Simple Families

Latest Episodes:

SFP 119: Living an Abundant Life with Less [with Rachelle Crawford] Aug 08, 2018

Show notes

We are launching off a new 4-part series: Journey to Simplicity. I am interviewing four real families about moving towards minimalism and how it has impacted their lives.

Today I am chatting with Rachelle Crawford. Rachelle and her family of 5 live in Michigan. She felt a sudden call to minimalism 18 months ago and hasn’t looked back. In this episode we chat about her journey and the positive impact it has had on her own well-being along with the well-being of her family.

Show Notes/Links:

Stay in touch with Rachelle via:

Blog: Abundant Life with Less
Instagram
Facebook
Download: The Declutter Like a Minimalist Guidebook

The post SFP 119: Living an Abundant Life with Less [with Rachelle Crawford] appeared first on Simple Families.

SFP 118: All-Natural Biohacks for Kids [with author Jena Pincott] Aug 01, 2018

Show notes

We know the environment in which we live and the food we eat have an impact on the development of our children. In today’s episode I am speaking with author + science writer Jena Pincott about all-natural biohacks for parents.

Biohacks involve making changes to diet and lifestyle that transform biological tendencies that exist in our bodies. I learned so much from Jena’s book, and I hope you enjoy our chat today!

Jena’s Book:

Wits Guts Grit: All-Natural Biohacks for Raising Smart, Resilient Kids

The post SFP 118: All-Natural Biohacks for Kids [with author Jena Pincott] appeared first on Simple Families.

SFP 117: Finding the Balance of Work Vs. Play in Childhood [with Jeanne-Marie Paynel of Voila Montessori] Jul 26, 2018

Show notes

The value of play in childhood is often underestimated. Our children need to play and when pushed into academics at a young age they miss vital opportunities to develop and grow. In today’s episode we are discussing the balance between work and play.

I am chatting with Jeanne-Marie Paynel of Voila Montessori about understanding the connection between these concepts.

Show Notes/Links

The post SFP 117: Finding the Balance of Work Vs. Play in Childhood [with Jeanne-Marie Paynel of Voila Montessori] appeared first on Simple Families.

SFP 116: Raising Naturally Curious Children [with Nicole Roccaro] Jul 18, 2018

Show notes

Children benefit from the opportunity to play in open-ended, unstructured environments. Today I am talking with Nicole Roccaro from Naturally Curious Children. We talk about finding a balance in play, leaning towards unstructured activities, and following our children’s lead.

Nicole’s home and approach are inspired by something called Reggio-Emilia. In this episode, we are discussing more about what this means and how parents can nurture this type of play in our families.

Show Notes/Links

Nicole on Instagram: Naturally Curious Children
Nicole on Facebook: Naturally Curious Children
Grimms (toy referenced)

The post SFP 116: Raising Naturally Curious Children [with Nicole Roccaro] appeared first on Simple Families.

SFP 115: The Benefits of Rowdy Play [with Frances Carlson of Big Body Play] Jul 11, 2018

Show notes

Horseplay is developmentally beneficial for our growing children. If you have a kid who plays rowdy, then you need to hear this. We need to find a way to encourage this behavior rather than discourage it. In today’s episode, I am chatting with Frances Carlson, the author of the book Big Body Play. I found Frances’ work to be eye opening and I think you will too.

For some children, the need to move is just too much. They just have to let that energy out. And unfortunately they get labeled as misbehaving children, when what they are doing is what they need to develop. It’s like saying “if you get up and eat, you are misbehaving” – Frances Carlson

Show Links/Notes:

Big Body Play [the book]
Big Body Play [the website]

The post SFP 115: The Benefits of Rowdy Play [with Frances Carlson of Big Body Play] appeared first on Simple Families.

SFP 114: The Importance of Play Jul 03, 2018

Show notes

Never underestimate what your children are learning through play. In the early years, play is the main vehicle for learning and education. In today’s episode, I will be introducing you to the importance of play. We chat about stages of play, types of play, and what role that adults may have in play.

Show Notes/Links

The Play’s the Thing

The post SFP 114: The Importance of Play appeared first on Simple Families.

SFP 113: Simplifying Child Behavior | Troubleshooting “Time-Out” Jun 27, 2018

Show notes

Child behavior is anything but straightforward. My children are well-behaved, but as humans–they have their “moments”. As parents, we can feel powerless when our kids aren’t cooperating or being respectful. Today on the podcast I am explaining how we blend positive parenting methods with some strategies and techniques. One technique in particular that we are discussing is “time-out”.

Time-out is often overused and misused. I give you 5 tips for using it successfully, as well as 4 shame-free ways to execute it (you might be surprised, none of these involve sticking your kids nose in the corner).

Do you ever use time-out? Have you found it to be successful?

The post SFP 113: Simplifying Child Behavior | Troubleshooting “Time-Out” appeared first on Simple Families.

SFP 112: Do we control our kids? [With Hunter from Mindful Mama Mentor] Jun 20, 2018

Show notes

In today’s episode I am chatting with Hunter Clarke-Fields of Mindful Mama Mentor. Hunter specializes in mindful parenting and in this episode we are talking about control in parenting.

As parents, we feel like we should have control over our children. But children have their own agendas and ideas about this. How much control do we really have—or is it all an illusion?

Show Notes/Links:

The post SFP 112: Do we control our kids? [With Hunter from Mindful Mama Mentor] appeared first on Simple Families.

SFP 111: How You Talk to Kids + Why it Matters [with Tracy from Zero to Five] Jun 13, 2018

Show notes

The words that we speak to our children become their inner voice. And the average woman speaks 20,000 words per day. While we can’t always be intentional in the way we speak to our children, we can do better.

In today’s episode, author Tracy Cutchlow and I are discussing how to speak to our children. We talk about the impact that our words have and strategies for improving our language to encourage a “growth mindset” (+all about what that means).

Show Links:

Zero to Five: 70 Essential Parenting Tips Based on Science (the book)
Zero to Five (Tracy’s website)
Word-for-Word Examples Using Language of Listening
Growth Mindset Workshop

The post SFP 111: How You Talk to Kids + Why it Matters [with Tracy from Zero to Five] appeared first on Simple Families.

SFP 110: Raising Successful Kids [with Krista from A Life in Progress] Jun 07, 2018

Show notes

What does it mean to “raise successful kids”? Today I am chatting with Krista from A Life in Progress. I knew I could rely on Krista to bring some excellent perspective to this topic and she comes through in this episode. When it comes to life, Krista thinks outside the box and walks off the beaten path. She has raised three young adults and considers her kids to be her greatest teachers. Krista and I are diving deeper into the idea that there is more than one path to successful parenting and perhaps raising “mediocre” kids might not be so bad after all.