Rebecca Hoyt:: Big Feelings in Our Small People

Parent Educator, Rebecca Hoyt, spent her morning with us and shared about how to support our little ones and their big emotions. Believe it or not, "Thinking of your child as behaving badly disposes you to think of punishment. Thinking of your child as struggling to handle something difficult encourages you to help them through distress."--Author Unknown. 

Rebecca says that "If we can radically change our thinking about misbehavior, we allow ourselves to be physically and emotionally available to our children in their most vulnerable moments. This partnering can help children navigate their way through difficult feelings and challenges rather than avoid distress."

Are you hooked yet? Click below for her full talk and be prepared to glean a ton!  
 

Click HERE for the recording of Rebecca's talk.

Enjoy!

"Instead of thinking of those big tantrums as acting out or misbehaviors, they're really an indication to us that our child has a skill deficit. It's not something they know how to do, and they need us to know how to do it."--Rebecca Hoyt

 Agitation: The gas pedal is starting to accelerate as demonstrated by frustration or opposition.
Objective: Be empathetic, establish limits to guide behavior, engage senses in a soothing way, and help problem-solve.
Skills: 

• Be present--Get close enough to be comforting but not threatening
• Stay calm--Your calm demeanor will help her feel safe
• Keep words simple--Don't flood her already overstimulated senses
• Say what you see--"You want to play with the dump truck but someone has it."
• State a limit--"We do not grab toys away from someone."
• Coach an alternative option: "Can you ask for a turn?"
• Offer a choice--"Would you like to wait for a turn or check out the slide?"
• Praise--"That was tough but you asked for a turn and it worked! She gave you the truck!"

[If trouble viewing, click here to enlarge slides.]  

Nancy Eckhardt::Finding Your Fire

For our second speaker of the year, we heard from Nancy Eckhardt about her life journey of "finding her fire." If you take nothing else away from Nancy's story, it's her encouragement to us moms that though our fires may be embers during this season of parenting small kiddos, God is writing a bigger story with our lives and will fan those sparks into flames when the timing is right. In the end, Nancy reflects on how life means not following "the plan," but following God. Oh, and it may not always look the way we thought it was going to. So, there's that. :)

Click HERE for the recording of Nancy's talk.

Enjoy!

FURTHER DISCUSSION

• When have you had to let go of expectations in order to move into a new future? What emotions are part of this process?
• When have you experienced the fulfillment of a dream?
• When have you seen a dream fulfilled, but in a very unexpected way?
• When you think of fire as refining, warming, or guiding, how have you experienced yourself being refined, warmed and/or guided by the fire in your life?
• How might the work of fire that God is doing in your life right now be impacting those around you?
• Do you have plans that have taken a back burner in this season of life? How are you tending to them?