Mindful Moments Blog
Mindful Moments Blog
by Jessica Zodicoff
on Aug 20 2019
As a seven-year-old girl, I remember my grandpa coming over for the holidays and juggling whatever fruit he could find in our kitchen. He taught me to juggle using not lemons, but just three tissues. The fruit was too big for my little-girl hands, but like a set of training wheels, I practiced with those tissues until...
Mindful Moments Blog
Foster Families Are Making It Safe For Kids to Feel
by Alex Petrou
on Jul 29 2019
One foster family shares how they are managing emotions on a daily basis in raising their five children.
Mindful Moments Blog
Blue Dolphin and Green Hummingbird Are Perfectly Imperfect
by Ashley Patek
on Jul 16 2019
A manufacturing inaccuracy of Generation Mindful's SnuggleBuddies gave rise to a beautiful lesson: we are all perfectly imperfect.
Mindful Moments Blog
What Two Young Boys Taught Their Grandma About Anger
by Alex Petrou
on Mar 02 2019
I gave SnuggleBuddies to my grandsons while they were visiting for Christmas to help them learn about feelings, but what happened next surprised me.
You see, that Christmas morning, we had a situation, one that caused my dog to get very, very sick. My dog had gotten into some chocolate candy.
My grandson tried to comfort our dog with the things that comfort them. Hank the elf, their SnuggleBuddies Red Bear and Orange Fox, blankets, and a balloon.
When I found out that my husband had left the chocolates out where the dog got into them, I was furious.
Having to deal with a sick puppy is bad enough, but to make matters worse, I have a rare neuromuscular condition (Myasthenia Gravis) that greatly affects my activity and breathing, and extra activity lands me in bed and on my noninvasive ventilator.
I knew from past experience that a dog eating chocolate results in a very ill pooch with lots of cleaning up and a special diet.
I wanted to enjoy our visit with the kids and the holidays...but I was angry.
I knew my husband did not intend for this to happen, and I did not want to be in a bad mood for the evening while my family was visiting. But I was!
That was when my daughter suggested the boys ask NayNay (me) if she wanted to “do her feelings”.
They were excited about that and ran to get their SnuggleBuddies to share with me.
Everyone listened and supported me as I went through my feelings.
I began to feel better, and it dawned on me that I was actually setting an example for my grandsons.
I also realized that had my grandsons and their SnuggleBuddies not been there, I wouldn't have talked about or worked through my angry feelings that quickly.
I just love those things; they are so cuddly! I ordered myself a Red Bear. And don't tell, but Red Bear has already helped my husband with some of his feelings too.
As a grandma, I love Generation Mindful. It makes me feel like I can really add to my grandson's lives in a lasting way. They live 15 hours away, so I don’t see them in person often. But it is so important to me that they know I SEE THEM!!!
Sometimes my grandsons call/facetime me to tell me their sad or mad feelings...and I think, I can do this! I can be there for them.
Despite any amount of distance or disability, I can listen.
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Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
Mindful Moments Blog
Calming Spaces for Muggles, Wizards and Eight-Year-Old Girls Alike
by Alex Petrou
on Jan 30 2019
Wisdom. Emotional intelligence. Maturity. These words typically conjure up the image of someone older than you. Perhaps it’s someone you know and revere for their persistent nature and kind soul. That person for me is Elizabeth: an 8-year-old I’ve only just met. Older than me? Not by a long shot. A person from whom I could learn from? Absolutely.
Elizabeth and her mom reside in St. Louis, and I was lucky enough to speak with them very recently about their enjoyment of their products from Generation Mindful. Not only was it encouraging to hear they were well-loved already, but there was a tone in this young girl’s voice that stopped me dead in my tracks: she was fully embracing the mindfulness mindset, and was already self-aware enough to speak with me about her own growth and life today.
Elizabeth answered the phone when I called and did so with so much gusto that I thought I was speaking to her mom, Tracy, instead! We chatted Harry Potter, and our shared love of his adventures and magical stories bonded us immediately. She, without a doubt, is a Gryffindor: she was happy to share this fact with me, and even pointed me in the direction of the sorting hat if I wanted to do so myself. I assured her I’m a longtime Hufflepuff and noted that we work well together. She reminded me we all can.
The mother-daughter duo then proceeded to tell me more about the magical Calming Corner they’ve set up in their basement, in a little room below the stairs: just like a certain big-feeling boy Elizabeth and I both know quite well.
It was previously used for storage, but once they received their posters and toolkit from Generation Mindful, their collective lightbulb went off and they just knew that space would be better used as Elizabeth’s very own Calming Corner. In it, she’s incorporated her toolbox of helpful things: some stuffed poodles, some coloring utensils, a small pad for her drawings and doodlings.
She tells me that it makes her happy and to feel calm, and her mom also chuckles and notes that she’s spoken with the poodles a time or two when she needed to vent as well; and that it really, truly helps them to have that space.
Making an area an inviting haven for comfort, peace, and love means it will be used. It will be loved, and much reflection and growth can happen there as well. Sometimes we need a place that is all our own, with tools made with those big feelings in mind.
Dumbledore famously said to his protege Mr. Potter, “Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean it is not real?”
We can’t help but agree.
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Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
Mindful Moments Blog
Teaching Emotional Intelligence and College Students as Change-Makers
by Alex Petrou
on Nov 13 2018
Dr. Meghan Gillette, a professor in the field of Human Development and Human Studies at Iowa State University, shares the latest research on nurturing emotional intelligence in children ages 5 to 12, how she uses Team-Based Learning and her insights on teaching social and emotional skills to the next generation.
Mindful Moments Blog
Enhancing Emotional Development to Treat Child Depression
by Alex Petrou
on Sep 13 2018
A recent study shows that focusing on the parent-child relationship and enhancing emotional development may be a powerful and low-risk approach to the treatment of depression.
Mindful Moments Blog
On Peace Tents, Healing the Generations and Motherhood
by Alex Petrou
on May 13 2018
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Every child wants to know, do you see my light even when I’m not shining it?
Mindful Moments Blog
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: A Card Game to Boost Your Child's Emotional Intelligence
by Alex Petrou
on Feb 21 2017
When I coerced my family to play a new card game designed to nurture our empathy, the first question was: How do you win? “Oh my god, it’s not that kind of game,” I said. We’re a competitive bunch. Let’s just say I’ve been uninvited from some family game[...] Read More
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Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
Mindful Moments Blog
Philly Voice: Mindfulness Card Games: Nurturing Compassion and Peace in Our Families
by Alex Petrou
on Oct 12 2016
The table is set and food prepared. Children play nearby; it’s joyously noisy after a busy day of adventuring. My sister and her girls are in town for a week. I treasure every moment as we connect, explore and share stories. "Dinner is ready," I announce[...] Read More
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Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
Mindful Moments Blog
Amateur Parenting: How a Card Game Transformed My Family in a Matter of Minutes
by Alex Petrou
on May 26 2016
When I decided to back the Generation Mindful Kickstarter campaign for PeaceMakers, I had no idea that this choice would change the course of my family in an instant. This might sound like hyperbole, but I’m being completely serious. This card game has[...] Read More
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Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
Mindful Moments Blog
St. Louis Magazine: St. Louis Mom Launches New Parenting Tool After Raising $7K on Kickstarter
by Alex Petrou
on Mar 22 2016
When my son first saw the deck of colorful PeaceMakers cards lying on the counter, he smiled and asked, “What are THESE, Mama?”. He dove right in, mixing them up and picking ones for me to read. He’s only four years old, but he immediately took action[...] Read More
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Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
