“When your children are teenagers, it’s important to have a dog so that someone in the house is happy to see you.”  ~Nora Ephron  At Thriving Parents Collective, we offer a workshop for parents entitled “From Surviving to Thriving: What to do when you don’t like parenting.” There have been different phases of my kids’ development where I have not particularly enjoyed parenting.   Three kids under 5 years old?  No thank you.  But this sentiment may have never been as true as it is while I am...

“ To listen entails a fundamental letting go of self-centeredness. We have to be willing to put down our own thoughts, views, and feelings temporarily to truly listen. ” - Oren Jay Sofer Words and language have always fascinated me.  Watching my kids develop language as toddlers, learning a second language, or even  doing the daily Wordle puzzle brings me real joy.   Using words and language to create communication within relationships  has been slightly less delightful.  Partly because it...

Mother embracing child "Success is not built on success. It's built on failure. It's built on frustration. Sometimes it's built on catastrophe." - S umner Redstone   I really value this quote because I often feel like my family is teetering on the brink of disaster. I connect with the idea that failure is essential for learning and growth. Intellectually, I can accept that experiencing difficult emotions—like the frustration that comes with failure—is necessary. But the lived reality of...