by GIFT Coach | Aug 7, 2013 | Adoptive Parenting Skills/Tool, Blogs by Gayle Swift, Faith and Values, Post Adoption Challenges & Behaviors
Families thrive on healthy leadership built on respect, positive modeling, and encouragement. What makes a parent a good leader? The Free On line dictionary defines a leader as one who is in charge or in command of others. But that kind of power-centered leadership...
by GIFT Coach | Jun 19, 2013 | Blogs by Gayle Swift, Blogs by Joann DiStefano, Faith and Values, General Discussion, Post Adoption Challenges & Behaviors, Strengthening Family Relationships
June is associated with celebrations: Fathers Day, graduations and weddings. We undertake each of these benchmark events with expansive visions of success. What does it take to move beyond wishing to achieve the fulfillment of our dreams? The obvious answer is...
by GIFT Coach | Jun 11, 2013 | Blogs by Gayle Swift, Faith and Values, Post Adoption Challenges & Behaviors, Strengthening Family Relationships
As we continue to explore the importance of fathers in our lives, we came across this TED Talk link to Andrew Solomon’s presentation. A gay man, he shared his parents’ attitude to his “otherness.” While they came to accept his being gay, they hung onto their sense of...
by GIFT Coach | Jun 5, 2013 | Adoptive Parenting Skills/Tool, Blogs by Gayle Swift, Blogs by Joann DiStefano, Faith and Values, General Discussion, Strengthening Family Relationships
Fatherly guidance can sometimes come across to our children as a subtle message of incapability or over-stepping on a child’s need to make things their own way and do projects themselves. Parental over-helping can reinforce the feelings of shame and incapability which...
by GIFT Coach | Mar 28, 2013 | Blogs by Gayle Swift, Blogs by Joann DiStefano, Difficult Discussions, Faith and Values, Strengthening Family Relationships
During this past month we’ve explored the way walls function in our lives to protect and defend us. It is important for us to know when to open these defenses and especially vital to teach our children these same skills. When we are in a moment of confrontation, we...
by Sally A | Jan 9, 2013 | Blogs by Lynn Cooper, Faith and Values, Foster Parenting, General Discussion
The Power of Forgiveness What is forgiveness? The Webster’s New World Dictionary provides 3 meanings for the word forgive: 1. To give up resentment against or the desire to punish; stop being angry with, pardon 2. To give up all claim to punish or exact penalty for an...
