Parents: Step Away from the Rubik’s Cube (and Put Down the Broom)

“When nothing seems to help, I go look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock, perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not that blow that did it, but all that […]

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Don’t Break Your Child’s Heart

As parents we are so careful not to do anything to cause deep emotional pain to our children. We protect them, we love them and we guard them from as many forms of anguish and distress as we can for as long as we can. We want to ensure no one causes our children lasting […]

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Letting it Go

Confession:  I have never seen the movie Frozen. My apologies to all of those parents who want to throw their children’s Happy Meal toys at my head.  Hard. But before plastic Elsa comes whizzing my way, please know this: I did my time.  I am fairly certain I can recite most of Beauty and the […]

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20 Things Parents can Stop doing to Be Happier

Being a parent is hard. The physical exhaustion. The extreme financial commitment. Both of which, of course, pale in comparison to the infinite emotional devotion. And then, we parents make it harder on ourselves. We make it hard on ourselves because we get caught up in the hype of the latest parenting theories or because […]

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To Fail or Not to Fail? Is That Even the Question?

Is it good for your child to fail? Many experts say yes because failure is a natural part of life. Failure is a common consequence of taking risks. And, if we want kids who bounce back, they need to fail and pick themselves up so they can exercise that resiliency muscle. Furthermore, we know that […]

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30 Secrets of Brilliant Coaches

While superior knowledge of the sport is a cornerstone of a brilliant coach, it certainly is not the whole picture. Brilliant coaches… Cherish the child over the athlete. Brilliant coaches know that being an athlete is just a small part of being a child. Brilliant coaches never do anything to advance the athlete at the […]

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JAG Blog is on the Huffington Post!

Please consider going to HuffPost Parents to read, share, tweet, pin etc. Fit and Funky Thank you!         

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Don’t Freak Out, But Chances are Your Child is not going to be an Olympian

Don’t freak out. But chances are your child is not an Olympian. By one estimate only one one millionth of one percent (0.000001560845334%) of people on earth are. Don’t panic. But she’s not likely to graduate from an Ivy League school either. While the odds are better than being an Olympian, they still come in […]

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Happy Birthday, To Me!

Today is my birthday. And I am older than my younger self ever imagined. When I was a kid, being 45 was the equivalent of ancient. Now that I am 45, I realize that while not ancient, I cringe at the certainty that I am middle aged. Well, I guess it beats the alternative. Reflecting […]

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You Can’t Make Me!

How many psychologists does it take to change a light bulb? One, but the light bulb has to want to change. Ok, it’s a corny joke, but still it is true: no one can force another person to change. People are not software; we cannot try to consistently upgrade them to work out their bugs. […]

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