The Truth About Effective Parenting
Andrea Ramsay Speers
When I’m working with parents, as we’re discussing some possible responses to kids’ misbehavior, they will often sigh and tell me just how hard it is, or how [...]
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“What Do I Want Them To Learn?”
Andrea Ramsay Speers
The truth of parenting is that every interaction with your children is an opportunity for them to learn. Kids are like little sponges, picking up bits and pieces and putting [...]
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A Parent’s Best Friend
Andrea Ramsay Speers
If there’s only one tip that parents should take to heart, it’s this: be consistent. Regardless of what behavior you’re trying to change or what routine [...]
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Teens Need Their Parents
Andrea Ramsay Speers
As a culture, we assume that the teen years are going to be tough on parents. Somewhere between grade seven or eight and the end of high school, we expect problems. We don’t [...]
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Making Change Happen
Andrea Ramsay Speers
If you’ve ever resolved to be a “better” parent or partner (and who hasn’t?) you may have felt a moment or two of frustration over your lack of [...]
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Happiness At Home: I Have Everything I’ve Ever Dreamed Of. Why Am I Not Happy?
Andrea Ramsay Speers
Signs of Discontent You don’t need a degree in psychology to know when you’re off-track, but sometimes it creeps up on you. It can seem like you wake up one day and realize [...]
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How Do Your Kids Inspire You?
Andrea Ramsay Speers
In what ways do your kids inspire you? Maybe they have an amazing attitude, or a great way of looking at the world when things get tough, or maybe just their outlook on life [...]
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Teaching Our Kids Respect
Andrea Ramsay Speers
Respect is a big words for parents. Usually when we talk about respect, we talk about things like respecting our rules, respecting me as a parent or respecting that when I [...]
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Eliminate Criticism and Minimize Mistakes
Andrea Ramsay Speers
This is the title of a chapter in Rudolph Dreikurs’ classic parenting book Children: The Challenge. It can be a tough concept for a parent to really grasp, though, [...]
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Conversation Basics
Andrea Ramsay Speers
I think every parent wants to raise a polite child. Sometimes how that is defined varies from family to family, but overall, there are some things that we have as a culture [...]
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