The Out-of-the-Box Parenting Coach
for your Non-Traditional Family
This is a no-judgement zone for
Queer, Divorced, Single and Poly parents & caregivers
Imagine....
being able to respond rather than react
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when your 3 year old won’t listen when you tell them to put their shoes on...
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when your 8 year old refuses to get off their iPad when it’s time to do their homework...
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or your 14 year old has become defiant and disrespectful whenever you ask them to do anything to help at home...
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or your Trans/Non-binary teen won't talk to you...
If you're parenting a Blended Family, there's a s***load of added dynamics that disrupt loving connection & peace at home!
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I'm guessing you’ve tried many things to deal with your child's behavior challenges and they just aren't working! Perhaps you’ve even ended up here as a last resort.
Welcome!
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If love and trying harder were enough, you wouldn't be here.
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Here's the thing. Many of the parenting approaches you've tried haven't worked - not because you're not trying hard enough - but because they’re missing a key piece of the parenting puzzle - that Behavior is Communication.
BEHAVIOR is your child's first language. When they’re infants, we learn to read their cues without any words. Then, as soon as they start to speak, we’re delighted and think, “now they can use their words to tell us what they need.” But behavior is still their first language. The self-regulation and executive function skills required to "use their words" are developed over time in relationship to supportive caregivers.
Surprisingly, when they're stressed, they still resort to their first language even into their teen years! Learning to hear what our child or teen's behavior is telling us, and to respond rather than react, builds resilience and cultivates loving connection and peace at home.
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Click your child's age below for immediate empathy, support and understanding.
“I feel very connected to my kids and am able to tune in to what they need in the moment.”
Janine - MA, Licensed Acupuncturist, Yoga teacher, mom of 2
When I started working with Kathy I felt so overwhelmed - like it was all beyond me and I had no idea how to handle what was going on with my kids. We were always yelling, things would escalate and it was ugly. No-one was happy and i didn't know what to do.
Now I feel very connected to my kids and am able to tune in to what they need in the moment. When there's an outburst, I can step back and not have to take it personally. I have confidence that we can shift from there and deal with what’s really going on...and I know we’re all going to be OK!
Out-Of-The-Box parenting puts together understanding, connection and responding for loving connection & peace at home.
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Understanding what’s happening with your child. It’s physiology!
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Learning skills for connecting and attuning to yourself and your child so they feel safe and loved.
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Practicing responding rather than reacting to build your child's social/emotional life skills.
Practiced together they develop resilience - the core of emotional & social wellbeing for life - while strengthening a relationship with your child that will take you through the teen years and beyond!
You were never meant to do this parenting thing alone!
​Click the button below for Parenting Quick Tips
Hi, I’m Kathy
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As an RN, parenting coach, trauma-informed child behavior specialist, grammy & poet, I've connected with hundreds of parents over the past 12 years in workshops and one-on-one in depth coaching. You are not alone.
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I struggled for years as a single, divorced parent with my kiddo’s oppositional behavior, defiance, and not listening! I felt more and more isolated as the voices around me told me to ramp up on the consequences or “just” try this or that that worked for them. I blamed myself for not being consistent enough. I vowed to be more patient. And still we continued to struggle.
Somewhere inside I knew these approaches weren’t right for my child but I didn’t know what to do! I couldn't make sense of what was happening no matter how hard I tried. Like you, I was missing the same key piece of the parenting puzzle - that behavior is communication.
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​It was this understanding of the connection between behavior and communication that turned everything around for us. Read more of my story.
The best way I can help you get started turning around your situation at home is for us to talk together. There is no charge for this 1/2 hour call. At the end, I will suggest your next best steps based on what you're looking for.
