In Part 1 of this series I took a look at Missed Opportunities For Teaching Children. Missed it? You can find it here: https://jenniemazzajones.com/part-1-missed-opportunities-for-teaching-children/. Now, I want to take a look at some things we may be doing and their unintended consequences. Because kids learn more from what we do than what we say. Because they are constantly watching us, looking to us for the next move; they are continually learning from our role modeling. Even though ...read more

I just finished watching season 2 of 13 Reasons Why. It was intense and I am not going to get into the nuances of the whole season here. There is just too much to cover. Anyway, when you see the part I am choosing to focus on you will probably be surprised. And don’t worry for those of you who haven’t gotten to Season 2 yet. There’s no spoiler alert here. To set the scene, Zach is having a fight with his mom about why he doesn’t talk to her about the way he feels. Verbatim: Mrs. ...read more

My almost 2 year old recently started spitting. Literally just spitting. I was washing the dishes and I heard a sputtering sound. I turned around, and the floor in front of him was covered in bubbly liquid. My immediate thought?... “WTF?!” And then I sternly said “The floor is not for spitting on.” He looked at me, and spit again. I scooped him up, which was inconvenient because I was right in the middle of trying to get the dishes done, and tried to explain to him why he could not spit ...read more

The wake of tragic events can leave children terrified and adults feeling helpless. School is supposed to be a safe place yet people are being killed and threats are being made. Some kids are afraid to go to school. Some parents are afraid to let them. It seems impossible to know what to do or say. The following are some tips to help guide adults while communicating with children about these scary events: It’s important for parents to remember that they are the expert on their child. ...read more

Check out our latest guest post! Dr. Laura Markham is the founder of AhaParenting.com and author of Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids: How To Stop Yelling and Start Connecting and Peaceful Parent, Happy Siblings: How to Stop the Fighting and Raise Friends for Life. Her site offers a ton of helpful information about kids and parenting at different ages and developmental stages. Check it out at www.ahaparenting.com "I give my kids plenty of attention. What's so special about Special Time?" - ...read more

As a society we are constantly inundated with information. This is a beautiful thing. We, quite literally, have countless tools at our finger (or thumb) tips. And can gain access to resources that give us answers like never before. Don’t know? Just Google it. In so many ways, this has made our lives much easier. Just ask anyone who used to have to go to the library to look something up in an Encyclopedia. But despite this, sometimes I am left feeling more confused. Less able to glean ...read more

I recently re-joined the gym. The next step in my goal of an overall healthy lifestyle. An action step that is only a piece of the metaphorical, and ironic, “pie” that is this lifestyle change. A pie that includes multiple other pieces. Some big, some small. Some easy, some hard. Some eaten with vigor and excitement, others choked down with resentment. Some forgotten about, requiring diligence and reminders. Others easily accomplished. All intentional. Anyway, while I was reveling in the ...read more

The holidays are a time for connection. Celebrating faith in whatever way that means to you and yours. A time to take a break from the hustle and bustle and settle in with the ones we love. Does this sound like your vision of the holidays? While this is how many of us want the holidays to pan out, our reality may be different. Sometimes we can’t be with the ones we love. Or, on the contrary, sometimes being with the ones we love for too long can be overwhelming. Already busy schedules get ...read more

Picture this, you overslept because you stayed up binge watching Netflix. You skip breakfast so you can make it to work on time but get stuck in traffic. Your boss scolded you in front of co-workers for missing a meeting, and you spilled coffee on your shirt before a presentation with no time to change (not that it would mater because you forget your extra shirt at home anyway). You just want to change into your PJs and crawl into bed when you get home. But you’re a parent, and you have ...read more

We’ve all seen it. Some of us may have even done it. When we’ve just about had it. When we want other people to see what we have to put up with. Or when it’s just too funny to not share. The “It” I am talking about is recording your child having a tantrum. Before we look at the “why not,” let’s look at why a child tantrums to begin with. (A small caveat, I am speaking in generalities here. There could be a host of other reasons behind your child’s tantrum and that’s where knowing your ...read more