How to parent more predictably (2018)
One of my best tools with my toddler is &quot;don&#x27;t react, respond&quot;. My first thought is rarely my best thought, and my reactionary tone of voice is not my most loving and supportive. A kid doesn&#x27;t need your immediate answer to everything. You can tell them, &quot;let me think about that&quot; and literally take the time to consider your options. Almost nothing is an emergency situation requiring your elevated tone of voice or physically rushing towards them.<p>Another tip is that if you see your kid either doing or about to do something you don&#x27;t approve of, you can slowly close the physical distance so that you can intervene in a non-reactionary way.<p>Lastly, when it comes to predictability, I totally agree with the author. But don&#x27;t be too hard on yourself. You&#x27;re going to establish all sorts of bad patterns. Just establish the new pattern, suffer through the couple days of reaction to change, and move forward. My toddler is much better at adopting new normals than I am.<p>A lot of this I learned from being a classroom teacher and also from listening to Janet Lansbury&#x27;s podcast (<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.janetlansbury.com&#x2F;podcast-audio&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.janetlansbury.com&#x2F;podcast-audio&#x2F;</a>).