We moved right before Christmas last year from an older neighborhood where the houses are smaller and closer together … to a newer one where the front doors are farther apart.

Although I love my new neighborhood, I do miss the proximity of the houses where I used to live. I felt more connected to my old neighbors. I would see them more frequently and we developed relationships talking about our projects, our trees, the critters (i.e. our resident raccoons) etc.…

Before I had children, I saw a woman with a T-shirt (and a young child clinging to her leg) that read: Only 14 hours ’til bedtime!

Now, with three children of my own, I completely relate. Often, after a long day of putting everyone else’s needs first, Moms and Dads just need a “moment” And, that”moment” nearly always comes after the kids are down for bed.

But…not for all parents. For many, bedtime can be a power-struggle over who gets up, when, and…

I have heard several judges talk about the value of mediation. And most often it’s about the benefits of having parties sit down prior to going to court and coming to an agreement. Sure … this saves the court time and money and opens up the calendar for cases that really need to be litigated.

I have also heard some judges say…

Thank goodness for second chances! If no one gave me a second chance (in relationships, at work, etc.), I sometimes wonder where I would be. So, it’s always shocking to me how many people I meet don’t believe in second chances–at all.I find this especially common in parenting. When I met with families who were having parenting struggles, one common theme popped up again and again: many parents don’t give their children a second chance to prove _______(fill in the…

This isn’t a blog about golf – I promise. So, non-golfers, please keep reading.

I was at a birthday party chatting with the teenage daughter of a colleague. We were having a lively discussion about golf and she was telling me that she had joined a league and was really enjoying it.

I was a little jealous because I know in my heart that doing the same would be one great way to improve my ailing handicap. OK – the truth is, I don’t even have…

You won’t read any parenting book without reading the words, “testing boundaries.” I promise. It’s one of the parenting industry’s favorite phrases, and it refers to (usually) a child who is pushing his limits to see when Mom or Dad will stand their ground.

But, did you know we really NEVER outgrow the behavior? Even as adults, many of us push boundaries in our intimate relationships, friendships, and at work.…

I send a lot of e-mails and this observation in research conducted by Kristin Byron (as reported in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology) fascinates me.

Regardless of the sender’s intention, the recipient of an e-mail interprets it pretty differently.

If the sender thinks its positive, the receiver feels its neutral.

If the sender thinks its neutral, the receiver feels its negative.…

As a former reporter in a high-pressure newsroom, I couldn’t help but be horrified a few weeks ago, when a disgruntled ex-news employee shot and killed a reporter and videographer live on T.V.

It shook me to the core, not just because of the tragic circumstances, but also because I remember working alongside many a disgruntled employee in the newsroom and wondering, “will this person hurt me or someone else?” In one instance, I thought a videographer was going to kill me.…

Tomorrow, I am celebrating my 20th year in Nevada.

It was in 1995, on the day after Labor Day, that I dropped my mom off at the airport before I drove to work for my first day at a new job in a new city – over 2,700 miles from “home.”

Was it exciting? Sure it was.

Was it scary? Absolutely.

I didn’t know a soul in Reno.…

We mediators love to talk about “collaboration” and “compromise,” but what’s the difference between the two? And, moreover, which one is better when you’re in the midst of a conflict?

I read a story recently that illustrated the difference beautifully: Two sisters had one orange, and each of them wanted it. The older sister claimed she should get it because she’s older. The younger sister thought she should get the orange because she’s younger. They decided…

“This conversation may be recorded to ensure quality.”

We’ve all heard that phrase before when we are about to be connected with customer service or a help line of some sort. But I never really thought about what it might mean.

Well, it turns out that there is a psychologist and researcher in England (Elizabeth Stokoe) who analyzes real call/conversation data…

You may have heard of mother-child attachment–the idea that babies who feel safe and secure with their mothers tend to thrive, and those who feel insecurely attached to their mothers may have trouble establishing healthy relationships.

Well, according to Dr. Sue Johnson, adults can have attachment disorders, too. Except, for adults, the object of the attachment is one’s romantic partner.…

Ever had something to do that you really didn’t want to? Or a task that caused you great frustration that just needed to be done?

These types of activities cause me to ‘stress eat’ – that’s my not so scientific term for the well worn path to my refrigerator.

Now’s there’s a free app called “Shuffle My…

I’ll be the first one to admit–my kids aren’t always great at following the lead. They can be a bit bossy and over-arching, and that’s on a good day. But, as I watched my son play with a friend the other day, I realized…there’s hope.

I looked on as, time after time, the friend grabbed a toy out of my son’s hand. Then, I observed my son just “moving on” to a different toy. No fuss. No fight. I was one proud Mama!

It made me wonder about a recent…

Often we are thrown together because we have some kind of problem that needs addressing.

The usual problem solving process looks like this:

Convene -> Define Problem -> List Solutions -> Evaluate Solutions -> Create Action Plan -> Implement

• We are convened late (i.e. the problem has become expensive, time consuming etc.).…

Today marked the first day of Kindergarten for my youngest child, and it’s a bittersweet milestone for most of us Moms out there. It means the “baby” isn’t really a baby anymore, which can feel kind of sad. But, it also means you’ve kept your youngest child alive for five whole years (not as easy as you think)!

As I left him in the classroom, under the tutelege of someone I don’t really know, I secretly hoped he would learn something and, hopefully, not…

An old Bedouin was approaching his final days and wanted to leave his wealth to his three sons. The oldest would get the most, while the youngest would get the least.

The father’s wealth was his camel herd, all 17 of them. When his day came and he passed away, the three sons gathered to learn how his wealth would be distributed.

They were informed that…

One of the biggest trends in therapy right now is called Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, and it’s really a combination of a lot of different approaches to behavior change. But, perhaps the most notable technique to come out of this modality is called “mindfulness.” And, none of us in the therapy field can believe we didn’t think of this before!

What’s mindfulness, you ask? It’s the ability to be “in the moment,” to be aware of your surroundings. To calm…

Consensus is a an interesting word.

The dictionary definition is “general agreement or concord or harmony” which seems pretty easy, yet how do you know that a group has arrived at consensus?…

The first time I met my husband’s family, we were newly dating, and he took me to Cleveland, OH to meet his Mom, Dad, and Sister. It was a great visit, but I felt like I had stepped into somesort of bizzaro-world where people don’t speak…they shout. Happy, sad, angry, scared, worried–no matter which emotion was being expressed, it was expressed LOUDLY.…