Quotes About Parenting

So one extreme is chaos, where there's a total lack of control. The other extreme is rigidity, where there's too much control, leading to a lack of flexibility and adaptability. We all move back and forth between these two banks as we go through our days—especially as we're trying to survive parenting

deep, empathic connection can and should be combined with clear and firm boundaries that create needed structure in children's lives.

canoes, and they float down their own river of well-being. Many of the challenges we face as parents result from the times when our kids aren't in the flow, when they're either too chaotic or too rigid.

the inappropriate use of what we can call "punishment time-outs" frequently just makes children angrier and more dysregulated, leaving them even less able to control themselves or think about what they've done.

research is really clear on this point. Kids who achieve the best outcomes in life—emotionally, relationally, and even educationally—have parents who raise them with a high degree of connection and nurturing, while also communicating and maintaining clear limits and high expectations.

Recordemos que son muchas las maneras de malcriar a los hijos —darles demasiadas cosas, rescatarlos de toda situación difícil, privarles de cualquier oportunidad para afrontar el fracaso y la decepción—, pero darles demasiado amor o atención no es una de ellas.

Simply by drawing your child's attention to other people's emotions during everyday encounters, you can open up whole new levels of compassion within them and exercise their upstairs brain. Scientists are beginning more and more to think

we parent, and especially when we discipline, we need to work hard to understand our children's points of view, their developmental stage, and what they are ultimately capable of.

do we want to teach our kids that the way to resolve a conflict is to inflict physical pain, particularly on someone who is defenseless and cannot fight back?

I know you're sad, and I understand that you want to ride with me. I would like that, too. But we can't make that work today. Would you like to climb in or would you like Daddy to help you get in the car now? Daddy will be with you to comfort you on the way to school. I love you and I'll see you this afternoon." And with that, the front-porch situation ended, with Tim holding a crying Nina as he carried her to his car.

Kids whose parents talk to them about their feelings also develop a more robust emotional intelligence and can therefore be better at noticing and understanding their own and other people's feelings. Neurons that fire together wire together, changing the changeable brain.

As parents become more aware and emotionally healthy, their children reap the rewards and move toward health as well. That means that integrating and cultivating your own brain is one of the most loving and generous gifts you can give your children.

When we give a child the opportunity to decide how he should act, rather than simply telling him what he should do, he becomes a better decision maker. And that's one of the ultimate goals of parenting, isn't it?

However, if we truly love our kids and want what's best for them, we need to be able to tolerate the tension and discomfort they (and we) may experience when we set a limit. We want to say yes to our children as often as possible, but sometimes saying no is the most loving thing we can do.

parenting matters, even to the extent of influencing our inborn and genetically shaped temperament.

Our kids don't usually lash out at us because they're simply rude, or because we're failures as parents. They usually lash out because they don't yet have the capacity to regulate their emotional states and control their impulses.

when your seven-year-old becomes defiant and calls you "Fart-face Jones" after you tell him it's time to leave his playdate, he's actually saying, "I need skill building when it comes to handling myself well and communicating my disappointment respectfully when I don't get my way." By misbehaving, kids actually communicate to us what they need to be working on—what has not yet been developed or what specific skills they need practice with.

When children are securely attached to their parents, they feel safe enough to test that relationship. In

We all move back and forth between these two banks as we go through our days—especially as we're trying to survive parenting. When we're closest to the banks of chaos or rigidity, we're farthest from mental and emotional health. The longer we can avoid either bank, the more time we spend enjoying the river of well-being.

recae en ti la responsabilidad de aprender a ofrecer tu presencia de formas que te empoderen en grado sumo a ti como progenitor y fomenten en tu hijo la resiliencia y la fortaleza. Es este poder de la presencia lo que nos permite crear una mente empoderada para nuestros hijos… incluso si metemos la pata con regularidad.

las experiencias que proporciones en el contexto de la relación con tu hijo moldearán literalmente la estructura física de su cerebro.

When we become parents we are given an incredible opportunity to grow as individuals because we ourselves are put back into an intimate parent-child relationship, this time in a different role.

Como pronto explicaremos, las investigaciones longitudinales sobre desarrollo infantil muestran que uno de los mejores predictores para saber cómo será nuestro hijo –en cuanto a felicidad, desarrollo social y emocional, dotes de liderazgo, relaciones significativas e incluso éxito académico y profesional– es si ha adquirido seguridad por tener al menos una persona que estuviera presente para él.

What do you really want for your children? What qualities do you hope they develop and take into their adult lives? Most likely you want them to be happy, independent, and successful. You want them to enjoy fulfilling relationships and live a life full of meaning and purpose. Now think about what percentage of your