Y'all there are BIG developments in the Sims house! The littlest littles are all in public school!!! That's right the twins and the 7year old have all gone off to full school and Charisse is feeling some type of way. If you're wondering how she got to this point, you're not alone. A LOT of mamas in her mama community have asked the same thing. Where do you even start to have the conversation of what kind of schooling your children should have? Do you NEED to have that conversation with your children? Listen in for what that has meant for Charisse and how it has changed what her day to day has looked like since!

Tell us if you've heard this story. we're out with the kids and we've had the BEST. DAY. EVER. We did all the best things, you know this is one of those experiences that will live in their little memory banks forever and it has definitely filled our hearts knowing that we have been able to to provide that for our kids. But then, it all changes. Yelling, screaming, kicking, the works. How did it all go wrong?! Don't worry!! It didn't! Welcome to the meltdown. This week PBS Early Learning Champion Charisse Sims shares what exactly a meltdown is and why it happens to our little ones. Plus, she gives tips on how you can best prepare yourself for the next meltdown, because there will unfortunately be others.

Parents are you wondering when your kids are going to stop unlocking that door and wandering out the house? Unbuckling that car seat? Getting into that cabinet? Spilling all the juice on the floor cause they think it's fun? Well, we got some bad news for you. They're probably not going to fully stop not for a while anyway, BUT there is hope! Listen in as Charisse explains just what impulse control means to children and how we as parents can empower ourselves to create spaces that don't allow for destructive behavior.

Does your child struggle with new experiences? Maybe they just like to hang on to you? We know it's hard to understand why everyone else's children seem to adapt to new experiences head on while yours is hesitant, but it's OKAY. There's a very good chance your child is just slow to warm. Listen in as Charisse breaks down what a slow to warm child is, what you can do if you have a slow to warm child, and why time can be a sham sometimes.

Gentle parenting is a generational change for most of us, but we all have that one person who just doesn't get it. It might be a partner, a sibling, grandparents, etc. When you've made the decision to engage in gentle parenting sometimes pulling along the rest of the family is... well it's hard. This week, Charisse shares the struggles she's had with getting her husband on board spoiler alert it's still a journey. What has and hasn't worked for them and what tools are at our disposal to help get everyone on board?

Charisse shares why finding a community of Black mothers is critical to those rasing Black children.

Hi Friends! Charisse is back from the Black Love Weekend and she is feeling replenished! But how does that turn into Thanksgiving tips for you and your little heavens? Well it's all about having a seat at the table. Listen in as Charisse shares what you can do to help your children feel included this Thanksgiving and all holiday season!

Shame has been weighing heavily on Charisse after she caught a clip from the 2021 Black Love Summit make sure you get your tickets to our 2022 Summit right now! where Bre discussed how shame from her childhood had affected her relationship with her partner as an adult. As parents we often use shame as a way to try to teach our children right or wrong, but does it really accomplish that? Listen in as Charisse breaks down the idea of shame, whether or not she believes we should be shaming our little ones, and what other options we have as parents to teach our children the lessons we are trying to get across instead.

Halloween is only a few days away and look if you don't have a costume for your little heavens, Charisse can't help you. What she DOES have tips for is navigating the chaos that is the Halloween experience. The sounds, the exercise, the SUGAR! There is so much stimulation that if you don't go into the day with a game plan you are going to get had. We've got your back parents! Planning for Halloween is as much about us as it is about our little ones. Listen in as Charisse drops gems to make sure that it's all treats for you this Halloween!

Wellness. We all have heard the word. We all know we need some sort of wellness in our life, even though we don't have any sort of grasp on it. But as parents we know that we need to model better behaviors for our kids so we are out here TRYING. Which is why Charisse was so excited to talk to David Wasicki, CTNC. David is a girl dad of a toddler, the General Manager of Black Love Inc, a fellow podcast host, and a Certified Transformational Nutrition Coach. In addition to the balancing of all the things, David shares what his journey to wellness looked like, how being biracial shaped so much of his identity, how trauma can live in the body and so much more.

I CAN'T CALM DOWN! If you're a parent there's a good chance one of your little heavens has yelled this at one point or another, and if you're like any normal human being you were probably frustrated at the jump. You probably told them to breathe or to just calm down or try to take a walk. As adults with fully formed frontal lobes, we often forget that children do not have all the tools and experience we have to regulate our bodies and we get frustrated. Well, Charisse is here to tell you to keep CALLLM. CALLLM. Listen in to hear just what this acronym stands for and how it can help you in those moments when your children are just having a blowout. We know every child is different and develops the tools they need to regulate at different speeds, so this is just as much as a tool to help you all out as parents as it is to try to help your little ones too!

Children are just tiny humans. Just like us, they need boundaries to help understand how to function within the family. But if it was that easy you wouldn't be here at your wits end trying to figure out how to set them! Look, it's hard. Especially if your children are a bit older and you're trying to teach them boundaries while unteaching them another behavior that they know and love. This week Charisse has tips for teaching boundaries at all stages with a special shout out to one of our Mama's Den mamas Hey Codie! and a problem she's having with her twins.

Yasmine Jameelah is entrepreneur, journalist, and wellness advocate through her Transparent Black platforms, but she's also somebody's child. Today she shares with Charisse what her childhood looked like and what led her to her current successes. From being raised in the Christian and Muslim faiths and how her parents gave her the space to explore, to how her faith has been key in shaping her wellness journey Yasmine is open honest and vulnerable about it all. Plus, Yasmine drops all the gems for us parents and how we should demonstrate wellness for our children, and more importantly, why it's important for us to not feel shame around why us working toward wellness looks different.

Do your kids know your name? Your full name? Not mama or daddy or mama Charisse but your government name? It sounds silly, but an incident that Charisse witnessed as she was dropping off her youngest children at school brought the thought of safety right to the front of her mind. As parents, we like to think that our children would know what to do if they were ever in trouble, but they're kids! It's our job to ensure that they've got all the tips and tricks to be safe in the case of an emergency. This week, Charisse shares what has worked with her children of all ages, and what we can do as parents just in case the worst does happen.

Charisse has been fielding all the questions lately about her absence and we hear you! Like all parents, she had to juggle all the things a spouse out of town, children in three different parts of the city, and coordinating with a babysitter and look, things did not go as planned. One of Charisse's little heavens did the babysitter DIRTY yall, like ran her out of the house with tears in her eyes dirty. And Charisse felt like the worst parent, the worst educator, and questioned this whole gentle parenting thing. But the truth of it is, there was a reason why her child was acting this way AND gentle parenting was not the cause. Sometimes we all need a moment to process what is going on. As adults, it is much easier than it is as tiny humans because we understand self regulation. Listen in as Charisse shares what processing looked like for her in this moment, what you can do as a parent when you feel like you're at the end of your rope, and how you can help your children learn how to process their very big feelings in a productive manner.

One question Charisse always gets is How do I get my child to listen? It seems to be a common theme amongst parents. Even our friends over at The Mama's Den have had that problem. One has to ask, is listening really the problem? There is a question that Charisse really hears when a parent asks her how to get their little ones to listen and it has nothing to do with listening and everything to do with respect.

Welcome back friends! We are on the third installment of the PEACEFUL Parenting method, and this week we're back this week with letters U L! We've heard you've needed all the parenting tips and Charisse is ready to help! One common issue that keeps coming up is that I just don't know where to start! For the final two letters in the series Charisse breaks down why Understanding is so fundamental in parenting and how it ties into compassion. Plus, pillar L for Listening. Listening is probably what Charisse gets asked about the most but as she explains, what parents think is listening isn't just listening.

Welcome back friends! We are on the third installment of the PEACEFUL Parenting method, and this week we're back this week with letters E F! We've heard you've needed all the parenting tips and Charisse is ready to help! One common issue that keeps coming up is that I just don't know where to start! In the next two letters in the series Charisse breaks down why being the Environment in which you're parenting in plays a huge role in your children's needs. Plus, pillar F for Friendship. Now Charisse knows this is going to be a controversial one, but just give her a minute to break down why you need to be your child's friend!

Welcome back friends! Last week we gave you the first two letters of the PEACEFUL Parenting method, and this week we're back this week with letters A C! We've heard you've needed all the parenting tips and Charisse is ready to help! One common issue that keeps coming up is that I just don't know where to start! In the next two letters in the series Charisse breaks down why being Aware is key to being an amazing parent, and how connectedness is important to truly understanding your little one's most basic needs even when they're kicking trash cans.

Welcome back friends! We've heard you've needed all the parenting tips and Charisse is ready to help! One common issue that keeps coming up is that I just don't know where to start! Look, that's valid. It seems like these days everyone has a different definition of what exactly gentle parenting is, AND Charisse isn't here to say that her way is the only way! But if you're a parent looking for a nice easy way to start, Parenting for the Culture has got you covered with the PEACEFUL Parenting method. Make sure you listen in to hear just what PEACEFUL is and what those first two letters have in store for you!