Reflective Parenting Podcast

Send us Fan Mail Happy New Year Curious Neuron Parents!  I hope you had a wonderful holiday. In today's episode, I reflect on some aspects of my holidays that you might have experienced and I share my 2023 goals.  Here is what I chatted about:  Should kids use a screen the entire time they are with the family during family gatherings? What my husband did when my 3-year-old didn't want to...

Send us Fan Mail Content warning: Sexual abuse We need to talk about this. We need to learn how to protect our children from sexual predictors.  I reached out to author Jayneen Sanders to learn more about what we can do to protect our kids.  Here is what we discussed: Questions you should ask your daycare about how they teach kids body safety (all daycare should!) We revisit parts of our last conv...

Send us Fan Mail This is not your conventional toy and app review. I will name a few that I love (not sponsored), however, I want to give you a framework to help you choose them on your own! First, I review what play should look like in our homes. Open-ended and self-directed play is the best! I review some of our favorite toy companies and give you a list of TYPES of items and toys you can includ...

Send us Fan Mail The word I would like you to remember today is "dysregulated". Is my child dysregulated? Am I dysregulated? How can I regulate my child? The reason why I am chatting about this in today's podcast is that I attended this outdoor event this week and as the night went on and the children around me clearly became dysregulated, they started acting out and parents started...

Send us Fan Mail Content warning: sexual violence, sex industry, difficult conversations In today’s episode we are joined by Sarah Jones , Tony winner writer, performer and director of Sell Buy Date. Sarah and I had very important and uncomfortable conversations about sex, the sex industry, sex education, and gendered violence. You might be thinking, “what does this have to do with being a parent?...

Send us Fan Mail Perhaps you are looking forward to the holidays or perhaps you are not.  Unwanted comments from family members judging how you are parenting your child, big emotions from your child because they are tired and overwhelmed, and hanging out with that family member that always drinks too much and says uncomfortable comments. (sigh) In today's episode, I chatted with child psychol...

Send us Fan Mail In today's episode of the Curious Neuron podcast, I chatted with Amira Allen, Ph. D. and visiting professor at Drake University along with 3 parents (2 moms and 1 dad). We discuss the research behind paid leave and the benefits it brings to not only the parents but the children as well. However, we all know the benefits of paid leave, but do you know how many months many pare...

Send us Fan Mail In today's episode, I share the tough night I had with my 3-year-old as a reminder that kids can actually learn how to regulate their emotions but that they need our guidance and it comes in baby steps. My son wasn't happy that he had to take his bath and go to bed. He was dancing and having fun. It took over an hour to regulate aka calm him down and guess what...I didn&...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode, we’re joined by Amy Morin, psychologist and author of 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do. Today we focus on how we as parents can be mentally strong. Being a parent is really hard, and sometimes we can set ourselves up for success by realizing things we are and aren’t doing. Amy has a great way of putting things into perspective & she makes working o...

Send us Fan Mail Hi friends! You don't want to miss this conversation I had with 2 dads.  Both are following positive parenting and have been doing the work to do things differently than how they were raised.  They touched on so many points that need to become conversations in our society. Whether you are a dad, mom, or grandparent, this episode will offer you lots to think of and conversatio...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode, we are joined by Emily Calandrelli from Emily’s Wonder Lab! Emily is an MIT engineer turned Emmy-nominated science TV host, producer, and Author. Like me, she was a first-generation university student, meaning she was the first in her family to get a degree. What I find most interesting is that Emily wasn’t particularly into science as a child - but being creat...

Send us Fan Mail Parenting is hard…period.  We all know this. We tell our friends too, yet when we are alone we are so hard on ourselves.  Let’s bring back self-compassion. Maybe you messed up these past few years and yelled more than you would like. Maybe you said something you regret today. Maybe you haven’t been yourself and neglected your mental health. Or perhaps you missed the signs of your...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode, we meet with Bryana Kappadakunnel from @consciousmommy. We’re doing things a little differently this week: we’re covering the TOP 10 questions that parents ask me about their child’s behaviour. Tune in to hear how Bryana would deal with rudeness, hitting, whining, trouble sleeping, lying, ungratefulness and constant interrupting. I love how Bryana gives us a fr...

Send us Fan Mail In today's solo episode, I discuss something I experienced after giving birth to my first child. I could not stop thinking about the fact that life isn't forever. Now that I had a baby and my life meant everything to me, I was faced with realizing that I will not live forever.  I share a story about my grandfather and what he said on his deathbed and how this changed the...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode, we are joined by Dr. Emily Coffey who researches music, language, sleep, and how it relates to neuroplasticity. Have you ever wondered if you should be signing your child up for music lessons? Or if your child should learn more than one language at a time? What about how your brain might be influenced by sleep? All of these common questions are discussed in tod...

Send us Fan Mail Something happened with my 7-year that led me to re-evaluate what I was saying to her with regards to her needs and boundaries. I wanted to share this story with you in a quick podcast episode (it's about 10 min!). Perhaps you will be able to relate to this and readjust how you are approaching these situations. Especially if you have an older child that likes to keep their yo...

Send us Fan Mail As new parents, we have tons of questions! My brother-in-law is expecting his new child and I asked him what his questions were. This podcast episode is dedicated to him and is for all parents expecting or with a child under 2 months old. When do you start tummy time? How often should you do skin-to-skin? What did my own labors look like for all 3 of my kids and what are the signs...

Send us Fan Mail Content warning: death, death of family members and pets, suicide In today’s episode, we are joined by Dr. Elena Lister and Dr. Michael Schwartzman authors of Giving Hope: Conversations with Children About Illness, Death and Loss. During this conversation, we approach many questions from the Curious Neuron community about death, and how to talk to your children about death. Dr. Li...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode, we are joined by Dr. Simón Guendelman. We discuss what emotional regulation actually is, how self compassion can change your brain and parenting, and how scientists are studying this. This episode is a bit research heavy - so take out your Curious Neuron notebooks! Simón shares with us some common myths about mindfulness and explains how even if you don’t have...

Send us Fan Mail In today's solo episode, we discuss discipline and parenting styles and compare this to prison in Cyprus. This prison changed from a punitive system to a person-centred approach which brought the re-offending rate from over 50% down to 15%.  I don't want to discuss whether or not this should be the method used in prisons, I am comparing this to our discussion about paren...

Send us Fan Mail In today's solo episode, I share what I saw on my family vacation at Walt Disney World. One child got spanked, one got kicked and one had water tossed onto their face. We need to rethink what discipline is as a society and more importantly, we need to re-learn emotion regulation skills. It is ok to have a moment when you lose control and yell, but physical aggression, verbal...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode, we are joined by Jess and Nicole, early childhood educators who focus on the mindset around math. It is a very common problem that children and families struggle with both learning and teaching math. Join us to understand the most important skills you can prepare your child with before sending them to pre-K or kindergarten – hint, it’s not memorizing their numb...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode we are joined by Dr. Sarah Bren, clinical psychologist and mom of 2. She gives us a whole new perspective on discipline, attachment and setting boundaries. Dr. Bren shows us the importance of disciplining a child – tune in to better understand what her definition of discipline really is – in order to build a secure attachment. She discusses how YOUR self-regulat...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode, we are joined by Dr. Mona Delahooke, Ph. D. child psychologist to discuss reframing how you understand your child’s behavior – with curiosity and compassion. Learn why Dr. Delahooke believes self-compassion and co-regulation is the proper response to a child’s tantrum. We discuss the loneliness of being a mother and how we can be mindful of the feelings, but no...

Send us Fan Mail Transitioning into daycare can be stressful for both the parents and the child. In today's episode (the final episode of season 3!), I discuss the research around daycare transitions also known as the adaptation phase. I discuss how to help a child build a connection with their new caregiver and what I believe should be the procedure in all daycares. If your daycare can'...