welcome image

Parenting style matters - a lot!

Some hope their children will be like sponges soaking up the truth and wisdom imparted by their parents. However appealing this philosophy might be, it seldom seems to catch on with their children.

"To be a man, a boy must see a man."  (J.R. Moehringer)

If you are headed in the wrong direction as a parent - you are allowed to make a U-turn.

Good parenting requires sacrifice. Childhood lasts for only a few brief years , but it should be given priority while it is passing before your eyes

The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice. (Peggy O'Mara)

Children fare better when expectations on them are clear and firm.

Don't wait for him to turn 10 before you reveal that you are not in fact the hired help whose job it is to clean up after him.

When a child is disregulated - is the time parents need to be regulated.

Children do not develop on their own - they only develop within relationships.

Learn more.

MOM

 

Before I Was a Mom (author unknown)

Before I was a Mom, I never thought about immunizations.

I didn’t worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.

I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.

Before I was a Mom, I never had been puked on.

Pooped on.

Chewed on.

Peed on.

I slept all night.

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

Before I was a Mom, I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn’t want to put it down.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late at night watching a baby sleep

I had complete control of my mind and thoughts.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn’t stop the hurt.

I never know that something so small could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much.

Before I was a mom, I didn’t know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.

I didn’t know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.

I didn’t know that bond between a mother and a child.

I didn’t know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom, I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was OK.

I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the  heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn’t know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom.

And before I was a Grandma, I didn’t know that all those “Mom” feelings more than doubled when you see that little bundle being held by “your baby”.

Back to Top

Workshops

+ Behaviour Management (now available online)

This full day or 2 evening workshop will introduce you […]

Learn more

+ A Parent’s Guide to the Teenage Brain

  A teenager’s brain is not just an adult brain […]

Learn more

+ Reading Rescue

A program for children with reading problems

Learn more

+ A Guided Tour of ADHD (now available online)

This workshop will present the facts, myths, misconceptions, controversy and […]

Learn more

See more of our workshops


Contact

2720 Rath Street, Putnam, Ontario
NOL 2BO

Phone: (519) 485-4678
Fax: (519) 485-0281

Email: info@rickharper.ca

Archive


Parents' Comments

“We are foster parents who took in a 13 year old girl (going on 18!) and she ran us through the wringer. Rick helped us learn how to set limits that made the difference.”

(G.E. – Strathroy)