Positive Parenting for Military Families | Mr. Dad

Dan Mager, author of Roots and Wings. Topic: Mindful parenting in recovery Issues: Types of recovery; growing beyond how you grew up; our children are not us; the mind as storyteller; meditation and other mindfulness practices; connecting through communication; reconciling and the limits of love. Meghan Cox Gurdon, author of The Enchanted Hour. Topic: The miraculous power of reading aloud in the age of distraction. Issues: What reading to children does to their brains; reading together strengthens the bonds of love; turbocharging child development with picture books; rich rewards of a vast vocabulary; the power of paying attention; why reading aloud never gets old.

Erik Orton, co-author of Seven at Sea. Topic: Why a New York City family cast off convention for a life-changing year on a sailboat. Issues: Life is what we make of it, regardless of what society dictates; how it’s possible to imagine more boldly than we usually allow ourselves and dare to dream of a life that doesn’t look like the one we have now; learning and adventure on the high seas. Hillary Frank, author of Weird Parenting Wins. Topic: Hacks from the parenting trenches. Issues: soothing a screaming child; getting your child to eat stuff; getting yo8ur kid to act like a person; making monsters less scary; tricking your child into self-babysitting; making the world less scary; getting your kids to tell you things; much more.

Maureen Healy, author of The Emotionally Healthy Child. Topic: Helping children calm, center, and make smarter choices. Issues: What makes an emotionally healthy child? Three simple steps that have the power to change everything when it comes to emotional health; how children can use their experiences as fodder for positive emotional health; why wholeness is more important than happiness; how children can make smarter choices even if they’re emotionally challenged. Carl Pickhardt, author of Who Stole My Child? Topic: Parenting through the four stages of adolescence. Issues: What is an adolescent? Early adolescence (ages 9-13), which is marked by resistance and conflict, disorganization, and distractibility; Mid-adolescence (13-15), marked by puberty, vulnerability, peers, intense friendships, and social life; Late adolescence (15-18), marked by risk-taking, dating and romance, substance abuse, and the Internet; and Trial independence (18-23), marked by graduation, separation, stress, self-discipline, and independence.

Christine Crockett Smith, author of 18 Master Values. Topic: Be the parent you wish you’d had. Issues: Love, positive attitude, work ethic, gratitude, curiosity, pride, humility, and many other important values. Jason Freedman, coauthor of The Dream Feed Method. Topic: Getting babies to sleep through the night by month 4, without crying it out. Issues: How to get your baby to sleep from dusk ’til dawn by four months by using top-up bottles (or feedings) and dream feedings (feedings given while the baby is mostly asleep).

Bethany L. Johnson and Margaret M. Quinlan, coauthors of You’re Doing it Wrong. Topic: Mothering, media, and medical expertise. Issues: The history of mothering advice in the media, from newspapers, magazines, doctors’ records, and personal papers from the 19th century to today’s websites, Facebook groups, and Instagram feeds; potential health crises from infertility treatment to “better babies” milestones; myths in preconception, pregnancy, and early motherhood. Amy Serin, author of The Stress Switch. Topic: The truth about stress and how to short-circuit it. Issues: What stress is, when it’s good, and when it’s not; coping with stress vs. curing it; how stress interferes with our lives (physical/health problems, memory and cognition problems, relationship problems, etc.)

Kathy Chlan, author of Maternally Challenged. Topic: How a mom learned to laugh and enjoy life from her special needs child Issues: Coming to terms with having a child with special needs; life will throw many curveballs, so you’d better get a bigger bat; laughter will be your best friend; lower your expectations for perfection. Darria Long Gillespie, author of Mom Hacks. Topic: Science-based shortcuts to reclaim your body, raise awesome kids and be unstoppable. Issues: Building blocks of a healthy diet; what not to eat; making good nutrition easier; the basics of exercise; finding the time for exercise; making it fun; getting motivated and building the habit; sleep; sleep environment; resilience; overcoming guilt and self-doubt.

Elaine Fogel Schneider, co-author of Confidence and Joy. Topic: Success strategies for kids with learning differences. Issues: What learning differences are what they’re not; how differences are different from disabilities; what signs to look for that reveal a learning difference; strategies to employ for promoting a child’s confidence and joy; how to build an advocacy team for the child. Lisa Damour, author of Under Pressure. Topic: Confronting the epidemic of stress and anxiety in girls. Issues: Coming to terms with stress and anxiety; girls at home; girls among girls; girls among boys; girls at school, girls in the culture

Vicki Hoefle, author of The Straight Talk on Parenting. Topic: A no-nonsense approach to growing a grown-up. Issues: Creating a blueprint of where you want to be; understanding that parenting is more about on-the job training and less about being perfect; bedtime bedlam, morning meltdowns; sibling squabbles; sass and backtalk; the trouble with tech. Ron Lieber, author of The Opposite of Spoiled. Topic: Raising kids who are grounded, generous, and smart about money. Issues: Why we need to talk about money; how to start the conversation; the allowance debate; the smartest ways for kids to spend; how to talk about giving; why kids should work; how much is enough?

Bryn Collins, author of The Toxic Parents Survival Guide. Topic: Recognizing, understanding, and freeing yourself from difficult relationships. Issues: The importance of emotions in parenting; what is emotional unavailability; inconsistent parents; parents who make you feel like you’re not good enough; guilt, resentment, and regrets; what emotionally available parents look (and act) like. Emily Guy Birken, author of End Financial Stress Now. Topic: Immediate steps you can take to improve your financial outlook. Issues: Redefining money; economic reasons why we struggle with money; psychological reasons we struggle with money; the difference between reducing financial stress and reducing financial problems; achieving a stress-free financial life.

Norman Doidge, author of The Brain’s Way of Healing. Topic: Remarkable discoveries from the frontiers of neuroplasticity. Issues: What is neuroplasticity and how does it work? the stages of neuroplastic healing; rewiring the brain with light; healing serious brain problems through movement; the special connection between music and the brain; how the brain rebalances itself. Robert Melillo, author of Disconnected Kids. Topic: Balancing the brains of kids with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and other neurological disorders. Issues: How the developing mind is wired; what causes left- and right-brain disconnect; identifying left- or right-brain deficiency; (re)training the brain through physical stimulation.

Chrissie Lee Kahan and Aaron Michael Kahan, coauthors of Navigating the Road of Infertility. Topic: An honest and poignant account of one couple’s struggle to start a family. Issues: The need for more open discussion of infertility; how IVF, artificial insemination, failed adoption, and other setbacks affect couples; coping with those setbacks; and more. Julie King, co-author of How to Talk so Little Kids Will Listen. Topic: Strategies and stories that will help you improve communication with your preschooler. Issues: The importance of recognizing and acknowledging kids’ feelings—and how to do it; tools for engaging cooperation, resolving conflicts, and handling discipline; handling your own feelings—including anger.

Alma Gottlieb, co-author of A World of Babies. Topic: Differing childcare styles in eight non-US societies. Issues: Parenting around the world in the 21st century; differences between US styles and those in other countries; challenges faced by parents in traditional societies, welfare states, and war-torn areas. Jennifer Lehr, author of ParentSpeak. Topic: What’s wrong with how we talk to our children—and what to say instead. Issues: Despite our best intentions, a lot of things we tell our kids does more harm than good; how to avoid words and phrases that manipulate, objectify, micro-manage, distress, invalidate, and threaten.

Regina Pally, author of The Reflective Parent. Topic: How to do less and relate more with your kids. Issues: How the brain is wired for empathy, reflection, nurturing, and attachment; learning to trust yourself and your instincts. Genevieve Shaw Brown, author of The Happiest Mommy You Know. Topic: Why putting your kids first is the last thing you should do. Issues: Feed yourself as you want to feed your kids; make time for your own friends; get a healthy night’s sleep; don’t let your style take a backseat to your child’s wardrobe; treat your spouse as kindly as you treat your kids; take yourself to the doctor; exercise even if you don’t have the time, and more.

Alissa Marquess, author of Bounceback Parenting. @bouncebackmom – Instagram: alissamarquess Topic: Creating connection, not perfection. Issues: Fantastic conversation starters to get kids to open up; turning around a bad day; the power of waiting 17 seconds before correcting or responding to children; empathic exercises to help parents recover from the guilt of making mistakes; self-care rules for busy parents. Scott Steinberg, co-author of Parenting High-Tech Kids. @AKeynoteSpeaker Topic: A guide to internet, web, and online safety Issues: What does it mean to go online? Understanding common problems, threats, and concerns; how to protect computers, phones, and other devices against malware, viruses, and phishing; preparing yourself and your children for the world online; much more.

Michelle Maidenberg, author of Free Your Child from Overeating. Topic: Mind-body strategies for lifelong health. Issues: Identify triggers, cravings, and self-sabotaging patterns; defining your child’s values and using them to find the motivation to change; setting realistic food and exercise goals; the role of thinking in nutrition; using mindfulness to help your child achieve his or her goals. Asha Dornfest, author of Parent Hacks. Topic: Genius shortcuts for life with kids. Issues: The little-known advantages of cabbage leaves; using ankle weights to keep a stroller from tipping; hiding your valuables in a (clean) diaper; and more than 100 more real-world, field-tested strategies from parents.