Garden of Edynn Child Care

At the garden of Edynn lasy week we started pineapple plants.. made self portraits and made some binoculars for the nature walks🥰

Summer is here! We are open!
today at Garden of Edynn we went around and named the houseplants… now when the kids come in they will greet them😊…

Dorothy Law Nolte was a parent educator, family counselor and pioneer in the field of positive child development. She is also a writer know for this inspirational poem that was first published in 1954. It has been posted on refrigerators, made into posters and was even distributed to millions through a baby formula company.

This week’s is all about “Car Connections”!

Those moments your child gets into the car during pick-up from school/child care can set the tone for the rest of the afternoon. Often, parents will greet their child with a question: “How was your day?” And get very little response.

Instead of putting pressure on yourself and on your child to have a meaningful conversation, focus more on the attunement and energy. This will help lay a foundation of connection for the transition into the afternoon.

💞Warm greeting: Whether you walk-up to get your child or drive through, SHOW them that you’re excited to see them. Let them see your face light-up due to their presence.

💞Review schedule: Give a brief overview of the afternoon so they know what to expect and find space for them to have some input - what kind of snack, which would you rather do, what’s their priority this afternoon?

💞No phone: Even as an adult, it’s not a very great feeling to get in the car with someone who is taking calls from other people, the same is true for our children. I try to drive to get my kids in quiet or with music to help me “switch gears” to get back into “Mom Mode”.

💞Music: This is our family’s preference. We love “jamming out” to music and we have “family songs” that we genuinely enjoy. I turn down the music to a background level and wait for a request to turn it up or leave it quite to create an environment that invites conversation.

💞Mirror effect: While greeting my boys, I look at their eyes, their body language, and read their energy. If they’re excited and animated, I stay upbeat and enthusiastic. If they seem tired and quiet, I tone it down and soften my approach.

💞Quiet: The most subtle, but one of the most powerful actions we can take sometimes are what we *don’t* do. Take away the pressure to engage. The kiddos have been engaging all day long. They need a moment to decompress. The less pressure they feel, the more relaxed, and eventually the more open they will become. They may not talk about their day on your terms, kids have a tendency to share during unexpected times.

Trust the connection.

“If you don’t stop right now, we’re leaving!”
“Quit acting like that or else it’s time to go home.”

When our children begin to have a difficult time in public, they’re telling us something. Maybe they’re tired, hungry, bored, overwhelmed, uncomfortable. Maybe they just rather be somewhere else.

The threat from the parent escalates their discomfort and usually the behavior intensifies. The parent becomes exasperated, and then: “That’s it! We’re leaving!” happens.

With two young boys, I’ve had plenty of moments in public that have called for a us to step out of the situation. I’ve left carts in the middle of aisles, I’ve also pushed a cart with a screaming child inside. I’ve picked up the kid of the floor and carried them outside, kicking and screaming.

In those situations, leaving is an act of compassion. I may not be sure what their need is in that moment.

I may start to feel the color of embarrassment crawl up my neck and into my cheeks, but my heart aches for the little person in front of me that has to share their vulnerable feelings with the world. And in that moment, my job is to help them find some privacy, some safety. I put on tunnel vision, ignore the onlookers and focus on my child. My number one responsibility to help my child, not weigh strangers’ or even known people’s opinions.

I get this question a lot: “When they act this way, shouldn’t I just leave?”
My answer is: Sure. If they seem to be spiraling, and redirection attempts have fallen short, they may need some space to decompress.

Just like adults often do.

For more parenting tips, follow and for more behavioral mindset shifts, check-out my Mindset Shift Guide at https://www.caleykukla.com/shift or go to the link in my bio.

Curious Parenting] 💕
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By nature, kids test boundaries, break rules, and run countless experiments to figure out how the world works. Can I keep playing even when I’m being called? What happens if I do the opposite of what I’m told to do? What are the consequences of ignoring instructions? Kids are industriously busy determining what kind of world they’re in, and what its rules are. ⁣
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When we connect and collaborate with kids instead of reprimanding and ordering them around, they learn that this is a world built on teamwork and cooperation. They learn to consider others and hear their needs instead of expecting obedience. They learn that leaders use empathy and connection, not fear and control.⁣
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🌈 Follow Curious Parenting] for more on raising liberated, compassionate kids.

.and.sew 💕
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If we aren’t respectful of children, how can we expect them to be respectful of others?

There are a bunch of ways we can model respect. We often call kiddos “tiny humans” because it’s important to remember that they are, in fact, humans. They have feelings, opinions, boundaries, and ideas. We can show them they’re worthy of those things.

What is one way you show your child respect?