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Crazy-Making Kid Behavior

Episode #225 Is My Best Friend a Robot? Talking with children about medically complicated situations

This is an inspiring and fearless conversation with Mandi Franklin, pediatric nurse practitioner and children’s book author. Her new book is called Is My Best Friend a Robot? The book  … Read more

Episode #220 Children’s Anger

What to do when your child’s angry? When your child can’t “hear” your calming messages? Anger is a big, challenging emotion for the children experiencing it and for the parents  … Read more

Episode #218 Setting Limits when Your Child Isn’t Cooperating

Here’s an episode from the Archives talking about Setting Limits with Respect when there is resistance, attitude and pushback from your child. With 5 new tips from Karen: Act with  … Read more

Episode #216 Change My Child’s Behavior Now

In our quest to be “better” in a new year, we often look around and try to get others to change – particularly the all the frustrating things children do.  … Read more

Episode #209 Revisiting Temperament

Temperament is the key to managing change, comfort, skill building and so much more! Listen to this important conversation from the Archives!

Episode #199 Understanding Feelings and Needs beneath Behavior

Let’s explore the feelings and needs beneath children’s behavior – starting with tantrums! Looking at the See Me Hear Me Love Me tools we need to understand children’s behavior. We  … Read more

Episode #180 Spring Celebration Yes Day

The book “Yes Day” by Amy Krause Rosenthal challenges us to change our routines and be less predictable. It challenges us to give children voice and power while trusting that  … Read more

Episode #149 Strong Willed Child Part 2

Here’s Part 2 of the Strong Willed Child conversation. This time we speak to parents of school-age children. “Strong willed” isn’t something kids grow out of but they do learn  … Read more

Episode #148 Strong-Willed Child Part 1

Parents of strong willed children are extraordinary because they must find a way that is respectful, nurturing and guiding without taking away a child’s age-appropriate power. It’s not easy but,  … Read more

Episode #134 Incentivizing Behavior?

How-When-If to incentivize children’s behavior is a genuine question for parents and teachers. Are there effective ways to use if-then motivation? Do external motivations help children to learn to make  … Read more

Episode #105 What Lies Beneath Children”s Behavior Part 2

Here’s my take on Episode #16, What Lies Beneath – feelings and needs behind children’s behavior. Start with feelings. Address basic needs. And really ask what do I want or  … Read more

Episode #104 Personality at Birth – Temperament

Temperament is the key to all parenting – to understanding your child’s rhythms and routines, preferences and strengths, ways to comfort, how to encourage new skills and new situations, how  … Read more

Episode #94 Setting Limits with Respect

Setting limits lovingly and respectfully can be a challenge as parents experience the complex emotions and emotional messiness of life-with-kids, especially when reasonable parents are met with resistance, attitude and  … Read more

Episode #89 What’s Normal? Comparisons, Competetiveness and Momshaming

It’s not easy to find and define your own parenting style that fits each individual child. It takes time and heart to figure it out and to find the people  … Read more

Episode #87 Birthday Party Fun and Madness

Parents beware of the stress, the expense, and the ever-striving desire to make each and every birthday the most magical day of the year. Instead know that there are thousands  … Read more

Episode #79 Listening, Consequences, Teachable Moments

How do we shift from discipline as policing and enforcing rules to skill-building and self-management? When are children hearing our messages and listening to our guidance as we try to  … Read more

Episode #78 Social Media – Perfect Parents

Social media creates unique challenges to everyone today, particularly parents. The value of sharing with others others and connecting to distant friends and family is enormous. But appearances and comparisons  … Read more

Episode #76 Tantrums and Fairy Dust

Here it is – a conversation on tantrums that will give your peace about tantrums. Tantrums are part of childhood (and adulthood too when things gets overwhelming) and part of  … Read more

Episode #68 Raising Resilient Kids Quick Tip

It takes a balance of freedom and support to raise capable, resourceful, resilient children who know the help and the guidance when they need it.The perfect balance is individual and  … Read more

Episode #67 Pacifiers and The Pacifier Tree

Comfort objects are very personal to young children. The attachments are deep and powerful and it’s not always easy to know how and when to help your child transition to  … Read more

Episode #63 Mind of My Own Toddlers

Toddlers are the Xkids – Xtreme emotions, Xtreme growth, Xtreme challenges. Growth is exponential, their power is raw and relentless, and yet, they need us in an all-out resistance kinda  … Read more

Episode #60 Helicopteryness – Overworrying or Too Laid Back?

No one wants to be a helicopter parent but everyone has some degree of helicopteryness (thank you Jenn for the perfect word). Finding the right balance between over-worrying and being  … Read more

Episode #57 No No No and Tantrums

Welcome to the world of toddlers and 2’s – a world of “no”, of “I am powerful”, BIG emotions and emotional meltdowns. It isn’t easy to hear-see-love the moment of  … Read more

Episode #56 Sleep – the never-ending challenge

Getting children to sleep and sleep through the night is a never-ending challenges. The best plans and routines are disrupted by a new developmental stage, by teething and illness, by  … Read more

Episode #49 Discipline Part 1 – Manage the Moment

It’s not easy when children don’t cooperate, don’t listen, or test the limits of a situation. Here is Part 1 of a two-parter on discipline called Manage the Moment. Yes,  … Read more

Episode #48 Calm Teaches Calm when your child drives you crazy

Fear, panic, shouting, scolding escalates a stressful scene into a worse one – like gasoline on fire. The mantra of the wise and reasonable parent is: I can handle anything.  … Read more

Episode #44 The Child Who is Different – raising the out-of-the-box child

Let me introduce you to three uniquely bold and original parents raising each of their children as the individuals they were born to be. It isn’t easy to be different,  … Read more

Episode #43 10 Tips for Back to School Anxiety

Here are Karen’s 10 tips for back-to-school stress and anxiety. Change, even positive change change – new beginnings, new teachers, new classrooms, or a new school, are giant opportunities for  … Read more

Episode #41 Smart and Sensitive Kids

Smart and sensitive kids are the ones who think deeply and feel deeply. They knock you off your game and create lots of doubts and questions in the thoughtful parents  … Read more

Episode #40 Potty Training with Karen

Potty training is always individual and customized to your child’s developmental needs and to your parenting style. Here are my Do’s & Don’ts that can help avoid the struggles and  … Read more

Episode #26 Tutu’s Dirt and Broken Arms – girls will be girls

We are breaking the stereotypes today, at least in Early Childhood. When we let kids be who they are and let girls experiment and discover the world around them without  … Read more

Episode #21 Raising Independent Kids- voice and choice

How does a parent make the shift from baby to preschooler…respecting children’s choices when they are first finding their own voice – what to wear, what to eat, bedtime and  … Read more

Episode #16 What Lies Beneath – feelings and needs underneath behavior

Child behavior is only the tip of the iceberg. What lies beneath is feelings, needs and huge developmental learning. Here’s a fabulous conversation as parents reflect on their children’s struggles  … Read more

Episode #14 Potty Training

Who knew potty training could be so much fun – great examples, great stories, great questions! Potty training is different for every child as you respect each child’s timing and  … Read more

Episode #11 From Guilt to Love – different children/different expectations

This topic started with a discussion of different expectations for each child and jumped into all the guilt of being fair and doing what’s right. Then, it wrapped it all  … Read more

Episode #9 Powerful Fearless Girls

Yes…girls are powerful fearless people! The girls in this episode are self-directed, embrace novelty and change, experience pure joy at mastery, are confident risk-takers and strongly internally motivated – and  … Read more

Episode #8 Part 1 The Big Unknown – growing & changing with each stage

Growing with your child takes parents into The Big Unknown. This episode is about all the things you can’t know living them for the first time. In your own time,  … Read more

Episode #5 Testing and Button Pushing

As the onlooker and cheerleader for kid-power and for kids finding their own voice, I love it when children test, push buttons and catch you on the hook. It’s part  … Read more

Episode #4 Bribes, Negotiations & Other Desperate Measures

All parents do it…bribe, coax, plead, try anything to get kids to do what you want them to do. And it doesn’t work. Too often it just gives kids the  … Read more

Episode #3 My Way – Your Way- who’s writing this script?

This one was sooooooooooooo much fun…what happens when your kids have another “script” in mind? I adore all the deep thinking, three-steps-ahead-of-you kids and the parents raising them!!! At the  … Read more