How to Negotiate Where to Spend the Holidays as a Newly Married Couple

holiday

Wondering where to spend the holidays as a newly married couple? As the song goes, “Over the river and through the woods to Grandmother’s house we go.” The question this year is, “To which Grandmother’s house to go?” One discussion I encourage pre-marriage and newly married couples to have, especially this … Read More

The Lions’ Den: A Survivalist Guide To Holidays

survivalist

Why do you need to be a survivalist during the holidays? We love to be with our family, but we hate the conflict. We can’t stay away and have to brace ourselves before walking into holiday family gatherings. It can feel like entering a lions’ den. Walking through the lions’ … Read More

The Power of Play

play

Kids look like small adults. At times, they may even sound like mini grownups–especially when they get a little sassy or parrot back a parents’ own words to them. External resemblance aside, kids process things much differently from adults. Kids’ brains haven’t matured to the same place that an adult … Read More

Divorce 911: Normalize Your Emotions

fight

Recently, GROW Counseling and Dr. Wendy Dickinson partnered with Divorce 911 to create a few short videos addressing common themes in divorce. In this video, they discuss the topic of “normalizing” your emotions.

What exactly is adolescence?

teenagers

For many parents, understanding a bit about their teenager’s brain development can be helpful in navigating the sometimes difficult adolescent years. But first, what exactly are the adolescent years? What does the term “adolescence” even mean? Researchers and scientists have had a pretty difficult time coming to a consensus definition. … Read More

Back to School!

major

Transitioning from summertime to a new school year can be a stressful time for both kids and parents. Children and teens must adjust to a new schedule, new teachers, friendship changes, new work expectations, and maybe even a new school! Parents must help them navigate all of those changes while … Read More

Parenting: Creating a Happy Home – Part 3

This blog series is continuing to explore concepts that will help parents to build a home that adult children want to come home to. In the previous two parts of this series, we explored structure vs. spontaneity and listening vs. lecturing. Both of these concepts are fundamental to building a … Read More

Setting Boundaries in the Teen years

setting boundaries with teens

Parenting can be incredibly challenging! Each stage of a child’s development brings its own unique joys and difficulties, especially when it comes to setting boundaries. The teenage years, in particular, can be testing, as adolescents experiment with different identities and embrace new freedoms, while parents must adjust to their child … Read More

Parenting: Creating a Happy Home – Part 1

I recently read a blog about building a home that children want to come back to. Parents walk a tight rope when it comes to parenting. Some parents hover over their children in order to protect them from perceived harsh realties of this world. Other parents believe that it is … Read More