I'm up to my elbows in soap suds, grappling with the burnt lasagne on the baking pan.
 Kath's wrestling the last of the washing into the dryer.
The kids? It's Wrestlemania Couch Edition 2025.

Kath calls out: "Toilet, teeth, bed!"
More couch suplexes and piledrivers!
Me (from really far away and not even close to connected): "Boys! Listen to your mum!"
Then quiet for a sec and... 💥BOOM! - my 7-year-old hits the floor head first!

I yell, they mope, I mope, they leave, I sigh.
Not my proudest parenting moment.

I was frustrated, tired, embarrassed and... angry (can I say that?). A little angry at them, mostly at myself.
I knew better. But tired and under stress, and without a clear plan, I turned into my dad.
Sound familiar?

Most parents I work with say things like:
 "I hate yelling but nothing works!"
 "I don't want to be a drill sergeant, but there are things we need to do!"
 "I just want to understand why they're doing this and help them!"

Feeling bad, when I arrived at bedtime, I tried to lighten the mood with one of my patented dad jokes.
They were having none of it.
My 10-year-old said, "Dad, we don't like it when you yell, it makes our brains freeze." 🧠
Ugh. I started to half empathise, half justify - but he said it again... "It makes our brain freeze!" 
And he was right.

When kids are scared, worried, angry or even over-excited - their brain kinda freezes. They don't have access to the top and front parts of their brain that help them think and reason.

We made up and agreed to handle it differently if it happened again.
And it did happen again... the next night!
But I had a plan - I dried my soapy hands, went over to them, got on their level and we worked out a better option for pre-bed play.

The moment I connected with them, everything changed.

My lesson: Being a connected caregiver is the key to supporting kids and the behaviours we find challenging - without damaging the relationship. 🩵

That’s why I’m running a free session:
 3 Steps to Transform Challenging Behaviour
It’s for professionals, parents, and caregivers who want to:
 ✅ Understand what’s really going on beneath the behaviour
 ✅ Feel more confident in the moment
 ✅ Use systems and connection (not just control or chaos)

You don’t need a new sticker chart or a perfect script.
You need a framework that works.

I'll drop the link to register in the comments.
Let me know in the comments if you've had a similar experience.