Decide What You Will Do
Andrea Ramsay Speers
We spend a lot of our time as parents trying to “make” our kids do things. Whether it’s making them hurry up, pick up after themselves, be polite, or make the bed, a lot of [...]
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5 Ways To Really Listen To Your Kids
Andrea Ramsay Speers
Parents generally consider themselves to be good listeners, but we may actually be practicing bad listening habits, without even knowing it. Here are some tips for improving [...]
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Ask One, Then The Other
Andrea Ramsay Speers
How do you handle a child who doesn’t take “no” for an answer, but instead quietly goes to the other parent and asks the same question? Kids can be crafty, [...]
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Do We Need Intuition In Parenting?
Andrea Ramsay Speers
Who do you trust for information about raising your children? Your doctor, your mom, your girlfriends, the internet? Who do you receive information and advice from (whether [...]
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“Because I Said So!”
Andrea Ramsay Speers
Who among us did not hear that as a kid? And who finds themselves saying it to their own kids now? Children can really wear you down, and some of them are more persistent [...]
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Catch Them Being Good
Andrea Ramsay Speers
It seems to be in our nature to notice the bad. Whether we’re cataloguing the things we would change about ourselves, the mistakes we have made, or why life isn’t perfect, we [...]
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Mistakes Happen
Andrea Ramsay Speers
Nobody’s perfect; we all know that. But it would appear that the best way to motivate children and get them to modify their behaviour is by paying less attention to their [...]
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Express Yourself
Andrea Ramsay Speers
I spend a lot of time with my psychotherapy clients focusing on communication. I’m not sure that I’ve ever had a couple come for couples therapy that has NOT brought up “poor [...]
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Kids and Stress
Andrea Ramsay Speers
What are the symptoms of stress? You can probably name a few that you recognize in yourself – irritability, emotionality, trouble sleeping, inability to concentrate – but what [...]
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Happiness At Home Newsletter: You Can Build Your People Skills
Andrea Ramsay Speers
How would you like to get along even better with others in your personal relationships and in the workplace? Getting along well with people sounds kind of general and is [...]
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