Valentine’s Day is all about the language of love, but did you know that your child has a specific love language? Based on the work of Dr. Gary Chapman and Dr. Ross Campbell, there are 5 love languages – physical touch, words of affirmation, quality time, gifts, and acts of service. We can use this knowledge to choose Valentine’s Day gifts for our children that truly speak to their hearts.

Time-outs can be a huge power struggle, especially if you have a strong-willed kid. They’re hard on sensitive kids, too. Most of the time, they don’t even work to change behavior and you end up stuck in an endless loop of misbehavior, time-outs, and frustration. Nothing sucks the joy out of parenting quite like everyday power struggles.

Helping children to understand and manage their emotions is key to their emotional healthy, happiness, and success. Emotional intelligence affects all aspects of our lives, and it’s never too early to begin teaching our children important coping skills.

Genuine authority is a result of others trusting your leadership. That is true whether you are running a company or a household. Contrived authority results when others follow your lead out of fear. Both get results, but the question is how does it make people feel, both about you and, more importantly, about themselves?

My understanding that children are not meant to follow those to whom they are not attached was a pivotal point in my journey as a mom. What does it mean to have your child’s heart? Let’s clear up the misconceptions first.

Guilt weighs heavy on the hearts of so many mothers as we are ever juggling a myriad of responsibilities and often unsure if we have given enough, even though at the end of the day there is absolutely nothing left to give.

We all want to raise confident, capable children. Sometimes, our own actions can inadvertently get in the way of this goal. Here are 5 ways to give our children wings.

Maybe you wake up to a crying baby or a toddler who jumps on you and scares you half out of your wits (awesome way to wake up), or maybe you spend 15 minutes trying to drag a couple of big, long man children out from under the covers while they grumble and pull the covers back over their heads (ahem). Whatever your scenario, it’s probably not as peaceful as the commercial morning, and I’d be willing to bet you could use a little more peace and tranquility and a little less shoe finding and kid wrangling to start your day. Good news! I’ve gathered 5 tried and true morning rituals that will help you do just that. Are you up for a bit of a challenge?

The hectic rush of the holiday season is over, and now we can all relax! Just kidding. Let’s be real, most of us live hectic lives year-round. A busy schedule isn’t necessarily bad when it’s dedicated to activities that fill your cup and help you feel good about yourself, but busyness can take a toxic turn when we become overscheduled with things that drain us.

Many of us make promises for the new year – eating healthier, getting fit, finishing (or starting) a project, etc. This year, let’s prioritize our relationships and we’ll see a more joyful and fulfilling year. Our relationships with our children are among the most important in our lifetimes, so why not make these simple promises to bring you closer than ever before.

One fun way to preserve the best memories of each year and to document your child’s likes, interests, achievements, height, etc. is to make a time capsule every New Year’s Eve. It’s like a snapshot of the year – freezing these happy memories in time to relish for years to come.

In a perfect world (my perfect world at least) there would be zero homework, especially for elementary students! It’s kind of pointless anyway, but most of us have to deal with it, regardless. Here are my tips to make the homework hour (or three hours) less annoying and maybe even a tiny bit fun.

I spoke with my mother-in-law the other day. I was telling her how hard this tween stage could be at times. She gave a gentle smile and said, “At least you know where he is. What you’re in now, it may seem hard, but you’re in the easy part. When they leave, that’s hard.” She raised 4 wonderful people, and 3 of them now live in a different state than she does. She rarely sees her children. Her days are spent in a quiet, neat home with nothing but time on her hands, and she misses her children every single day. Children are noisy, but silence is deafening.

The further along I get in this game, the more I’m convinced that there is no right way to play for every team but that there is a best way for each individual, unique team. We can all have different playbooks and still play really well, but there is one single quality every team must have to succeed.

Twinkling lights and our favorite holiday tunes remind us of Christmases past, evoking nostalgia and a warm sense of joy. Yet, for many of us, our to-do lists rival Santa’s long list of boys and girls, and in the whirling rush to get it all accomplished, stress can creep in and steal our joy. Follow these 5 tips to ensure that joy wins out this season.

What used to be a season filled with joy, wonder, magic, and togetherness has become, for many parents, a season of stress that we can’t wait to end.There’s so much focus on looking like we have it all together instead of just being together. It’s time to stop the madness! Ditch these 5 things and be less stressed this holiday season.

As children grow and the family dynamics change, maintaining family traditions can be a challenge. The traditions outlined here can grow with your family so that you will enjoy them for all the years that your children are at home.

I remember as a child lying in bed on Christmas Eve night with eager anticipation, listening for the sound of hooves on my roof. I recall the joy and wonder of waking to find that the cookies had been eaten, the milk had been drunk, and a present awaited. The lights twinkled on the Christmas tree. The smell of dressing filled the home. Amidst the traditions of Christmas, I felt truly loved.

In a 2005 article by Bruce J. Ellis and W. Thomas Boyce, the researchers borrowed a Swedish term, orkidbarne, to name a surprising new concept in child development and genetics. Orkidbarne means orchid child, and describes children who are genetically sensitive. Unlike their counterparts, maskrosbarne, or the dandelion child, who are more psychologically resilient, orchid children are heavily affected by their home environments and the parenting they receive.

Life, as we all know, is not perfect. Relationships can be messy, and distance can grow between us for many different reasons. Though the fault may not entirely lie with us, it is our responsibility as the parent to heal the relationship and reconnect with our children.

In November, it’s common to express gratitude each day of the month with hashtags like #thankful on social media. In this spirit of this modern digital tradition, I've put together 30 days of journal prompts and acts of kindness for parents to try with their kids when you're offline.