Who’s willing to admit that they might have a tendency to REACT to challenging situations vs. RESPOND to them? I spent many years when my daughter was a toddler, thinking that if I didn’t react quickly to a situation, it would spin out of control even more. However, the truth is that I actually needed to slow down.

Now I’m a fast moving person, always has been, so is my Momma! So for me, it takes a bit more effort and intention to not rush into “fixing a situation”, but instead, pause, put my hand on my heart, take a deep breath, find a healthy intention to focus on, THEN move forward with my response & chosen action plan.

Creating this space give us a beautiful opportunity to get creative and self-calm. Most situations with our kids don’t involve burning buildings or lil kids running into the street, so giving ourself a moment to think about our choices is empowering and impactful.

And yes, for sure there ARE times when our littles DO run into the street, so of course, that’s when you react. Run quickly, get them to safety immediately, express your true emotions of fear & anger & let them know how much you care about their safety. Then hug them tight and do the BIG lesson once everyone’s emotions have settled. (Teaching when things are calm is always the best way to really have our lessons sink in the most to our munchkins’ hearts & brains).

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