One of the most phenomenal truths about parenting is this: when we parents, make one small change in our speech, attitude or behaviors, enormous changes can take place in our relationships with our children.  For instance, try looking at your children in the face when they talk. You will find that they feel more valued. This in turn draws you closer to them. If you let them finish talking before you speak, they’re more likely to listen to what you have to say. And if you get in the habit of saying something as simple as “what do you think?” suddenly your children want to talk to you more frequently.

I’d like to invite you to make another simple change that I’m trying to make this year- turn my phone off for an hour a day. Actually, I’ve been doing this for a couple of weeks now and it’s so relaxing, I’m increasing the time to 2 hours.

I don’t have children living with me anymore but I do spend evenings with my husband and the truth is, many evenings can pass without either of us talking very much. He has a lot of work to do dictating patient’s charts via…