by smaclaughlin | Apr 15, 2022 | babies, brain development, developmental expectations
Children of all ages can exhibit behavior that is quite confounding. One thing that can lend perspective is having an overview of developmental norms. It can help to have a lay of the land and know the general milestones as your child grows—from a baby and toddler to...
by smaclaughlin | Nov 10, 2021 | brain development, cooperation, developmental expectations, emotional intelligence, problem-solving, whining
QUESTION: My 5-year-old daughter’s whining puts me totally over the edge. How can I better handle this annoying behavior? ANSWER: I get it! Whining is so hard to take. It’s super triggering and brings us straight to our “downstairs” brain where we have less (if...
by smaclaughlin | Jun 11, 2021 | developmental expectations, emotional intelligence, social skills
Coming out of isolation Some of us have been at home, isolated with our children and families, for a very, very long time. I don’t know about you, but over at my house in addition to a decrease in the general cleanliness of things, everyone’s social skills are in a...
by smaclaughlin | Mar 31, 2019 | books, developmental expectations, sexuality, tweens & teens
Let me start by saying I did NOT adequately consider the ramifications of having a tweenaged child while I was peri-menopausal. Did not consider it at all. Math is hard. In a few years my son will be 14 and I will be 50. Maybe things will be better, but hormones run...
by smaclaughlin | Feb 18, 2017 | developmental expectations, discipline, family, humor, my life, perspective, poop
One of my Facebook friend’s posted this pic from her kids’ Bananagrams game a couple months ago. So great, right? I mean, “penis-poop-they-eat-toot-but” simply can’t be beat. The best part was that the mom was most upset that they spelled...
by smaclaughlin | Aug 15, 2016 | books, brain science, developmental expectations, parenting, problem-solving, resiliency
You know that ridiculous dating book called The Rules that was supposed to help women catch their “Mr. Right?” Silly, I know, but a lot of people appreciated the straightforwardness of the approach and how clear the, er, RULES were. Well, Erica Reischer,...