If, as a parent, you haven’t yet experienced a pediatric urgent care visit, don’t worry. There’s still time. And when you do, it be helpful if you (and your child) are ready! In this blog post, Certified Child Life Specialist, Child Life on Call founder, and expert Piper + Enza contributor Katie Taylor talks about navigating pediatric urgent care visits and offers tips to put your child at ease in what might be an anxious experience for them.
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Fundamental Ways to Connect with Your Child
Interpersonal connection is fundamental to the human condition—and this is especially true for children. In her latest post, parenting educator and Piper+ Enza contributor Giselle Baumet shares straightforward ways you can connect with your child to strengthen your relationship with them, as well as support the development of their emotional intelligence.
A Guide for Parents in the Sandwich Generation
A growing number of U.S. adults are joining the Sandwich Generation – caring for their elders while raising children – and it can be very challenging. This month, parenting educator and Piper+ Enza contributor Giselle Baumet shares tips on finding balance in this demanding role, engaging and supporting your kids as you go, and making time to nurture yourself.
A Hard Lesson Learned: Why it’s Important to Prepare Children for Medical Appointments
“Preparation is the key to success.” This month, parenting educator and Piper+ Enza contributor Giselle Baumet discusses just how important it is to prepare children for medical appointments, how to go about it, and how it can support their health in the long term.
Prioritizing Your Child’s Comfort: A Guide for Parents Navigating a Chronic Medical Diagnosis
We’re honored to welcome a new contributor this month. Meet Dr. Maureen Michele, life coach, author, general pediatrician, allergist/immunologist, and mama to three. She provides coaching and support to parents of chronically ill kids, and in this article, offers guidance to families facing a chronicle medical diagnosis in how to best support their kids through the journey. We happen to think this advice is great for families facing routine medical experiences, too!
Teaching Children to Challenge the Status Quo: The Importance of Questioning Authority
Why is questioning authority important for kids? Parenting educator and Piper+ Enza contributor Giselle Baumet explores how encouraging this behavior can help kids develop critical thinking skills and decision making abilities that will serve them throughout their lives.
Patient-Centered Care: How to Advocate for Your Family in Medical Settings
This month, parenting educator and Piper+ Enza contributor Giselle Baumet shares her personal journey to self-advocacy for her family’s medical care, and shares ways that you can insist on and ensure a patient-centered experience for your children (and for you!).
What to Pack When your Child has an Overnight Stay at the Hospital
Certified Child Life Specialist, Child Life on Call founder, and expert Piper + Enza contributor Katie Taylor has supported her share of inpatient kids and their families over the years, and offers her advice on what to pack when your child has an overnight stay at the hospital.
Reducing medical trauma in kids is straightforward. So why aren’t we doing it?
Originally published in Motherly, Piper+Enza co-founder Taraneh Arhamsadr talks about reducing medical trauma in kids, and why we should be prioritizing it more as a society.
How to Help Your Child Take Medicine
Certified Child Life Specialist, Child Life on Call founder, and expert Piper + Enza contributor Katie Taylor shares some ideas and strategies to help your child take medicine more easily — something that parents and caretakers are challenged with all too often!
How to Make Resolutions for Emotional Wellness—And Keep Them
New year, new you! Right? Honestly, the concept of setting and keeping New Year’s resolutions can bring on more pressure than anything else—so why not rethink them? This month, Giselle Baumet talks through how we can focus on resolutions for emotional wellness, especially for parents, and how this can serve as a basis for reaching other personal goals.
How to Have a Simple Holiday Season with Children
The holiday season can be filled with joy and celebration. It can also be super overwhelming, with all the events, activities, and expectations. This month, our friend, positive parenting educator (and multi-hyphenate) Giselle Baumet shares the benefits of having a simple holiday season with children, and offers some helpful tips on how to go about it!
How Can I Stop Being SAD in the Winter?
Here at Piper+Enza, we want to make sure kids and their families have all the resources they need for a better physical and mental health journey. In the fall and winter seasons, with their colder, shorter days, many adults (and some kids) experience seasonal mood changes. So we asked our experts, including child psychologist Dr. Mary Goodarzi and herbalist and educator Giselle Baumet, to help us answer the question: How can I stop being SAD in the winter?
The Importance of the Attachment Theory in Parenting
This month, our friend, positive parenting educator (and multi-hyphenate) Giselle Baumet discusses the importance of the attachment theory in parenting, and talks through what you can do to build a secure attachment with your child—despite how you may have grown up.
How to Talk to Kids About Death
Have you ever wondered about how the passing of a loved one would affect your child, and how you might support them—especially if you are grieving yourself? As El Día de los Muertos approaches, this topic has been on our minds, so we asked our friend, positive parenting educator (and multi-hyphenate) Giselle Baumet to give us some sage advice on how to talk to kids about death.
I Stopped Teaching My Kids to be “Brave”
So many parents of young kids today were taught to handle fear, sadness, or adversity by being tough and holding back emotions. Our founder Rita Ho-Bezzola talks about why she stopped teaching her kids to be “brave” and her approach to supporting these feelings in a more constructive way.
7 Icky School Borne Illnesses and How to Prevent Them
Parenting educator, herbalist, and mindfulness expert Giselle Baumet takes us through the most common, communicable, and icky school borne illnesses, and what you can do to prevent them!
8 Tips for a Smooth(er) Back to School Transition
Parenting educator and mindfulness expert Giselle Baumet shares her 8 tips for a smooth(er) back to school transition as families everywhere gear up for the new school year!
Growth from Boredom
We’ve reached that point in the summer where parents everywhere are likely to hear that dreaded statement: “I’m BORED!” But is boredom really that bad for kids? Our resident Early Childhood expert Todd Hioki shares how kids can experience growth from boredom and build important life skills!
3 Essential Ways to Have a Slow, Simple Living Summer with Kids
Summertime, and the living is easy, right? That’s not always the case if you have kids. But with a different approach and perspective, summer as a family with kids can be something to look forward to. In this post, positive parenting educator and Certified Life Coach Giselle Baumet shares some tips to help you plan for a slow, simple living summer with your kids.
Covid Vaccine Prep for Kids Under 5
Certified Child Life Specialist, Child Life on Call founder, and expert Piper + Enza contributor Katie Taylor shares her “Covid vaccine prep for kids under 5” tips to help families with little ones be prepared for vaccination day.
Raising LGBTQ+ inclusive kids
In pursuit of a kinder, more accepting society, it is absolutely critical to raise children who inclusive of those around them. In this post, positive parenting educator and Certified Life Coach Giselle Baumet discusses how we can raise a generation of LGBTQ+ inclusive kids who understand, embrace, and affirm this community.
3 Powerful Holistic Care Practices for Children’s Mental Health
Expert contributor Giselle Baumet discusses how teaching our children about mindfulness early in life can support their physical and mental health in myriad ways as they grow up and face life’s many challenges.
Choosing the Right Mental and Emotional Health Resources for Your Child
For adults and kids alike, health includes mental and emotional health. In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, our resident child psychologist Dr. Mary Goodarzi is back to offer some advice on seeking out the right resources to best support your child’s unique mental, emotional, and behavioral needs.
Health Benefits of Being in Nature for Children (+ Activities!)
In honor of Earth month, expert contributor Giselle Baumet discusses the many health and wellness benefits of nature for children and shares some activities you can do with your little one to help them feel appreciation for and connection with nature.
Mindfulness for Children (and Toddlers!): A Parent’s Guide
Expert contributor Giselle Baumet discusses how teaching our children about mindfulness early in life can support their physical and mental health in myriad ways as they grow up and face life’s many challenges.
Women’s History Month: Raising Strong Women
March is Women’s History Month. The big, looming question for so many mothers out there is: What can we do to raise the next generation of strong, compassionate, independent, intelligent women? In this blog, the moms of Piper+Enza weigh in.
Complete Guide to Choosing a Pediatrician as a Black Mother
As with every decision you have made for your child, choosing a pediatrician as a Black mother means asking advocacy questions. In this article from our newest expert contributor Giselle Baumet, you will learn key questions to ask when selecting a pediatrician, as well as when determining appropriate care for your child.
Toddlers and Doctors: How much should toddlers cry in doctor’s offices?
Toddlers and doctors—not a preferred combo for many! Certified Child Life Specialist, Child Life on Call founder, and expert Piper + Enza contributor Katie Taylor shares some advice and insight on supporting your toddler at a doctor’s visit or medical procedure.
Helping Kids Through Big Holiday Feelings
Certified Child Life Specialist Katie Taylor and Child Psychologist Dr. Mary Goodarzi (both mamas and Piper + Enza contributors) share their perspectives on dealing with the big feelings that often show up for kids (and parents!) during the holidays!