Simple Families

Our family was on vacation recently–and my husband and I wanted to explore some new sights. We love to wander around and breathe it all in. My kids don’t always share this joy. In fact, on this particular trip, their legs seem to quit functioning altogether. They “couldn’t walk” another step but could miraculously ride a bike and swim with ease.

Whining is very much a part of childhood.

In fact, it’s also very much a part of adulthood. But by the time we are grown, we have learned the difference between public and private speech, and we understand the need to separate the two in different contexts.

The post Why Do Kids Whine? appeared first on Simple Families.

Do you feel like you need some new screen time rules for your kids? There’s a good chance that your kids have consumed an increased amount of screen time during the pandemic. Whether it’s for work, school, or pleasure—we’ve all been home more and utilizing new devices in new ways. But what hasn’t changed is the self-blame and criticism we place on ourselves as parents for giving our children “too much” screen time.

Because “good parents don’t let their kids have too much screen time.”  Right?

Have you have internalized the message that the quantity of screen time your child consumes correlates with the quality of your parenting?

I know that I have. From the earliest days of pregnancy, I indulged in books on brain development that touted the benefits of going screen-free in the early years. Therefore, in the first years of my parenthood journey, my son was screen-free.

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After our last episode, Educating Your Child in a Pandemic, I got a lot of questions. Today I’ll be answering your questions about returning back to school this year.

Hi there and welcome to episode 230. Today, I am doing a back to school question and answer session. After the last episode, educating your child in a pandemic. I got a lot of questions. Today is just going to be a real straight talk, giving you my thoughts and opinions in this hard, tricky season of life. And I want to tell you first and foremost, that what's right for me and my family is right for me and my family. It's going to look very different than you and yours. You are the expert on your family. Trust her gut. You have all of the answers inside of you.

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Right now, many of us are thinking about back to school decisions. Educating your child in a pandemic is no easy task. Homeschooling? Distancing Learning? In-person school? Even if we are privileged to have a choice, making hard decisions for our families can feel agonizing.

You may even lose sleep over it.

That’s why I’m sharing the 9 things you need to know about educating your child in a pandemic.

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The toy industry sells us the story that our children need toys to be happy. In fact, we are sold the story that our kids need lots of new toys to be content. You may have come to believe that more toys=more joy and find yourself spending countless dollars attempting to prove this theory to be true. You aren’t alone, in 2020 the toy industry brought in over $95 million in global sales.

These numbers surely bring a lot of happiness to the toy industry. But what about our kids? 

Let me tell you our story. When I became a new mother, I was ready to give my baby everything. All the toys, all the love, all the best. 

This motto “more is better” wasn’t new to me. I entered motherhood with a lifelong history of clutter–both physical clutter and mental clutter. But I had different circumstances than most when I gave birth to my first child. At that time, I was finishing up my doctorate in Child Development. 

That means, during my first pregnancy, I was elbow deep in more than just clutter—I was also immersed in the research about what children really need to grow, learn, and thrive.

Much to my surprise, there was nothing in the research that supported the idea that buying lots of toys was actually good for our kids. In fact, having fewer toys benefits our kids in more ways than you can imagine. Over the past decade, I’ve turned thousands of families into believers of the benefits of fewer toys. 

And I can tell you one thing for sure, you will never look back. 

Not only does fewer toys benefit the development of the child, but also the well-being of the parents. Because the way we buy for our children teaches them. That’s why I want to share with you 9 things that kid’s learn by having fewer toys. 

The post Why Children Will Benefit from Fewer Toys appeared first on Simple Families.

We’ve all picked up on a few habits during this crisis–and some of those habits might not be serving us. Today I’m sharing more about my attempts to moderate caffeine, a habit that I’ve leaned on hard the past few months. I’d love to hear from you. Do you have any habits you are trying to moderate right now?

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When we speak to our kids, words do matter. We don’t have to get it right all.the.time, but I like to use the same phrases repeatedly to help drive home important lessons. Therefore, I’m sharing the 10 exact expressions my kids hear on a regular basis. Sometimes the simplest things can be the most impactful. You can either listen along or read–in today’s episode, I’m sharing how I use these and why they are important.

In our house, we have three primary rules that guide the way we parent our kids. Today, I’m sharing the three rules and how we talk to our young children about them. 

Here they are:

It can be really easy to fall into the trap of creating a lot of little rules, often based on annoying behaviors. Don’t throw sand. Don’t touch the exercise bike. 

You are allowed to change your rules. If you have too many, you might need to reevaluate and decide which ones to keep after this episode. Because the truth is, they may cost you more time and energy than they are worth. Thanks again for tuning in to today’s episode!

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Many of us have been decluttering our homes for some time. But what about our brains? Mental clutter is real. Parenthood can feel heavy. We are tackling the 10 reasons that parenthood feels cluttered and overwhelming.

The post Mental Clutter 101 appeared first on Simple Families.

We are wrapping up our first year of homeschooling and I wanted to share my reflections with you. I know that many people are considering homeschooling next year due to the pandemic, but our family is planning to send the kids to school. Tune in to hear the things I loved about homeschool and the parts I struggled with as well.

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