Parenting is a Practice

"Help! My partner/spouse isn't into conscious parenting. What can I do to help get them on board with out feeling like I'm telling them what to do?" Differences in perspectives with your partner can feel like one of the greatest barriers to creating a peaceful home. When they yell, punish, or give after you've been working hard to implement more conscious and intentional practices it can feel like a punch in the gut. We can't control our partners, and I don't think we need to...but we can influence, model behaviors, and communicate our perspectives. In this episode, I welcome my very first guest-- my husband, Mr. Charlie Gorman himself! Drawing from our personal experiences and challenges, Charlie and I delve into practical tips and insightful advice that have proven effective in our own parenting journey. We open up about our original plans for harsher punishments and consequences for our kids compared to what discipline looks like in our house now, and how my conscious parenting journey helped get us here. And Charlie gives his honest feedback on what does and doesn't work for him when it comes to me sharing my "expertise" at home. From establishing open lines of communication to fostering empathy and understanding, we discuss the often tricky terrain of encouraging a partner to embrace new parenting approaches while respecting their individual perspectives.

In this episode of "Solicited Advice," join me as we explore the challenges of staying present with and making time for meaningful connection with our kids. I get real about my personal journey and the struggles I face in being fully present in the moment with my children and the guilt I feel when I start believing I'm not doing enough. We dive into the importance of active listening, eliminating distractions, and engaging in joint attention activities that foster deeper connections. Tune in for practical strategies and heartfelt insights that will empower you to enhance the quality of your time with your children. Let's embark on this journey together, and unlock the power of being fully present for our kids.

In this episode, I discuss the four ways that fear often shows up in parenting and how we can work to intentionally managing them so that we can respond instead of react to our kids' behaviors and emotions. I share a real story of how I continue to practice self-awareness and acknowledge all truth that some part of me still desires to have perfect, well-behaved kids.

In this episode I answer a listener question and share my thoughts on how to lead with YES, instead of NO, and still have a peaceful home. I share my three steps for re-evaluating my "NOs" and how to make room for curiosity and flexibility to invite cooperation and reduce conflict. I also reference the Gottman's Magic Ratio of 5:1. The research was conducted with married couples in a conflict, however its findings have been adopted by those seeking healthy relationships with children, friends, and loved ones alike. Rest assured, it isn't always about saying yes but being intentional about having your POSITIVE interactions with your child outweigh the NEGATIVE by 5:1. Its a lofty goal and it isn't a perfect science, but if I can keep it in mind I am confident that my relationship with my child will only benefit. Learn more about the Magic Ratio here and here.

In this episode I discuss the second core mindset that I hold to help me stay on track in my conscious parenting journey: "My Boundary, My Responsibility". I explain the importance of supporting our kids to meet our expectations instead of shaming them into compliance. I share real examples of how this mindset plays out in my day to day with my kids and why I believe holding boundaries for ourselves is a gift for our kids. Also, this episode is 36 minutes. I know, I know...I went 6 minutes over. It (probably) won't happen again! Let's Connect: Email: [email protected] IG: @sparetherodparenting & @solicitedadvicepod Want to support the podcast? https://www.buymeacoffee.com/sparetherod

On this episode, I share the 1st of 5 mindsets that I hold to help me feel confident and empowered on my conscious parenting journey. Perfection in parenting (and in general) is a myth, so I'm normalizing the very real struggle we all have with feeling like a failure and sharing how I bounce back when I feel like I've dropped the ball.  Do you have a parenting question or challenge you'd like for me to address on future episodes? Send me a message on Instagram (@solicitedadvicepod) or email me at [email protected] .