer all of her parenting questions through the lens of positive parenting. Want to make yelling a thing of the past! Are you tired of apologizing for becoming upset and losing your cool? You can come to parenting with more love and connection by learning my 3 pronged app...
May 09, 2022•30 min•Season 3Ep. 131
The role we take on in our nuclear family may easily transfer into our parenting, and often informs the ways in which we treat our children. Subconsciously we may perpetuate these roles without fully recognizing what they are or where they come from. Largely because children in our society are viewed as immediately “being” wrong and therefore we may jump to these conclusions without even recognizing it’s happening. Join me this week as I talk about my own roles and how those have plagued my pare...
May 02, 2022•12 min•Season 3Ep. 130
Advice may seem like a good idea when our children are struggling, but maybe it isn’t. Unsolicited advice can often fall on deaf ears or worse cause conflict with our children. I play out some scenarios that might help you understand the pitfalls of advice-giving this week on the podcast. Working with individuals and couples is my most favorite work. We dive deeply into the ideas of connection and unravel the struggles of each individual family I work with. It’s a transformational paradigm shift...
Apr 25, 2022•17 min•Season 3Ep. 129
Continuing on from last week's episode Tara, a mother of 3 brings her questions about her 12-year-old daughter. How do we begin to parent without control and punishments when our child is older? What can we do to unravel conventional parenting and come with more connection? Join me and Tara as we discuss ways to cultivate connection with our preteens and older kids. I answer all of her parenting questions through the lens of positive parenting. Working with individuals and couples is my most fav...
Apr 18, 2022•26 min•Season 3Ep. 128
Tara, a mother of 3 brings her questions about her 12-year-old daughter. How do we begin to parent without control and punishments when our child is older? What can we do to unravel conventional parenting and come with more connection? Join me and Tara as we discuss ways to cultivate connection with our preteens and older kids. I answer all of her parenting questions through the lens of positive parenting. Working with individuals and couples is my most favorite work. We dive deeply into the ide...
Apr 11, 2022•16 min•Season 3Ep. 127
“Use your words” and other phrases have me thinking deeply. Where do they come from and what do they mean? Can we reframe and rethink those ideas and perhaps leave them for the generations past. This week I discuss some of the big offenders, giving some alternatives and finding ways to be more supportive with our children. Working with individuals and couples is my most favorite work. We dive deeply into the ideas of connection and unravel the struggles of each individual family I work with. It’...
Apr 04, 2022•18 min•Season 3Ep. 126
Brain Science is at the heart of all things Parenting with Connection. The inner workings of the brain help us better understand behavior. When we use it as our guide it helps us understand why Connective Parenting works so well and what the benefits are all around as compared to Conventional Parenting. Brain Science gives us the underpinning of tangible facts which help guide our everyday interactions. TODAYS THE LAST DAY! Understanding your child's big emotions and learning how to be there for...
Mar 28, 2022•15 min•Season 3Ep. 125
It has been said that parenting with connection lacks limits because it fails to use punishments or rewards, but limits do not need to be set using these methods and can in fact use empathy and understanding instead. Limits can also be used to create a place for a child to offload feelings and process emotions. This can only happen with empathy as opposed to punishments. How do we dole out punishments and when we do, do they actually work, or are we chasing our tail in hopes of finding ways to “...
Mar 21, 2022•13 min•Season 3Ep. 124
How do we dole out punishments and when we do, do they actually work, or are we chasing our tail in hopes of finding ways to “get” our kids to “behave” follow directions and listen? Is there a better way and why? Why are punishments so ineffective and what can we do instead? Join me for one of my FREE Webinars: How to Parenting Without Punishments. I will be live talking all about it and helping you do away with this unnecessary parenting tactic. Join me on March 21st, 23rd, or 28th and cultivat...
Mar 20, 2022•1 min•Season 3Ep. 124
Connective parenting can be confusing. What is it? What are the values and how can I get my children to be good people by just being nice? Well, there’s a bit more to it and maintaining and promoting the child-parent relationship is the most important aspect of Connective Parenting. Whereas conventional methods rely on control and punishments. How does it feel to be in a relationship where you feel controlled? Understanding your child's big emotions and learning how to be there for them during t...
Mar 14, 2022•12 min•Season 3Ep. 123
Connective parenting isn’t all roses! No parenting is, let’s just keep it authentic shall we? There are extra pressures with parenting against the grain. We are learning and relearning so many new things, we are fighting against what society says we should and we are exhausted from listening to big ugly feelings. I know how it feels I am right there with you and let me reassure you just because it’s hard doesn’t mean it isn’t working or you are not on the right track. You are there, you are gett...
Mar 07, 2022•11 min•Season 3Ep. 122
I am proud of you, was something I always wanted to hear from my parents, but why? Why did I crave it so much? Was it because I felt the unconditionality of their love and is this what we want for our kids? Or would we rather them know we love them just the same when they mess up or when they do well. How can we promote internal pride and acceptance as opposed to setting them up to look for external acceptance? Listen in and get the lowdown. Have you ever felt alone in your parenting, as if you ...
Feb 28, 2022•12 min•Season 3Ep. 121
Having a teen is as hard as having a newborn! All the firsts and all the angst, let’s face it the stakes are really high and we parents worry tremendously about our children and the teen years can really exacerbate our worry and stress. What I know works is connection, but many times parents pull away from their teens because the teens are trying to find their own way too. When I lean into being with and understand my teens they respond with more kindness and the ability to self-regulate more re...
Feb 21, 2022•24 min•Season 3Ep. 120
Being the nurse, counselor and chauffeur are enough! Adding on cooking and life as a parent can seem overwhelming. Instead of thinking of cooking as an elaborate endeavor that takes hours of planning and endless amounts of time, think of it as a place to connect. Laney Schwartz from Life is but a Dish joins us and gives us some mealtime hacks that will keep the focus on connection instead of food prep. Helpful Links: Life is but a Dish - Kitchen Starter Bundle Have you ever felt alone in your pa...
Feb 14, 2022•20 min•Season 3Ep. 119
I began parenting with the idea of being the perfectly attached mom. But what none of the books told me was how to respond to my children when things were hard, when strong wills were introduced and kids said no. I resorted to yelling and that yelling led me to self-loathing which created a cycle I could not stop until I found connective parenting. Come along on my journey today of self-love and forgiveness and find out how this ultimately benefited my sweet girls. Have you ever felt alone in yo...
Feb 07, 2022•13 min•Season 3Ep. 118
Life, as we know, is not fair, but are we trying to shield our children from fairness or are we diving deeply into acknowledgment and acceptance instead? Isn’t the ideal of everything being equal and unrealistic thought and trying to even every instance into fairness doing our children a disservice? How do we help them accept unfairness and still support them in their feelings when they feel wronged? Listen in as I go into more depth around helping our kids cope with unfairness. Have you ever fe...
Jan 31, 2022•8 min•Season 3Ep. 117
This week on the podcast I describe how I have tried to make repairs when I have behaved in ways that I know are not acceptable. We are all human and making mistakes is inevitable and also part of how we learn to do better. Modeling effective apologies and making amends is the best way we can teach our children how to take responsibility for their actions. If we can take responsibility for ours they will learn this is the way to interact in the world and this is how we gain and give forgiveness....
Jan 24, 2022•9 min•Season 3Ep. 116
Not taking our child’s behavior personally can be extremely challenging. Not only does it restimulate our own unmet needs but on some level, we might believe what they are saying is true or that they really believe we are “mean” or understand that the off-track behavior is meaningful rather than just a behavior. In this episode, I reframe those ideas and give some alternative thoughts around taking our child's unwanted behaviors and words personally. I’ll give you 6 reasons why you shouldn’t and...
Jan 17, 2022•10 min•Season 3Ep. 115
This year, I want to prioritize myself. I want to make my care at the top of my list. These are simple things we overlook which can really improve our overall mood. I know when I do this I feel better, do better in all aspects and am all around happier. But it’s not easy! It’s one of the most difficult things in parenting I believe. This happiness breeds happiness in my household and in turn trickles down to my children. The “doer” in me fights against this notion and largely throws me off my ga...
Jan 10, 2022•12 min•Season 3Ep. 114
I have had many revelations around my parenting this year. Like every year there are also many places I still need to work. For me parenting really is an inside-out endeavor. The more committed I am to working on my inner growth and maturity the more progress I see. Paradigm shifts and mindset changes give me the biggest growth. This week I give you mine, hoping that you can glean some support around my growth and where I need to improve. Working with individuals and couples is my most favorite ...
Jan 06, 2022•17 min•Season 3Ep. 113
Discipline can be a confusing word in the world of conscious parenting. Is it guidance and coaching or do most of the world view it as harsh punishments? In my world with my daughters, I do not subscribe to any type of punishment or discipline. In this podcast, I tell you why and give you a compelling argument as to why you should consider doing away with harsh parenting altogether. In reality, it does us no favors and can actually cause more of the behaviors we find ourselves punishing our chil...
Dec 20, 2021•19 min•Season 3Ep. 112
Regine is an Instagram follower who came to me with a real question about her daughter’s social life. I think we have all been there...when we want to just have a little chat with the 8-year-old kid who is being unkind to our child. You know, just let them know you are watching! Somehow it’s likely not the right move, but what is? What can we do for kids and support them through the social ups and downs? What is too much intervention and what is just enough? Helpful Links: Guide to Empathy Peace...
Dec 13, 2021•27 min•Season 3Ep. 111
My best friend joins me in a real conversation about just how hard parenting actually is, and why some days we just want to run away never to return! She and I often lament about the struggles in motherhood, where we find our own personal hurdles and how we can help ourselves to help our children find more peace for everyone. It is not easy and we are the first to admit that we certainly don’t have it all figured out, but we try to do better and help each other along the way! Join Claudia and I ...
Dec 06, 2021•28 min•Season 3Ep. 110
Our environment can highly impact our children. Do you know what’s in your laundry soap, water, or even the air in your home? I certainly didn’t and Dr. Natasha Beck sheds light on how we can make changes to more positively impact the environment we share with our children. Dr. Organic Mommy is a wealth of information and she shares the top 5 things we should be aware of. Helpful Links: 5 Ways to Detox Your Home Dr. Organic Mommy Website Peace and Parenting are offering some amazing Black Friday...
Nov 29, 2021•30 min•Season 3Ep. 109
Happy Thanksgiving and happy Thursday! We are moving to Mondays, so be on the lookout for a new episode with Dr. Natasha Beck otherwise known as Dr. Organic Mommy this Monday. Listen to a sneak peek and take advantage of our Black Friday Sale! All of my on-demand courses are 25% off now through Cyber Monday. This will be the lowest price all year. Click here to find out more: Peace and Parenting are offering some amazing Black Friday deals this holiday season! As a gift to you, we are offering 2...
Nov 25, 2021•11 min•Season 3Ep. 108
The highly competitive world of academics can become consuming when our children reach adolescence. The pressure children feel and endure highly impacts their wellbeing and the relationship we share with them. Finding ways to be supportive without usurping the critical learning moments in this delicate time can be difficult for us parents. Listen in as the authors of The Parent Compass recount their experiences while helping students prepare for and engage in life after High school. Helpful Link...
Nov 18, 2021•28 min•Season 3Ep. 107
Join me in a very special episode where my dad Chuck (AKA Papa) describes what he’s changed about his parenting/grandparenting techniques, and how he has embraced the ideas of Peace and Parenting. We talk about how he feels it's working for him as a grandparent and the most challenging aspects of interacting with more peace. Are you ready to change your family dynamic through connective parenting? Work with me one on one and together we’ll hone in on the sources of discontent and chaos, and find...
Nov 11, 2021•19 min•Season 3Ep. 106
In this episode, Michelle is joined by Kate Anthony, a certified divorce coach who helps women deal with the difficulties of divorce with children. In this candid conversation, the duo uncovers myths about relationship separation and lends advice for parenting through divorce. When we can keep our children at the "center" instead of the middle of divorce we help our kids process the messiness of separation, custody and visitation. It isn't easy to make a decision around ending your marriage espe...
Nov 05, 2021•31 min•Season 3Ep. 105
Growing up, I was taught that to be a good kid-- you needed to behave and follow instructions, or else society would label you a bad kid. So naturally, when I began my journey in motherhood, I stepped into it with that same kind of mindset. I fell into the hole of believing that society’s opinion was my benchmark for being a good mother-- because I had well-behaved kids controlled by star charts and shame. It wasn't until I made peace with my own childhood that I realized I needed to break the c...
Oct 28, 2021•12 min•Season 3Ep. 104
