If you’ve been a reader of my email newsletter, Bright-Kids, you’re aware that Dr. Scott Turansky and Joanne Miller from Effective Parenting are frequent contributors.And if you live in the Seattle/Tacoma area of Washington state, you might be interested in attending a free Effective Parenting video seminar at my church in Auburn, WA during the summer (the first one is this Wednesday, June 4th).
We’ll also be conducting a Vacation Bible School at the end of July for children (AND their parents!) using these same honor-based parenting techniques and ideas.
For complete details, go to:
http://snurl.com/parentingseminar
Using drama, stories, humor, and scripture, Dr. Scott Turansky and Joanne Miller share practical ways to address some of the most common problems in family life. Filmed before a live audience of parents and children, these practical sessions will challenge you in creative and insightful ways and show you how honor can transform your family.
Honor is more than just behavior change. Honor comes from the heart. It affects the way people think, the way they act, and the way they treat others around them. Honor motivates parents to treat children differently. It gives children more constructive ways to interact with their parents. It helps siblings develop tolerance and patience. Honor builds incredibly strong bonds that, in turn, benefit all members of the family.
“Say Goodbye to Whining, Complaining, and Bad Attitudes … in You and Your Kids” offers a hands-on approach with specific ideas and strategies to change the way your family relates. As you implement these ideas, you will see amazing results and your family will grow closer together.
Hope you can make it if you live in the great Puget Sound area. 
And if you don’t live close enough to attend the seminar in person, you can get much of the same great information in the book of the same name. Just click on the book’s cover image (above) in this post to order.
I’ve been told it takes four to six weeks for any action to become a habit. So, keeping that in mind, one way I’m going to insure my success at keeping my New Year’s resolutions this year is by working on only one new habit at a time each month. Then, every time I turn to a new calendar page, I’ll work on developing a different good habit.
For many families, the expenses of the holidays create additional financial stress. Are you wondering how you’ll manage?
It’s an inductive Advent calendar and study guide written by my former Precept Bible Study leader when I lived in Olympia, WA several years ago. She wrote it to use with her grandkids several years ago, but now shares an updated version of it each year for free online. Eleanor’s the best. 
In the near future, I’m going to be starting an email newsletter called “Solo Parents” which will be published in conjunction with 
Do you find yourself sitting by helplessly while your very own little picky eater works her way through every ounce of spaghetti sauce, picking out the almost microscopic bits of cooked onion?
Why does Dad get the kids in bed faster than Mom? Or, why do children respond differently in the classroom, on the playground, and in the home? The answer to these questions has a number of parts but one piece of the puzzle is what we call an action point.
When a relationship ends, there is an important transition from partners to parents. This can be an awkward and painful process that is not always easy to manage. You will be creating a new way of relating to each other at a difficult time. Empathy and patience is needed along with a commitment to clear boundaries. 
When I work with clients, I often hear them say that a business relationship sounds distant and cold after having shared a life together. Others are horrified by the idea that they should be polite to someone who they feel has hurt them so much. If you think about relationships and communication that you can have with a co-workers or a customer, there can be genuineness and a positive feeling but there are also clear boundaries. There are unspoken rules about how you speak to each other and what you will or won’t talk about.
Consider one example of a man who had left the relationship after his affair. His former partner was devastated and they went through a rocky period. After some months she invited him for dinner to try to put the past behind. He saw this as a sign that they could now be friends. With good humor, he told her that it would be good for her if she went out more and asked if she had started seeing anyone. This opened up an old wound for her — “How dare he rub my nose in the affair!” she thought – leading to a strong reaction. He realised his comment was out of place but was offended by her strong reaction – “I don’t deserve this? What’s wrong with her?” – then he angrily retaliated. So much for the dinner!
In our modern Western society, a single mother’s value is often overlooked and worse, taken for granted. She’s able to handle the pressures of single parenting, along with all the other responsibilities that go hand in hand with caring for a family. Acceptance of the unique needs of a single parent is contrary to the expectations of our society.
Most single mothers live the treadmill existence. They work at least one full-time job – and often a part-time job – in order to satisfy the financial needs of the family. After the demands of the outside jobs are satisfied, they must come home to care for the home and family.
When my husband of 25+ years was suddenly diagnosed three years ago with a fatal degenerative brain disorder (