Positive Discipline Parenting Blog
Sproutable's Positive Discipline blog.
Real tips. Real talk. Read & grow.
Latest post
Empowering Encouragement: The Power of Trusting Your Teen’s Journey
Parenting a teen can feel like an emotional rollercoaster. As they navigate the ups and downs of adolescence, it's easy to feel the urge to fix things, to rush them through the tough moments, and[...]By Casey O'Roarty
Views 
Siblings: Get them in the ring
The most popular night of my seven-week Positive Discipline parenting series is the night we finally get to talk about siblings. From the first week, this is a source of angst for parents. It is on every list of challenges that we make, and usually the sibling fighting is a trigger that brings out the “Final straw! I’ve had it, that’s it!” moment in the night where we turn into the version of our parents we swore we would never become. It takes a full six weeks of building on parenting tools before we can get to this meaty and layered challenge. In this class, I always start by asking that same question, “what did you learn from your siblings?” After some scoffing, the answers range from:By Julietta Skoog
Views 
Making Dinner Together
When I teach my parenting class, whether it is the start of a 7-week series, or a parent ed talk at a preschool, I always start the same way. Imagine your child is now 25…what are the life skills you hope they have? The list looks similar across the board, things like compassionate, happy, responsible, […]By Alanna Beebe
Views 
Saving My Sanity Through Sleep Routines
Whether it was 2 weeks, 4 months, 15 months, or 3 years, the only way we survived was through our crazy routine. We had to change it to keep up with their rapid stages of development, but ultimately, holding on to that structure created, wait for it... GOOD SLEEPERS. Yep, there IS a light at the end of the tunnel. It is never perfect (this morning I woke up to my 7-year-old in her sleeping bag next to my bed) but comparatively, it is CIVILIZED.By Julietta Skoog
Views 
Talking to Kids About Death
As an elementary school counselor, one of the hardest parts of my job was talking to young children about death. It felt so unfair for a little person to bear such sadness. The loss of a mother. A father. A grandparent. A brother. A sister yet to be born. An aunt. A friend. There was […]By Julietta Skoog
Views 
A Brave New World of Solid Food
Eating healthy and enjoying food is part of our family culture. My partner and I love making intricate meals with a variety of spices. Our spice cabinet is one of my prized places, with four shelves stocked full of global deliciousness. When my child started solid foods at 6 months, we had two family values […]By Alanna Beebe
Views 
Airports, Planes and Poop: How I survived my first solo flight with a baby
Are you flying solo with your baby? Here are some tips and tools for flying with infants. At 7 months I was finally ready to take a solo plane trip with the baby. My other half was in Colorado for work, so we decided to visit him for a long weekend. Luckily, the flight from Seattle to Denver is only a couple hours but as any new experience with the baby, it was a logistical challenge I was a little anxious to tackle. The prep...By Alanna Beebe
Views 
Want to Raise Happy Kids? Teach Gratitude.
Ask any parent what they want for their children and they will likely say, “I just want her to be happy.” It is what we strive for within our own lives, and what we anguish over for our children. It guides education decisions, discipline, and even shopping. Lately there has been a surge of books, documentaries, and research that lay out the “guide” to happiness, with a common theme arising again and again: gratitude.By Julietta Skoog
Views 
An Open Letter to the World ~from a mom of a transgender child
“Humans are diverse and beautiful just like our planet. We are so lucky to live in a world where there are not just one or two or even three ways of being, but so many we can’t even count them. Humans aren’t just boys or girls. Gender is a spectrum. It’s like a rainbow of possibilities. First, there’s how we identify: girl, boy, neither, both, or more! Then, there’s how we want to express ourselves through our clothes, hair, etc.”By Alanna Beebe
Views 
Masks & Kids
We can help keep our communities stay safe and slow the spread of COVID-19 by wearing face coverings and helping our children to do this as well. Public Health recommends both parents and children to wear face coverings when you are at any indoor or outdoor public space where you may be within 6 feet […]By Julietta Skoog
Views 
Calming Tantrums
Ah, the tantrum. This is a sharp trigger for adults. The last straw that ultimately makes US display our own grown-up version of a tantrum. Tantrums are burned in my memory like a scrapbook. The one on the way to sign the mortgage papers (no reschedule there), or the one in front of 25 parents I teach, or the one in the restaurant on vacation (I think my tantrum in reaction was bigger than hers).By Julietta Skoog
Views