It’s the end of 2014, and I always like to look back at my year on the blog to notice the posts that do well…and the ones that flop.
There’s a bit of nostalgia when I do this because they take me back to moments in my parenting journey where I might not have been  my best, or I learned a good lesson.
What I discovered this year, is that yelling is a hot topic, avoiding meltdowns is important, and everyone likes a bit of controversy.
So here you have it…The Best Parenting Tips of 2014
1. One Simple Tip To Stop Yelling (Yellow Hearts) – This is one of my favorite stop yelling tips that I have. Â It’s quick, simple, and a constant reminder to stay calm and not yell when tempers flair.
2. 20 Parenting Tips Every Parent Needs to Know – I love doing little round ups of tips for you. Â This post is packed full of tips about everything from power struggles, to teaching good manners. Â Have a current parenting problem? Â This post might have the solution.
3. Stop Calling Children Nasty Names – I don’t usually write controversial things, but sometimes I see something that I must talk about. This is by far my biggest pet peeve when it comes to parenting and I needed to get a few things off my chest. I am not judging this mother, I totally see her struggle. But, it just shows that, as a society, how it’s becoming more normal to call children horrible names. This post is not a rant, but a therapist’s view of why calling children names can be so detrimental to that child and to our relationships with them.
4. Pick Up The Toys – When my oldest son was younger, we struggled with getting him to clean up his toys at the end of the day, and we’d eventually end the day angry and frustrated. So, I found a solution that works great with our family, and we no longer have the frustration around cleaning up toys.
5. The Ultimate Guide to Stop Yelling at Your Kids. – When I took the challenge to stop yelling at my kids this year, I started paying attention to all those yelling tips out there.  I had no idea there were so many!  So, I took my favorites, and put them all in one place for you.  I must admit…I really like this post too.
6. Misbehavior: To Teach or To Punish? – I wrote this for you because it’s something I have been thinking about when I discipline my own children and I thought it might be helpful to you.  Apparently it was, because it got a lot of pageviews and some great comments.  This is one of my all time favorite parenting tips.
7. Easing Transitions for Young Children – “Hey Billy, it’s time to leave the park.  Let’s go!” And Billy immediately starts to melt down.  These tips will help with making transitions like that easier for both you and your child.
8. Temper Tantrums: Why They Happen and How to Handle Them – Temper tantrums.  All children get them at one point or another (in varying degrees).  Here’s where I explain the biology behind WHY they happen and some great tips to not only calm children down, but help stop them before they start.
9. When A Child Gets Lost – I wrote this after a complete parenting fail when I almost lost my child at the Zoo.  It wasn’t that he got lost, but that I had not prepared him for what to do when he gets lost.  Here’s how I changed that and also some other tips I found that might be useful.
10.  Avoiding Power Struggles with Kids: Choices – Again, I really, really like talking about why kids behave the way they do. This post is full of information about why we get into power struggles with kids and how to avoid them all together.  This is one post in a three part series.
And there you have it, my 10 Best Parenting Tips of 2014! I hope they help you start the New Year off right!
If you’re looking for more awesome parenting posts from the past year, check out this huge list of Most Popular Parenting Tips of 2014
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