Let’s say you’re not a writer. But there are stories about your youth, parents and grandparents you want to share with your offspring.

Could you create a small booklet of important family stories?

Yes you could, and we will tell you how on our next Chasing Fireflies featuring author Dean Merrill.

Are there any cousin conversations coming up during this festive Christmas season? Could we remind you of the benefits to your children and grandchildren of using those occasions to collect a few more family heritage stories?

Here is an example of how that type of conversation might sound.

What difference does it make if we keep the bond tight with extended family members? For many of us, our cousins and nieces and nephews, uncles and aunts and grandparents are spread across the country. Is it even practical to try to stay close? We tackle those questions in a Chasing Fireflies podcast called Stories Cousins Tell: Holiday Family Storytelling Ideas

The holiday season is upon us, a time to reconnect with grandparents, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles and the cousins.

Why not take the occasion to use the audio record app on your smartphone and capture some family stories for future generations?

Here are a few conversation starters you might ask the relatives:

1. How many stories do we know about how the couples in our extended family met? 2. Who remembers a special family reunion? 3. What are the top three values we share as an extended family and where did they come from? 4. How many generations are we from a family elder who immigrated to this country? 5. What have individual members of our extended family contributed to our understanding of how to live the best life?

We all know the whimsical holiday song that begins “on the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me a partridge in a pear tree.” We’ve never pictured French hens and maids a’ milking as ideal Christmas gifts. But the song always adds to the holiday cheer. Now we like it even more because Bonnie Johnson Fite has rewritten the lyrics to reflect the actual reason for the season.

On this Chasing Fireflies Podcast you will hear the story of her beautiful children’s book The Twelve New Days of Christmas. "

When you’re a parent or grandparent, there is nothing quite like the look of Christmas morning amazement in your children’s eyes.

But what if we could distribute a little of that intense anticipation and joy across the rest of December? That’s where we are headed on the next Chasing Fireflies Podcast.

Do I Have to Practice Piano Today?  How do we strike a balance between a strong push in the back, knowing they will love the rewards, while also making their musical experience enjoyable?

A legend in the field weighs in on this Chasing Fireflies podcast.

Join Chasing Fireflies Podcast contributor Gil Moegerle for Part 1 of Raising Confident Communicators. As Gil explains, helping our children develop conversational skills is the first step toward building the communication skills required of adults, relationally and professionally. And, while talking might come naturally to our kids, effectively connecting with others requires some coaching. We can help.

We invite you to join us in "purposeful practice" -  activities that create confident communicators.  The theme?  Be a Friend!

Here comes a conversation with a woman who says, as a youngster, she was a poor student and the least gifted among her siblings. we refer Janet Stevens, who became the author and illustrator of best-selling children’s books that have received the Parents Choice Award, the Notable Children's Trade Book award, the Caldecott Honor book citation, among others. How we encourage the child whose gifts blossom late, next on the Chasing Fireflies Podcast. 

Do you love those special holiday movies about heart-warming family experiences as much as we do? You know the type presented this time of year by Hallmark or the Lifetime Movie Network. You are about to hear about one such movie airing the day after Thanksgiving that should be on your must-watch list – Every Other Holiday. We talk to its award-winning screenwriter, Andrea Nasfell, on this Chasing Fireflies podcast.