April's Intentional Conscious Parenting Tip

Building Emotional Intelligence Through Mindful Moments

As we welcome spring and new beginnings, consider focusing this month on helping your child develop emotional intelligence - a key skill that will serve them throughout life.

Practice This: Set aside 5 minutes each day for an "emotion check-in." Ask your child how they're feeling and really listen. Use specific emotion words beyond just "good" or "bad" to help expand their emotional vocabulary. Try "I notice you seem frustrated with that puzzle. Is that how you're feeling?"

Remember: Children learn emotional regulation by watching you. When you're feeling overwhelmed, model healthy coping by saying something like, "I'm feeling stressed right now, so I'm going to take three deep breaths to help myself calm down."

Quick Tip: Create a simple emotions chart with faces showing different feelings. This visual aid helps younger children identify and name what they're experiencing, making abstract emotions more concrete.

By consistently acknowledging emotions without judgment, you're teaching your child that all feelings are valid - it's how we respond to them that matters.

Thank you for joining us in supporting the inner light of the children,

Carol Lawrence and Stacy Toten

The Power of Touch in Conscious Parenting: Nurturing Connection Through Safe Skincare

As a parent, I knew from the start that I wanted to do things differently. Growing up, I learned so much about skincare from my family’s work in the field, and it became important to me in ways beyond just product knowledge. When I became a mother, my journey took a deeper turn as I discovered how touch and connection play essential roles in raising children with intentionality and compassion. Conscious parenting is a path that centers around deep, meaningful interactions, trusting intuition, and supporting each child’s unique journey. For me, touch has been at the heart of this approach.

In the world today, touch is something that many people are missing. We’ve moved to a place of personal distance—separate rooms, devices, even meals. But it’s touch that connects us to one another in profound ways, grounding us, bringing us back to the present, and helping us communicate care without words. As conscious parents, I believe that creating a daily practice of connecting through safe, nurturing touch can be transformative, both for our children and for ourselves.

The Importance of Touch for Growing Babies and Children

Intentional Conscious Parenting: Inspiring And Nurturing Emotional Intelligence

 

Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand, manage, and express one's emotions in a healthy and constructive way. It's a crucial skill that impacts a child's self-esteem, relationships, and overall well-being. 

As parents, we can encourage emotional intelligence by validating our child's emotions. Instead of dismissing their feelings, acknowledge them. Let your child know that it's okay to feel what they're feeling. 

For example, Carol was recently at a homeschooling movie day event with her granddaughter and a group of other homeschoolers. Some of the scenes were emotional invoking strong feelings for some of the children. The children already had an emotional connection to this movie, as they had previously read The Wild Robot together. There were tears shed. All the parents were very supportive allowing the children to continue watching the movie and expressing their feelings. This is how they learn, process, and become in touch with their emotions. 

Intentional Conscious Parenting: Inspiring And Nurturing Trust

Trust is the bedrock of any relationship and is especially crucial in a parent-child relationship. 

A child who trusts their parent feels safe and secure, knowing they have someone who will always be there for them. 

To foster trust, be consistent in your actions and words. If you make a promise to your child, make sure you keep it. This teaches them that they can rely on you. Don’t make empty promises or threaten unrealistic punishments. 

An important aspect of building trust is creating a safe and nurturing home environment. This means ensuring that your child feels loved, accepted, and secure at home. 

Encourage positive behaviors, reinforce good habits, and provide a reliable routine. 

Avoid harsh criticism or punishment, as these can damage your child's sense of security and trust.

Intentional Conscious Parenting: Inspiring And Nurturing Connection

Imagine taking a walk down a path with your child. It's a beautiful sunny day, the flowers are blooming and the sky is blue. 

Every few steps, your child stops to inspect a bug, pick up a leaf, or ask a question, looking to you for guidance. 

How you respond, your attentiveness and your engagement truly matters. It's in those precious moments we get to demonstrate our connectedness. 

Here Are A Few Questions To Ask Yourself Before Making Your Next Purchase

I'm constantly purging old clothes, unwanted items and making sure my homes energy can flow. When I'm amidst of too much clutter I feel flustered, stuck, and irritable. 

My wish is that if your are feeling the same way you'll ponder why and ask yourself these questions before your next shopping trip. 

Supporting Children As They Build Their Foundations During Their First 10 Years Of Life

Welcome to Intentional Conscious Parenting. My name is Carol and I want to share a story with you.

I have three granddaughters. One of them lives with me and the other two visit us regularly throughout the week. They are ages 3, 6 and 7.

Spending as much time with them is on purpose. I know how critical the first 7-10 years of life are for helping children build a strong foundation. Children of all ages need to feel loved, feel seen, have safe spaces, and benefit from a conscious support system. Young children especially need safe spaces to feel and practice their emotions. Along with my dedicated sons, awesome daughter-in-law, close friends, and relatives, all three girls have a wonderful support system and I’m very grateful for this.

At the same time, I know how important my role is. We have powerful life strands and precious bonds. All three girls will walk different paths throughout their lives. My hope is that what they absorb and learn from me will help guide them as they traverse their life adventures. 

We feel raising kids in a present and conscious way is very important. That's why Stacy and I created this blog and wrote our ebook, 10 Ways To Parent Consciously: Parenting In The New Paradigm. Our book is for those seeking to shift from traditional parenting to a more mindful present approach.

Back to my story. Spending time with my granddaughters brings me an incredible amount of joy. We have lots of fun going on adventures and growing together. I thought I would share more often some of the things we like to do.

Last night we had a sleepover and read these four books. 

The hug who got stuck by Andrew Newman (We reviewed this book here on our Intentional Conscious Parenting blog) Andrew brilliantly and lovingly teaches children how to access their hearts and get free from sticky thoughts. If you want to flashback in time with us, watch our interview with Andrew seven years ago. 

The Lovables in the Kingdom of Self-Esteem by Diane Loomans. (I gave this book to my sons in 1992 and read it regularly to them) This book helps children to feel unique, confident, enthusiastic, and loved. 

25 Fun Summer Activities for Kids

Summer is the perfect time for kids to enjoy the great outdoors, soak up the sun, and create lasting memories. As a parent, you want to make sure your children have a-filled summer break that is both entertaining and educational. 

From outdoor adventures to creative indoor projects, there is something for every child to enjoy. So get ready for a summer of fun!

To help you plan a summer full of excitement, here are 25 fun summer activities for kids that will keep them engaged and entertained all season long. Be sure to read all the way through or skip to the bottom for a PDF link to save for a handy reminder.

Teaching Children About The Power Of Their Minds

The following is an excerpt from our eBook, 10 Ways To Parent Consciously; Parenting In The New Paradigm.

Teaching children the power of their thoughts and how to create different outcomes. 

Children are very tuned in to their own needs. The foods they like or don't like, the people they feel comfortable and uncomfortable around. There are reasons for this. They are not being difficult or snobs. They are unaware of this type of behavior until parents, school, society, or friends teach it to them. 

Change is always constant. Teach valuable tools on how to roll with change. Change can be scary for most humans. Their comfort zone is their safe zone. What they don't realize, is that changing something or even going after something they want or feel could be their pot of gold. Their pot of gold could be mental, physical, spiritual, or financial. Some people become stagnant and paralyzed with life until they realize the gift that comes out of change can be freedom. Usually, children are resilient and adapt to change much easier than adults due to their ability to live more in the present moment. 

Teaching Children Gratitude is All About Their Attitude

Teaching children gratitude is all about their attitude but more importantly it's about the parents attitude and the mirror image they portray to their children and the rest of the world to see.

Gratitude is such a brilliant gift that has been bestowed upon us if we choose it. The sophistication of this gift is simple. It is a choice. Be thankful for what you have, who you are and who you can be. It's all about perception. It doesn't matter what societal status you come from, what your wallet has in it or how you were culturally raised. Be thankful for what you have and feel right now in this exact moment in time. 

Navigating Online Parenting Advice In An AI Driven World

Whenever you become a new parent, everyone seems to have parenting tips to impart upon you. We can remember strangers at the grocery store coming up to us offering their personal stories and advice. Friends, relatives, there’s no shortage of parenting wisdom. We would always keep what resonated and let go of what didn’t. 

In 2024 you not only have the influence and advice from your friends and family, you have digital resources and Ai influence at your fingertips. 

As parents in the digital age, you are constantly bombarded with information on how to raise your children. From parenting blogs to social media groups, to Google searches, the internet is a treasure trove of advice and tips. However, with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, navigating online parenting advice has become more complex than ever before.

With AI algorithms shaping all of our online experiences, it can be overwhelming to sift through the vast amount of information available. It can also be limiting. How do you know which sources are credible? How can you discern between genuine advice and misleading information? These are the questions that many parents grapple with in an era where AI plays a significant role in curating the content consumed.

How to Continue Nurturing Yourself During The Parenting Process

 

Parenting is a beautiful journey, but it can also be all-consuming. As a parent, it's easy to get caught up in the daily demands and responsibilities of raising a child, and sometimes, we can lose sight of ourselves in the process. It's crucial to remember that you are important and your self-care matters. In this blog post, we will explore various ways to continue nurturing yourself during your parenting process, from incorporating your creative expression into your parenting life to prioritizing self-care as a means of being an example of well-being.

Don't Lose Yourself During Your Parenting Process