Simple Families

In today’s episode I am chatting with Erin Loechner. Erin is an author, blogger, designer, and mother of two. She shares her journey towards simple living along with her best tips for making slower New Year’s Resolutions–including arm circles, waking up before the kids, and finding your own definition of self-care.

The post SFP 140: Slow Resolutions [with Erin Loechner] appeared first on Simple Families.

Independent play doesn’t come easily to all children. In today’s episode we are discussing what to expect from independent play as well as how to support our children to do it more often. When it comes to independent play, it’s important that we do three things: gauge our expectations as parents; assess the individual personality types of our children; and set them up for success.

The post SFP 139: Q&A – How Do I Get My Kid to Play Independently? appeared first on Simple Families.

About 95% of everything I put on the internet is real life, not staged. The other 5% includes things like the photo in this post, because I generally don’t frolic in fields in pretty dresses. Today I am answering a question from a reader about how much of what I share with you is representative of my real life: my home, my parenting, and the activities I do with my children.

The post SFP 138: Q&A – Is Your Social Media Actually Real Life? appeared first on Simple Families.

I don’t know about you–but my kids have the tendency to move slowly. They function on their own timeline. The result is that as parents, we often find ourselves “hurrying” them to speed up and get on our agenda. In today’s episode I am chatting with Janet Lansbury about hurrying our kids through their days and through their lives.

The post SFP 137: Let’s Stop Hurrying our Children [with Janet Lansbury] appeared first on Simple Families.

Taking the road less traveled is not always simple. During the holiday season the list of obligations grow rapidly and saying “no” can seem out of reach. Today I am chatting with Rachel Rainbolt from Sage Parenting. Rachel and I are talking about the idea of “doing life differently”. Many of us are raising our own families in ways that are different from the way that we ourselves were raised–and it can lead to conflict.

The post SFP 136: Taking the Road Less Traveled [with Rachel from Sage Parenting] appeared first on Simple Families.

Buying new toys for our children can be exciting–but it can also be overwhelming. There are so many options out there and our children are inundated with marketing materials. Today I am chatting with Lizzie Assa from the Workspace for Children. She and her family buy toys outside of the mainstream options–that means they lean towards simple, open-ended toys made of more natural, non-plastic materials.

We are chatting about buying toys that are durable and will hold the interest of children across different ages, genders, and interests.

Lizzie’s Instagram: The Workspace For Children

Lizzie’s Toy Guide

Website

Simple Families Holiday Guide

The post SFP 135: Choosing Great Toys [with Lizzie Assa from The Workspace For Children] appeared first on Simple Families.

We all believe that the holiday season is the happiest time of the year. But is it really? Today I am chatting with Happiness Guru Gretchen Rubin about finding happiness in the holiday season. You may know Gretchen from one of her New York Times bestselling books, her top ranked podcast, or perhaps most importantly her legendary quote, “The days are long, but the years are short”.

In our conversation today Gretchen and I are talking about seeking happiness in the midst of a complex season of expectations, that includes: balancing how we spend our time, gift giving, traveling to visit family/friends, managing “toxic” relationships, and staying connected to the people we love the most.

The post SFP 134: Happier for the Holidays [with Gretchen Rubin] appeared first on Simple Families.