“Mr. Fisty”: Part 2
This is Part 2; to read Part 1 of “Mr. Fisty,” please click here. After an exasperated parent coaching client of mine found some relief with his brilliant five-step “Mr. Fisty” process, new developments emerged (as they always do with kids) that caused him to use his creativity to come up with even more strategies […]
“Mr.Fisty”: A Proven New Way to Stop the Pre-Schooler Who Hits
An exasperated parent coaching client plopped onto the couch in my office recently and sighed, “How do I get my 4-year-old son to stop hitting?” At the slightest provocation, his son was hauling off and punching other kids at preschool. Needless to say, this did not go over well with teachers or classmates. The dad […]
Dear Kerry: “Sick of all the Whining”
Dear Kerry, My 12 year old son whines constantly and it drives me absolutely crazy. It’s almost like it’s his default way of speaking. I don’t want to constantly berate him – but I am not sure how to curb the whining? Sick of All the Whining Dear Sick, For better or worse, this seems […]
Standing Up to Teen Defiance
Siblings and rivalry go hand-in-hand so it’s no surprise that 14 year-old Preston taunts and pesters his younger brother, Kyle. Recently, Preston refused to stop pestering his brother and was provoking him by throwing things, hassling him and doing anything he could to elicit a response from his brother just for entertainment. This was much […]
Ask Your Misbehaving Son: “What Kind of Man Do You Want to Grow Up to Be?”
While on vacation recently at the beach, a family of five found themselves having a less than ideal time together. Lying on the beach and doing absolutely NOTHING sounded perfect for the over-worked parents, but the two older boys, James and Liam, wanted ACTION and their little sister Mattie wanted to join in the fun. […]
“I Overreacted and Gave My Child Too Harsh a Consequence…. Now What..?”
Dad: Kerry, I’m a single dad and wondering how I can gracefully back out from having overreacted and given my son a harsher consequence than I should have? He’s 4 and was throwing water out of the bathtub. I got mad and told him he had to go straight to bed with no stories. I […]
One, Two, Boom! Connecting with Your Shared-Custody Child
Do you share custody of your children with their other parent and feel excluded from the other half of their lives? A single dad told me how he didn’t like that he doesn’t know about a full half of his kids’ lives because they are at their mom’s house 50% of the time. This innovative […]
Does That Mean “NO”?
Here is a story of a mom in my class who learned a new skill to not engage in a battle with kids when they’re protesting a limit. That skill is called going “brain dead.” This works with kids of all ages. See what happens when she uses it to neutralize the “buy it for […]
Desperate Situations Require Desperate Measures
A dad I work with had to take his three young sons to a long, boring meeting in an attorney’s office. He was sweating it because his boys were likely to act up. To inspire them to great behavior, he offered the reward of “Candy for dinner and movies till you fall asleep!” Now THAT […]
Close the Refrigerator Door!
After tucking in his three young boys, a single dad walked into the kitchen to find the fridge and freezer doors both wide open with a chair in front of the shelves. It had been his 3 year old in search of an apple an hour earlier. In our parent coaching session the next day, […]