Happy Families Blog

Recently there has been a groundswell of popular opinion extolling the value of letting our kids be bored. A recent New York Times article argued, ‘Boredom teaches us that life isn’t a parade of ...

We all want our kids to feel good. Ice cream. Cake. Beach days. Playdates. These are all great for bringing joy. But typically, these good feelings don’t last. Once the ice cream is gone, or the ...

When it comes to holidays, I’m normally a do it yourself kind of guy. I’m big on exploration, activity, and getting off the beaten track. I want to go my own way. For me it’s all about ...

In a 2018 survey half of the parents questioned believed that smart phone usage negatively affected their child’s mental health. And nearly half thought their child was actually addicted to the ...

Think of the times that your parenting has been its best. Those times where you were unconditionally there for your child and it felt “right”. When I ask parents to tell me about those times, ...

                             Time-out is still the most often recommended form of discipline. Paediatricians, parenting experts and child development experts continue to recommend it...

School holidays are fast approaching. For the kids, there have been 10 or so weeks of sport, music, schoolwork, sitting still and navigating friendships. For the parents, it’s been 10 weeks of ...

Parenting with or without Parental Controls Dear Dr Justin, A few weeks ago we found our ten-year-old son looking at an explicit website on his iPad. He says he found it accidentally when he was ...

Behavioural scientists have spent a lot of time studying ‘happiness’. They’ve discovered that being happy elevates our wellbeing, increases our life satisfaction and gives us better health and ...

You know what it’s like. It’s dinnertime. You’re trying to get kids off devices, serve up food, and be available to your family. Then your phone dings or vibrates. You know it’s probably ...