Sustainable Parenting | Positive Discipline for Raising Resilient Kids

Does your toddler grunt, point, or expect you to solve every little problem? If demanding toddler behavior has you feeling like your child's personal assistant, this episode shares a simple shift that can make everyday toddler discipline feel more peaceful and effective. In this episode of Sustainable Parenting Podcast with Flora McCormick , you'll discover why empowerment works better t...

Today's guest is someone who writes straight from the trenches of parenting young kids where big feelings, bedtime battles, and those wildly beautiful, messy moments of connection all collide.  I’m Flora McCormick, licensed therapist and parenting coach, and I’m joined by author Julia Shaw, whose children’s book The Grumpy Wumpus was born straight out of real-life bedtime battles, public blow...

We all find ourselves surprised by how ANGRY our kids can make us.  Nothing can trigger our nervous systems quite like those moments where our kids push our buttons.  Maybe your patience disappears, your heart starts racing, or you find yourself caught in a cycle of parenting stress and reactive parenting.  You are not alone, friend. In this episode of Sustainable Parenting , I’m joined by my old...

Are bedtime battles leaving you exhausted? Do you feel like your entire evening hinges on whether your child stays in bed, comes out of their room, or asks for “just one more thing”? In this episode, I share a powerful mindset shift that has helped many families transform bedtime from a nightly power struggle into a simple, predictable routine. I’ll walk you through why so many of us accidentally...

Summer can be full of fun memories, but it can also bring more sibling squabbles, endless cries of "I'm bored," and days that feel longer than expected. If you're looking for a way to create a little more calm and connection this summer, this episode is for you. In this episode, I'm sharing what I call the Goldilocks Method: finding the sweet spot between being too strict...

Anger, silence, and shutdown can look like “bad communication,” but what if it’s really fear, sadness, and pressure with nowhere to go? I sit down with Bozeman mental health therapist and Pre-licensed therapist, Adam Thorne to pull back the curtain on what men are struggling with right now, especially dads and partners trying to hold it all together. Adam is the host of Forging Forward , who also...

Have you heard of the fatherhood loneliness epidemic? Before talking with Jon Gustin (better known as The Tired Dad ), I had heard the phrase—but I hadn’t fully stopped to think about what it actually means. Because when we talk about exhausted parents, overwhelmed parents, or the mental load of parenting… we often focus on moms. But what about dads? What happens when fathers are trying to carry p...

Mother’s Day can stir up a lot, and not all of it is pretty. I’m opening my journal and letting you hear what early motherhood actually sounded like inside my head: the postpartum body changes I didn’t expect, the embarrassment I carried in silence, and the bone deep sleep deprivation that made every “simple” fix feel like a personal failure. If you’ve ever wondered why you feel overwhelmed even w...

Everyone’s talking about Mel Robbins’ “Let Them” philosophy … and honestly? Parents might need it most. 👏 Your child talks back.  They stomp upstairs.  They roll their eyes.  They grumble about the boundary. And every part of you wants to jump in with: “How DARE you talk to me like that?!” …but what if the better move is: Let them. Not because disrespect is okay. Not because we’re permissive. But...

Ever threatened something ridiculous in the heat of a parenting moment… like canceling Christmas ? You’re not alone. In this episode of the Sustainable Parenting Podcast , Flora McCormick shares a powerful shift that helps parents discipline without yelling, threatening, or escalating power struggles with kids . After working with a dad of three who found himself regularly reaching for extreme pun...

About to Yell? Try This 2-Minute Reset That Helps Calm, Confident Parents Stay Firm Ever notice how yelling at your kids often happens right after you promised yourself you wouldn’t do it again? You start calm… then repeat yourself… then repeat yourself again… and suddenly your voice is louder than you intended. If you're wondering how to stop yelling at your kids , this episode offers a simp...

Have you ever found yourself thinking, Why are we handling this so differently? Maybe you and your partner don't always agree on how to respond to your kids, and those parenting differences leave you feeling disconnected or frustrated. In this episode of the Sustainable Parenting podcast with Flora McCormick , I'm sharing a simple 15-minute weekly habit that helps my husband and me stay...

If gentle parenting has left you stuck in endless negotiating, second-guessing every “no,” and feeling like your child’s emotions run the whole house, this episode introduces a different path. Welcome to the 2026 parenting shift: Hybrid Parenting. In this episode of the Sustainable Parenting Podcast , parenting coach and counselor Flora McCormick explains why many families are moving beyond tradit...

Many parents are exhausted by one surprising reason...  These loving and well-intentioned parents are spending huge amounts of energy explaining, debating, and trying to convince their child to accept a “no.”  The result?  More arguing, less cooperation, and parents ending the day completely drained. In this episode of the Sustainable Parenting Podcast , parenting coach and licensed counselor Flor...

“What if sass isn’t disrespect… it’s a missing skill?” If you have a “sassy sister” or a child with a sharp tone in your home, you’re not alone. Many parents feel stuck in daily power struggles with kids who sound demanding, disrespectful, or constantly push back. But what if sass isn’t a character flaw… and is actually a missing communication skill? In this episode of the Sustainable Parenting Po...

Spring Break is supposed to be fun… so why does it so often turn into power struggles, sugar crashes, and exhausted parents snapping in hotel rooms? If you’ve ever planned a family vacation hoping for connection and memory-making — and instead found yourself negotiating screen time, battling over treats, and managing endless meltdowns— this episode is for you. In today’s conversation, I’m sharing...

Ever feel like a tiny terrorist runs your house? We’ve been there. Today we get honest about how well-meaning empathy can slide into indulgence, why that shift burns parents out, and how to reclaim calm authority without losing your warmth. Our focus is the sturdy middle ground—kindness and firmness at the same time—so kids feel seen and still meet clear, respectful limits. We start by naming the...

If one of your kids is pushing every button you have—and you’re wondering why parenting feels so hard with them lately—this episode is for you. Drawing from Positive Discipline and the wisdom of Rudolf Dreikurs, we explore what children are really asking for when their behavior feels irritating, defiant, or attention-seeking. Often, it’s a need for significance and belonging —not stricter conseque...

In this Valentine’s-season episode of the Sustainable Parenting Podcast, I share simple positive parenting strategies that help children truly feel loved while strengthening connection and cooperation.  We explore how small, intentional gestures can meet kids’ emotional needs and support calm confident parenting—without lectures, yelling, or power struggles. You’ll learn: how positive character fe...

Are you feeling overwhelmed trying to raise kind kids in an unkind world? Between constant headlines, cultural tension, and everyday parenting struggles, many parents are asking the same question: How do I raise compassionate, resilient kids who will make the world a better place? In this episode of the Sustainable Parenting Podcast , I share my number one tip for raising kind, caring humans—espec...

What if owning less could help you parent with more calm, confidence, and connection? In this episode of the Sustainable Parenting Podcast , Flora McCormick sits down with Joshua Becker of Simplify Magazine to explore how minimalism supports dependable calm, and deeper relationships with ourselves and our kids.  We talk about how clutter quietly fuels stress, power struggles, and yelling — and how...

What do we do when our kids are disrespectful — they aren't listening, and they have attitude — and it starts draining the life out of us? This week on the Sustainable Parenting Podcast , I’m joined by my husband for a candid, coffee-on-the-couch conversation about disrespectful behavior in kids , the number one frustration I hear from dads in parent coaching. Together, we explore why this is...

What if setting family goals didn’t feel overwhelming—or like one more thing to get right? In this episode, I’m sharing a gentle, realistic approach to setting family goals for 2026 that offer direction without pressure and intention without perfection. Instead of rigid resolutions or systems that fall apart by February, we talk about how families can choose a shared target—and allow the path ther...

Screens often show up as gifts—but they come with big questions. In this episode, we talk honestly about kids’ tech, family values, and how to decrease those overwhelming tantrums over tech.  If you’re focused on raising confident kids while keeping tech in its place, this episode will support you. If you have struggled to know where to set boundaries on tech, this will give you those clear guardr...

Power struggles don’t end because we find the perfect argument; they end because someone helps the room feel safe again. We unpack a practical, science-backed shift from control to connection that brings cooperation faster and with far less effort.  Drawing on HeartMath’s research on heart coherence, Bruce Perry’s state-dependent brain science , and Ross Greene’s collaborative problem solving , we...