My first impression of the Clifton StrengthsFinder promoted by the Gallup organization was decidedly negative. “What’s the point in yet another personality test?” I thought. After all, wasn’t I trying to refrain from putting people – particularly my children – in neat little boxes? Besides, even though the StrengthsFinder assessment had revolutionized the way my husband interacted with his team at work,…

Disciplining In Love“Love looks out for the interests of another; so does discipline. So discipline is certainly an act of love. And the more a child feels loved, the easier it is to discipline that child.”Gary Chapman and Ross Campbell begin chapter eight of ‘The Five Love Languages of Children’ reiterating that every aspect of a relationship with our kids is easier…

After introducing the reader to the five love languages (Physical Touch, Words of Affirmation, Gifts, Quality Time, Acts of Service) in ‘The Five Love Languages of Children,” Gary Chapman and Ross Campbell show how to discover your child's primary love language.By understanding the primary type of love that drives our children, we can better meet their emotional needs and love them in…

You love your child. But how can you show it so they really feel loved? This question headlines the back of Gary Chapman and Ross Campbell’s book, The 5 Love Languages of Children.Chapman’s first book, The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts, sold millions of copies as he helped couples discover the five types of love in order to better…

“I’ll admit that with five children, there have been times when I’ve simply parented ‘the herd,’ says Jill in No More Perfect Kids. “I’ve seen them as a group rather than the individuals they are.”I struggle with this too. Sometimes it takes all I’ve got just to plow through laundry, dinner prep, homework help for the older kids, and bedtime routines for…

When I first heard a podcast about No More Perfect Kids, the phrase “perfection infection” caught my attention right away. It is so easy for the comparison game rampant in our culture to slowly infiltrate our homes. Under the guise of seeking excellence and preparing our kids for the “real world,” we often raise the bar of expectations too high.I love this…

A tendency toward perfection invaded my motherhood even before I brought my first born home from the hospital. I was determined to have a “natural” childbirth. No interventions. No meds.Two weeks past my due date, however, our bundle of joy had yet to arrive. I reluctantly allowed my doctor to break my water. “Ok,” I thought, “I can still do this.”Fast forward…

As we give our kids more choices, showing empathy when their unwise decisions result in consequences is what Jim Fay and Foster Cline propose as a recipe for success in “Parenting with Love & Logic”.One of Fay’s most common parenting battles was getting his kids to go to sleep at night, a struggle which many of us can relate to. He spent…

One of the ways “Parenting with Love & Logic” proposes we move our kids from total dependence on us to independence is by giving them choices.Foster Cline, M.D. and Jim Fay open the sixth chapter of their book, “Love & Logic” by stating that giving our kids a certain amount of freedom and control instills them with responsibility and the more control…

“Many kids arrive at their challenging and life-threatening teenage years with no clue as to how to make decisions.”Foster Cline, M.D. and Jim Fay open their book, “Parenting With Love & Logic” pointing to the fact that many self-destructive decisions teenagers and young adults make are because they are the first real decisions they’ve ever made. Growing up, decisions were made for…