Mindful Moments Blog

3 Bunny Brain Breaks To Increase Emotional Regulation And Academic Learning

by Ashley Patek

Multi-sensory movements specific to eye-teaming, hand-eye coordination, and whole-body awareness changes the architecture of the brain, bolstering social-emotional and academic learning. Here are 3 Bunny Brain Breaks to do with your kiddos this spring (Free Printable!).

Mindful Moments Blog

Accepting Ourselves And Our Children While Embracing Growth And Change

by Rebecca Eanes

The desire to do better can exist in and of itself. It doesn’t have to be driven by a dislike or disgust of who you are now. Here are 3 steps toward self-acceptance.

Mindful Moments Blog

Going With The Flow: Using Improv Games To Teach Flexibility

by Guest Author

Sam struggled with impulse control and emotional processing when he didn't get what he wanted. Does this sound familiar in your home? I created an improv game to help nurture emotional intelligence and bolster flexibility. Get this game and more in our E-Book: 10 Minutes of Play For 10 Days!

Mindful Moments Blog

Mindful Parenting and How It Affects Children

by Alex Petrou

What is mindful parenting? Learn the benefits and practices of this positive parenting style and how you can integrate it into your child's life.

Mindful Moments Blog

Teaching (Not Training) Toddlers To Toilet

by Ashley Patek

Helping children transition from diapers to using the toilet is a big milestone, one often surrounded by stress. Here are tools to guide our tots in toileting without the power struggle.

Mindful Moments Blog

Raising Teens: They're Still Under Construction

by Rebecca Eanes

“Just wait until the teen years,” they’d say. Now I am here, and I get what they were referring to. Teens' fluctuating moods can be hard to deal with, but it's not our fault. Blame it on the brain.

Mindful Moments Blog

There Is No Such Thing As A Bad Child

by Guest Author

As a mother and trauma therapist, I can sniff out social trauma from a mile away.

Mindful Moments Blog

Our Kids Are Listening Even When They Don't Seem Like It

by Ashley Patek

I was starting to lose hope that my three-year-old was actually absorbing anything when I talked to him about emotions or attempted to elicit empathy after he hit or kicked another in a fit of rage. But then this happened, and I realized he had been listening after all.

Mindful Moments Blog

Feeding The Senses Helps Regulate Emotions: Part 1

by Ashley Patek

Learn about your child's sensory system and how dysregulation leads to big emotions. Here are some tools to alert or calm your kiddo's nervous system to help regulate big feelings and behavior.

Mindful Moments Blog

Until The Last

by Ashley Patek

A poem about savoring the little moments of parenting. "No one prepared me for the hardest part of parenting … letting go. Parenting is the longest, most gradual break-up. A story that grows in chapters, filled with firsts that turn into lasts."

Mindful Moments Blog

5 Sensory Activities Better Than Slime

by Ashley Patek

I am no Pinterest mom. Let’s start there. But when I saw a picture of a kiddo playing in a tub of colored noodles, it intrigued me. As an occupational therapist, sensory integration is my jam. Unfortunately, the noodles turned out to be one colossal fail. Here are 5 sensory activities that won’t let you down.

Mindful Moments Blog

If It All Feels Heavy Today, Read This

by Rebecca Eanes

There are millions of beautiful moments in parenting and also, sometimes, it feels hard. If you’re finding yourself in a heavy season today, or if you are having trouble recognizing yourself, here are 5 pieces of encouragement.

Mindful Moments Blog

The Invisible Mother

by Ashley Patek

Poem about Motherhood. "While Motherhood has completely undone her, she has rebuilt herself from the sticks and stones more whole than she could have ever imagined."

Mindful Moments Blog

Ask Andrew: Finding Your People

by Andrew Patterson

Andrew answers today's question: My 14 year-old daughter with autism doesn’t get invited to things and gets mad at her 6 year-old sister because of jealousy, I think. What can I do to help her with this?

Mindful Moments Blog

Parenting Toddlers, Tweens, and Teens Using Time-Ins

by Ashley Patek

Crystal is a mama with a household of toddlers, tweens, and teens where uncontrollable sobbing and outbursts were a daily occurrence, and not just from her three-year-old.

Mindful Moments Blog

Pretending To Be Calm Is Not Helping Our Children

by Rebecca Eanes

Many of us believe that if we can remain calm no matter what and teach our children to do the same then we have successfully mastered self-regulation. But true regulation has nothing to do with achieving a certain state. It's in noticing and responding to whatever emotion you are feeling.

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