December 7, 2023

Abiding in Nature with Independence

The power of God’s natural principles is embedded in the document of 237 years ago…the words of the Declaration of Independence.   “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit […]

Happy Father’s Day

Happy Father’s Day to all of our Fathers, Grandfathers, Great Grandfathers and all others who purposefully play the role of a father. We need you! The whole world needs you to be dedicated to your role as a loving, encouraging, teaching and connected presence. This is a special role that only you can fill. It’s […]

Meaning and Memories

It’s been about eight months since the last “From Grampy’s Rocker” blog. I guess you could say I’ve been “off my rocker” since then.  Well, I’m back on my rocker and am ready to talk some “Grampy smack.” Lately, I’ve been thinking about meaning and memories and how they’re related to what I do 24/7. […]

Psychological First Aid: Returning to Balance after a Disaster

Disastrous events of any kind will affect each of us in different ways. The most common affects involve a sense of insecurity brought on by heightened vulnerability and feelings of helplessness that upset our balance. Returning to balance after a disaster is a primary need for reestablishing well-being and it will, likely, require some “psychological […]

The IKEA Effect and the Labor of Love

The “IKEA Effect” and the Labor of Love have great benefit for parenting. The IKEA Effect was named in honor of the highly successful Swedish manufacturer that requires assembly of  products purchased. In 2009, three business professors (Harvard, Yale and Duke University) published an article in the Harvard Business Review describing results from their research […]

The Holiday Pressure Cooker

 Will your Holiday Season be the wonderful experience you dream of, or will you place yourself in “The Holiday Pressure Cooker?” You probably know that food is cooked quickly when placed under high pressure. That means that it is “done” fast! Have you made the connection with how we are “done” rather quickly, as well, […]

Paradox in Autonomy

There is paradox in autonomy. On the one hand, our children need to develop autonomy if they are to learn how to make good and adaptive decisions, by and for themselves. The paradox, however, is that this requires parents to extend to them the freedom to choose. Ouch! That seems to complicate our life and […]

We are Family

“We Are Family.” By the way, what is that supposed to mean? Let’s take a look at what Virginia Satir (1916-1988), also known as the “mother of family therapy,” thought about that question. Her research and writings suggested the following model: We learn to react in certain ways to our family members. These reactions condition […]

Becoming a Power Parent and The Power Parent Hour

Occasionally, I’ll post information about upcoming events. Two such events are: The release of my new book―Becoming a Power Parent: Seven Guiding Principles for Creating a Healthy Family (available the first part of November) ―and a new Radio Show―”The Power Parent Hour” which will debut on September 14, 2012 at 4:00 P.M. EDT. It will […]

Profiles in Principles: Hope and U.S. Ambassador Sichan Siv

Three years after the end of World War II, a boy was born to the daughter of a governor and her husband – a police chief – in a small village of the ancient land. This baby was the youngest of their children. It was the Year of the Boar, 2490. And the moon was […]