Paige, the lecture on Embodied Presence sounds awesome; so glad you took something positive from it.

Kate, I love how your children restore you; that is such a blessing. I have a lot to learn from that; I often get negative and think of this as a drain, but I should stop and be more receptive. Thank you!

Joni, simply having awareness that we could respond in a more loving and helpful way is part of the battle. Good luck; I’m quite sure your daughter adores you

Darcel, great comment. When I heard DD telling her babies off in exactly my tone, words and voice I was horrified that I sounded so stressed and impatient. it was a real turning point for me. I love that you model what you would like to see; this is a great gift.

Dionna; I love this line “my son isn’t *trying* to make me angry or misbehave or push buttons - he’s just learning how to sort out his own feelings.” Wonderful - thank you!

Melodie; I can relate to what you have said. I think to ‘know thyself’ and to feel when the emotions are escalating is certainly the way to go. I’ve been better at that in the last 3 years or so and I’m able to share that with DD too - letting her know that I’m getting near my limit and I need some time out to recharge…

BluebirdMama, I DID notice that, wasn’t it amazing. I feel that lack of community is something that many mothers feel is missing. There is no extended family or the idea that the village raises the child any more, so many of us do not get a break, and we reach our tipping point more easily.

Arwyn, how’s it going? I’ll be thinking of you next time I need to take that deep breath and let go

Jessica, the Carnival was awesome wasn’t it? Yes, we talk about dreams. I had one the other day to take DD to a cranial osteopath, so I’ll be following that up today; there is a lot of wisdom stored in our dreams …

Hi Lauren, I’m a great believer in the wisdom of our children. They do know exactly what they need; we as parents need to get our ego out of the way and allow them to teach us without feeling threatened. I really sense that all the parents who took part in your carnival have that respect and reverence for their children which is truly heart warming.

Mike, thanks for your comment. If we aren’t thinking about breathing, we aren’t thinking. Interesting idea - thanks!

Craphead; oh yes, I get the flood of foul mouthed stuff that comes flooding out too. But you know what? I think we learn about ourselves and our children learns that we are not perfect and this is a good thing. We learn about boundaries and respect in this way…

I love that you talked with your daughter about the dream. Her comment was so insightful and hopefully she gained some insight into you, too, if that makes sense?

I love the insight about the negative energy surrounding resolutions — that must be it!

I’m loving this carnival, by the way You’re about half-way down my list as I visit everyone and I’m really impressed by everyone’s goals and aspirations. I look forward to being a regular reader!

Best of luck — to both of us.

It was on my list for sure. It’s interesting to see that we are all feeling this need in our parenting. I think it’s necessary in all of our relationships but I feel the strain of parenting, the workload and the demands of parenting often push us to the point where we can’t quite manage to treat our kids the way we would treat everyone else. I think that’s why parenting for me is the major driving force in becoming a better kinder gentler person.