Get Your Toddler Talking with guest Jill Urbane

Communication and language in early childhood is intricately connected to behavior and social-emotional development. Every temper tantrum is an attempt to communicate an unmet need. How do we help young children develop effective communication skills? On this episode of Brainy Moms, Dr. Amy and Sandy interview the Mentor Mom, Jill Urbane.

Jill is an early childhood interventionist and social worker who specializes in the connection between speech development, emotions, social skills, and behavior. She shares the importance of recognizing our own temperament and communication style and its impact on our child’s behavior. She talks about big emotions in little children and how emotions impact communication. Jill walks us through the development of foundational language skills, what to look for, and what to do if we see red flags. We even spend time talking about the benefits of infant/toddler sign language in the development of language skills.

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How to Quiet Your Inner Mean Girl with guest Onnie Michalsky, M.A.

Hey Moms! Are you ready to silence that inner “mean girl” who says you’re not enough? Are you exhausted from doing all the things and ready to shed your Supermom cape? On this episode of Brainy Moms, Dr. Amy and Sandy interview licensed therapist and host of Moms without Capes, Onnie Michalsky, about how to quiet our inner mean girls and take off our supermom capes. Onnie shares tips on identifying our own needs and emotions, setting boundaries, banishing guilt over self-care, and more.

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Managing Anxiety about School Shootings & Other Traumatic Experiences with guest Stacie Boyar, LMHC, MS Ed

With so many scary things happening in the world today, it’s easy to understand why kids are struggling with anxiety. On this episode of Brainy Moms, Teri and I interview licensed mental health counselor, Stacie Boyar, LMHC, MS Ed, who shares tips and specific strategies for managing anxiety. She’s uniquely qualified to give advice on this topic as a therapist in Parkland, FL who worked with teens from the Stoneman Douglas high school shooting.

We talk about effective therapies for anxiety like CBT and EMDR and also learn at-home breathing and grounding techniques that we AND our kids can use whenever we’re feeling stressed or anxious about anything at all. Join us for this fantastic conversation with the author of You’re Not the Boss of Me, a book for teens on conquering anxiety.

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A Radical Parenting Partnership with Your Teen – with author Lainie Liberti

On this episode of Brainy Moms, Dr. Amy and Teri interview Lainie Liberti, teen mentor and author of the book, Seen, Heard, and Understood: Parenting and Partnering with Teens for Greater Mental Health. Lainie shares a radical approach to relating to teens through a partnership parenting paradigm. Although unconventional, it’s an approach that promotes connection and cooperation with your teen. Based on ideas from her book, Lainie explains the benefits of knowing your teen’s love language, creating shared family values, and partnering in problem solving as a family. Join us for this conversation about a truly unique approach to raising teens.

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Creating & Modeling Healthy Habits & Mindset with guest Dr. Orlena Kerek

Are you running out of ways to get your kids to eat better? Do you struggle with yo-yo dieting or emotional eating? Want some tips for adopting a healthier lifestyle for your whole family? On this episode of Brainy Moms, D. Amy and Teri interview Dr. Orlena Kerek – a pediatrician, health coach, and author of the book, Building Simple Habits to a Healthy Me. Dr. Orlena talks about the four pillars of health we’re all familiar with: diet, exercise, sleep, and emotional wellness. But her perspective on these pillars of health is different. Health habits begin with our mindset. We have to adopt not just healthy beliefs but healthy identities if we want to create lasting healthy habits for ourselves and for our children. Join us for this fresh look at becoming a healthy family. 

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Bedtime Tips from a Heart-Centered Sleep Coach with guest Maisie Ruttan

Are you tired of the bedtime battles with your kids? Are you at your wits end most nights when your child gets out of bed again and again? On this episode of Brainy Moms, Dr. Amy and Teri interview sleep coach Maisie Ruttan. Maisie shares powerful insights about why bedtime is so hard. She reveals that maybe our timing is wrong, that we are rushing through our routines, and that we aren’t turning screens off earlier enough. She also says we have to stop relying on the evenings for our own self-care time because that makes us resent our kids when they don’t go to bed quickly enough. It’s an episode that makes you re-think what a bedtime routine should really be about.

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How to Get Your Kids to Listen More and Argue Less with guest Cynthia Klein

As a parent, do you fly by the seat of your pants, or do you have a plan in place for setting curfews, teaching your kids how to manage their money, who’s going to talk to them about the birds and the bees, who’s in charge of potty training, and all 1001 decisions we have to make about raising our kids? On this episode of Brainy Moms, Dr. Amy and Teri interviewed Kristin Buchtel, author of the book Noteworthy Parenting: How to Use Your Own Ideas to Create Your Parenting Roadmap. 

Kristin tells us the benefits of creating a parenting plan and some suggestions for what should be on it. She doesn’t teach readers HOW to parent but, instead, shows them how to get on the same page, empower your parenting, and gain the confidence to be the best parent you can be. 

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Why Every Family Needs a Parenting Plan (& How to Make One) with guest Kristin Buchtel

As a parent, do you fly by the seat of your pants, or do you have a plan in place for setting curfews, teaching your kids how to manage their money, who’s going to talk to them about the birds and the bees, who’s in charge of potty training, and all 1001 decisions we have to make about raising our kids? On this episode of Brainy Moms, Dr. Amy and Teri interviewed Kristin Buchtel, author of the book Noteworthy Parenting: How to Use Your Own Ideas to Create Your Parenting Roadmap. 

Kristin tells us the benefits of creating a parenting plan and some suggestions for what should be on it. She doesn’t teach readers HOW to parent but, instead, shows them how to get on the same page, empower your parenting, and gain the confidence to be the best parent you can be. 

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Still Beautiful: A Burn Survivor’s Advice on Defining Self-Worth with guest Kelly Falardeau

As moms, we second guess ourselves all the time. We question our worth as women, we experience mom guilt for a million reasons, and we fail to appreciate what’s beautiful about ourselves. On this episode of Brainy Moms, Dr. Amy and Teri interviewed Kelly Falardeau, best-selling author of the book, Still Beautiful. When Kelly was a child, she suffered burns over 75% of her body and grew up feeling ugly. But she has turned tragedy into triumph. A four-time best-selling author, TEDx speaker, coach, and Mom of 3, Kelly teaches women how to find their self-worth and talk back to the mirror. This is such an inspirational episode with an inspirational and beautiful brainy mom.

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The Psychology of Fun (& What It’s Got to Do with Being Happy) with guest Dr. Mike Rucker

Are you chasing happiness but feel like you keep coming up short? Wishing you could experience more joy in your life? Want to have more fun with your kids? On this episode of Brainy Moms, Dr. Amy and Teri interview Dr. Mike Rucker, an organizational psychologist who specializes in the research of fun. Dr. Rucker tells us that pursuing happiness might not be the right goal. He shares so much from research on happiness, joy, and fun…it’s a mindset changer. Join us! Don’t miss his Fender guitar made out of LEGOs at the end!

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