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Not all parents love sitting on the floor and playing 17 games of Hi-Ho Cheerio or making up two hour-long stories about imaginary creatures. This behavior isn’t new now that we have cell phones, but it sure has gotten easier to find something else to do while sitting near our children. Society has definitely made it normal to use our devices at home, in public, in the bathroom (don’t pretend you don’t) and in bed, and all that’s having an effect on our kids. Parents have concerns about their kids ability to engage in “real life” and interactions and relationships, so we have to consider what we’re teaching in three important ways.

Try One -> Evaluate the Outcome is the path we all follow as we try to effectively solve As a matter of fact, the first time doesn’t often look anything like ice skating does on TV. The several times our kids try solving a problem, it doesn’t look much like problem-solving. No matter how often our kids watch us ice skate, that will never make them good on the ice themselves.

If your only goal is to make sure they never see inappropriate content for 18 years, you’ve probably already lost. You can make it clear to a child that something they’ve done isn’t okay without making them feel like a terrible person for doing it. For young kids (under age 10), the answer is more concrete and there are definite steps you can take to prevent them from seeing it again. We give our kids information and values and as they grow they choose their own path but our job is to make sure they know what we believe and why.

Each episode I addressed a big issue, and how to tackle the tough topics we all have been struggling with (and in some cases avoiding) talking about with our kids. This week’s episode is an important one for parents because it is something that many teens face high school and college ( In this episode, the amazing Anna Whiston Donaldson from An Inch of Gray and I talk about binge drinking and her concerns about how dangerous it could be for her daughter, who is leaving for college soon. In case you need extra help tackling awkward or challenging conversations with your kids, I also have resources to guide you through talking about tough topics with your kids, like my new ecourse.