Rewards of Conscious Parenting

Deciding to use parenting as a journey for growth is indeed a wise choice. The many challenges and lessons that come our way in the various stages of parenting create a rich series of opportunities to look at ourselves in new ways.

Our children, even from their very youngest moments, reflect some of our own qualities and trigger some our our most difficult emotions. While most of us experience great joy and wonder looking at our offspring, it isn’t long before some pattern emerges that reminds us of something we haven’t quite worked out ourselves. That is the prime moment for growth, if we choose to use it. That is the opportunity to reflect on what is being triggered in ourselves, where it originates, what purpose it serves in our present lives, and the choice to release and go forward, or not.

No one talks much about the incredible opportunity for self-examination and growth in child-rearing. Maybe it’s because young parents are exhausted, overwhelmed, and accepting what they’ve been told about the realities of parenting. Still, in those instances where it is welcomed, we have the chance to look at who we are, how we are, and what we might want to edit out of our own behaviors.

For expert and experienced support in being the parent you want to be, contact me at 303.776.8100 or email me at babyparentingcoach@gmail.com.

Support for New Parents

After all the books, all the advice of family and friends, the job of parenting comes down to you and your partner’s choices. Today is an opportunity to look closely at what you most value, where your skills and natural strengths are, along with where you are not necessarily particularly well prepared as a parent.
Even in the very best circumstances, where your own experience being parented was healthy and nurturing, when we stand in our own roles as parents, many challenges appear.
Many of us choose not to repeat all the ways in which we were parented. Inventory needs to be taken, and deciding which familial patterns to continue can be balanced with your own choices for parenting in healthy, loving ways.
As a mentor and guide for the early parenting journey, I offer ongoing support by phone and email. I help you clarify your vision and implement practical strategies.

Personalized parenting education and coaching is a valuable investment in the life of your family.

Mom’s Breastaurant

Rocky Mountain Sustainable Living Fair in Fort Collins, CO, featured this wonderful and practical respite for nursing mothers. How nurturing for both mother and child to have a place where nursing is unhurried and comfortable. It’s time this concept spread to more public places, so that breastfeeding is the easy and obvious choice for moms and their young.

Please visit www.momsbreastaurant.com for more info.

Trusting Yourself As A Parent

There are many influences, ranging from the media to our own relatives, that can steer us away from our own wisdom and knowing when it comes to parenting. At times, it seems the media is bent on portraying “super moms” and “super dads”, who somehow emerge from full days of work and still have the perfect meal ready, the ‘quality’ time to spend with their young children, and of course appear flawlessly groomed and attractive themselves. Any parent who is successful over time knows they have chosen to let go of things they thought were indispensable in order to get it all done.

The tricky part is making the choices on what is truly important to you, what is moderately important, what is marginal, and what you are already willing to cut loose. It varies for each of us, so if your friend with a toddler is refreshed and uplifted by going and having a manicure, you may choose something entirely different. It might be a yoga class, a regular meeting a friend for coffee – what matters is that it works for you. What matters is that you take the time to identify which small things can be added in, changed (sharing a chore with a partner?), deleted entirely – and you may want to revise the list frequently.

Your intuition and inner guidance are valuable and the more you apply them, the more effective you will be. There is not necessarily a lot of external support for doing this, and for that reason, the services I offer can be most helpful in keeping you on track. Consistent support for tapping in to your wisdom – a path for parenting that reflects who you are and what you want for your child.

Ingrid Johnson
303.776.8100

Appreciation

At any age, we all respond positively to appreciation. Listening to an adult describe the rewards of acknoweldging individuals in the workplace, I immediately think back to my experience this week with a delightful 23-month old boy.

My young friend had a somewhat bumpy transition to being a big brother 2 months ago. Still in the baby/toddler stage himself, he had no way of understanding how a baby sister would impact his life.

As I held his baby sister and quieted her (first time Mom and Dad have left her with other than a family member), her big brother repeatedly wound up her musical mobile, brought over baby books, and waited patiently for me to be available.

When we were getting ready to write about today’s events in his journal (I’ll write more about that later), I looked at him and said, “I’m so proud of you. You did a great job as a big brother,” he absolutely beamed. He was so obviously happy to be appreciated, and of course his behaviors are reinforced and will be seen again.

Don’t forget to take the time, whatever the age of anyone you interact with today, to acknowledge and appreciate them, right where they are now, just as they are now. It’s a powerful gift for us all to give each other.

The Birth of Parents

Create a new paradigm, whether you’re choosing and planning a pregnancy, already pregnant, a new parent, or becoming a parent again…

The opportunity to honor and embrace what is, while releasing the past, is a very dynamic and potentially rewarding time. Choose to do it consciously, with a wise and experienced coach, and see life-enhancing results!

Parenting was once simply a repetition of how we ourselves were parented, with few deviations. Today, resources and support abound, and the choices are wide open. Creating your own unique parenting style is not only possible, but potentially great fun and very rewarding.

As you choose to incorporate as much or as little as you desire from you own experience, you also have the opportunity to include any approaches, methods, and systems that you consider to be of value. Synthesizing and implementing your unique approach is an evolving process. Starting to design it before your baby is born has obvious benefits.

The application of conscious parenting choices rather than ‘default’ behaviors offers parents all the room to discuss and decide in advance on their style of parenting. Working with a skilled coach gives the advantage of creating a well-thought out plan, along with a comprehensive overview of how to implement that plan.

My preliminary interview and questionaires provide the initial framework for your unique plan. Often a valuable clarifying tool for couples (who may not have discussed all the nuances and issues of parenting in advance), this initial process facilitates open ongoing communication.

Engaging parents in an in-depth and thought-provoking assessment of their own parenting values, their combined, agreed-upon approaches, and then synthesizing and implementing that unique approach is a service I provide. Our joint undertaking is the manifestation of your chosen parenting style in a manner that optimally suits your family.

Baby Parenting Coach

The question I hear most frequently from parents of newborns and young babies is, “When is she(he) going to sleep through the night?” Although it’s a tantalizing thought, I encourage clients not to focus on when their baby will sleep through the night, but rather on increasing the stretch of sleep their baby is now getting at night.

We tend to overlook the fact that as adults, we wake or go into a much lighter sleep many times during the night. Because we have developed our own methods of self-soothing, often we go right back to sleep without even being aware that we have awakened. Of course, for baby this is new territory. Awakening is not met with an established response of soothing oneself and probably going right back to sleep.

At four to six months of age, your baby needs in the range of 11 1/2 to 14 hours per 24-hour period. By consolidating naps and putting baby to bed earlier for the night, you may establish a consistent routine where baby stays asleep except for one night feeding.

I work with families individually to understand your needs, establish what works for you, and support you in implementing that, along with the adjustments and changes that are needed in the next stages. My initial interview is available by phone or in person, and I have packages of sessions, along with email support, available for parenting questions and issues for 0-3 year olds.

I’m passionate about enhancing your family’s experience of living your personal values while having a happy, well-adjusted baby and toddler.