Podcasts

Welcome to the Celebrate Kids Podcast with Dr. Kathy Fresh ideas and solutions to help adults understand children and their needs so they can relate well and connect more deeply are what Dr. Kathy will share on the Celebrate Kids Podcast. Our concern for this generation and our belief that the family, education, and faith matter greatly compels us to offer solutions to strengthen adult-child relationships and connections. Adults will have more hope and be able to persevere during challenging situations. Children’s identity and positive beliefs about their lives and their futures will be strengthened. We are looking forward to helping adults meet children’s needs! Episode 40: Hope, Optimism, and Character How do you want your children to answer the purpose question: Why am I alive? Their answers matter because their purpose influences so much, including whether they’ll strive for competence. Learn how character, obedience, love, and service can help children meet their need for purpose. Dr. Kathy’s comments about encouraging your children to serve with their smarts are sure to inspire you! Episode 39: Created On Purpose, With Purpose Knowing why we’re alive can keep us alive! Dr. Kathy explains that how we meet our need for security, identity, and belonging influences what we think our purpose is. And that influences our decisions, commitments, and priorities. Perhaps the most important purpose is to glorify God. What does that mean? To help you understand, Kathy shares a personal story from her days as a professor. Episode 38: Connecting Through Technology - It’s Not Always Negative! Dr. Kathy talks with Arlene Pellicane about positive uses of technology. Connecting to good and trustworthy people is positive! Let’s learn how to purposefully parent so there are more positive effects than negative, even when it comes to connecting with family and friends. Episode 37: Friendship Skills Can Be And Should Be Learned God created us for connection. He meets our belonging need and wants us to have healthy relationships with people, too. We can connect through our talents and by serving, sharing, teaching, helping, and loving each other well. Following the 42 one-another verses in the New Testament, such as love one-another, honor one-another, and pray for one-another, enhance our friendships. So does learning the four categories of friendship skills Dr. Kathy mentions. Episode 36: Our Belonging is Set and Settled in Jesus Christ!  We belong to God when we believe, by faith, in the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, on our behalf. We join God’s family! Dr. Kathy uses Psalm 23 to demonstrate how we can connect with Jesus. You’ll be refreshed with new understandings of how He relates to us as you see the verbs that describe Jesus’ actions in this Psalm. She also explains how our use of the spiritual disciplines of prayer, worship, study, serving, rest, Sabbath, and more help us know we belong. Episode 35: Using Humor in the Family Well - Free Medicine!  Sally Baucke, a Christian comedian, joins Dr. Kathy on this episode of the podcast. She presents an ideal example of the value of knowing who we are – our identity. It increases our security, enriches our belonging, and increases our confidence in our purpose and our competence. Using humor appropriately enhances family life.   It’s like medicine to the soul – and it’s free! Episode 34: Creative and Academic Strengths - Living with the Tension Dr. Kathy’s guest, Sally Baucke, is a Christian comedian and nurse who was equally gifted as a child in leadership and creativity. She did well in academic courses and in music and theater. Her dad valued the academics more and cautioned her to not laugh too much for fear that people wouldn’t think she was smart. It took Sally many years to figure out how to live in the balance of both strengths. She and Dr. Kathy share how important it is to know your children and to value all parts of themselves. Helping them believe that God is a good Creator is key. Episode 33: Tell Me About Yourself – What Would You Say? Do you struggle to know what to say when someone says, “Tell me about yourself.”? This may be because you’re insecure or your identity is incomplete. Kathy’s identity categories will stimulate your thinking. You’ll also see how your answers reflect your security and can strengthen belonging.   Episode 32: God Changes Who We Are!  Because our identity, who we think we are, controls our behavior, it’s essential that we know who we are. How we define ourselves shows up in all of our attitudes and actions. Knowing God and that He created us on purpose, changes us and our beliefs about ourselves. Dr. Kathy will share a personal example, Scripture that changed her, and an essay from a friend that puts God’s gifts in us in perspective with the rest of who we are.   Episode 31: We Can Stop the Screaming - Our Kids Should Be Secure Would you love to understand why you might scream at your children when you don’t intend to? Dr. Kathy interviews her friend, Sue Heimer, to talk about why moms scream at their children and what we can do to stop. When we know our triggers, it’s easier to make changes. Moms are now empowered to formulate a plan, make changes, and be victorious. Being exhausted, overwhelmed, and stressed are common triggers. We can manage our anger and model how to do it for our impressionable children. Episode 30: Why are Trust and Security Hard for Me? In great times and challenging times, security is essential. Being trusted and being surrounded by trustworthy people allows us to discover our identity, connect with healthy people to meet our need for belonging, and fulfill our purpose based on our competence. We can learn to trust God, ourselves, and others! Episode 29: What to Do When Security is Shaken Has insecurity been easy lately? That’s understandable. Especially during challenging times, our behavior can be obvious who and what we trust. What are we most upset about? What makes us angry? What do we talk about? What do we do? This all matters greatly because the first core need God designed us with is security. It’s defined by the question, “Who can I trust?” If we try to place our security in things, we can crash and burn when those things fail us. Rather, we need to learn to trust in God, trustworthy people, and ourselves. Episode 28: Problems? Meeting Your Core Needs Helps! Is change challenging for you? Do you make progress and then take two steps back? Maybe this is relevant for your children. It may be because of how the core needs of security, identity, belonging, purpose, and competence influence each other. This can be especially damaging when we ask “What can I trust?” as the security question rather than “Who can I trust?” Dr. Kathy Koch will help you understand what to do so changes stick. Episode 27: How God Meets Our Core Needs Are you struggling? Lonely? Confused? Without purpose? You’re not alone. We have five needs that must be met: security, identity, belonging, purpose, and competence. Family, friends, and experiences can help you meet your five needs. Most importantly, God meets our needs. He created them in us so we would be drawn to Him. When we find all of God and trust Christ for our salvation, our needs are forever met. Dr. Kathy Koch shares relevant Scripture and talks about things we can do to establish our relationship with God so our needs are met. Episode 26: What Core Needs Do We Need Met? God creates us with five core needs that must be met: security (Who can I trust?), identity (Who am I?), belonging (Who wants me?), purpose (Why am I alive?), and competence (What do I do well?). Family and friends can meet these needs for us. Experiences can also be used to meet these needs. Dr. Kathy mentions unhealthy ways we can try to meet the needs and other issues that can cause problems for us, including asking the wrong questions. (God meets these needs authentically and permanently. Dr. Kathy will address this in the next episode.) Episode 25: Love Ourselves Well Loving ourselves well matters because we matter. We need to know ourselves and live with integrity, develop Christlike character, and allow others to help us love ourselves. Kathy’s personal illustration may inspire you. She also gives a shout-out to busy moms and dads who love well by serving. Episode 24: Love's Feelings, Thoughts, and Actions Love is a commitment that results in certain feelings, thoughts, and actions. This is why when we love God, it changes our actions and we may sin less. Therefore, perhaps we should talk with our children more about loving God and not just knowing about Him and knowing Him. Dr. Kathy mentions some feelings and thoughts associated with love before showing how to teach children about love using contrasts from 1 Corinthians 13:4-8. You’ll appreciate the practical ideas! Episode 23: Spontaneity is a Secret Weapon If you like to plan, as Dr. Kathy does, it’s probably hard to be spontaneous. Yet, spontaneity may be one of the best ways to let children know we see them, understand them, and want to honor them. As she shares a story from her teaching days, you’ll also hear golden nuggets to remember as you interact with and teach children. Listen for her statement about children’s enthusiasm. Doing what she suggests can change everything! Episode 22: What Shape Are You In? Dr. Kathy explains that her second ministry, Ignite the Family, is hosting a national mom’s conference March 6-7 in Peoria, IL. She is happy to have her co-founder, Suzanne Phillips, as her guest on the podcast. They discuss that we’re always being shaped so we need to pay attention. What shapes us and our kids? Episode 21: How Do Children Best Remember? All children (and adults) can remember with three different modalities. When children know which are strengths, they’re empowered to be successful. Auditory children remember best what they hear, especially the things they hear themselves say. Visual children remember best what they see. Kinesthetic children remember best what they do. Episode 20: Resiliency: What Discourages It and What Encourages It Learn what resiliency is and how creativity and problem solving skills are essential for children to develop an ability to independently figure out how to do things. Learn what discourages it, such as critical spirits, helicopter parents, and not letting children own the consequences for their mistakes. Dr. Kathy is joined by Nancy Matheis, the Celebrate Kids Project Manager, for this important discussion. Episode 19: Resiliency: What It Is, What It Isn’t, and Why It’s Valuable Learn what resiliency is, what it isn’t, and why it’s valuable. Resilient children grow and aren’t defined by their struggles. They’ll have a positive character, optimistic thoughts, and healthy perspectives about themselves, others, and God. Their relationships will be more positive. Dr. Kathy is joined by Nancy Matheis, the Celebrate Kids Project Manager, for this important discussion. Episode 18: What to Say Yes To Dr. Kathy explains how her second ministry, Ignite the Family, came to be and is happy to have her co-founder, Suzanne Phillips, as her guest on the podcast. They share how we can raise children who know what to say “yes” to. You’ll find Suzanne’s use of “life and death” as a decision-making strategy very valuable. Episode 17: What Do You Want? Over the past several weeks, as people tried to figure out what to buy you for Christmas, you were probably asked “What do you want?” many times. What if Jesus asked you that question as he did to some of His followers? How would you answer? What if the question was, “What do you want to give Him?” Answering these questions may be more valuable than any New Year’s resolutions you will set.  Episode 15: Peace at Christmas Through Compassion Peace is on my mind because Jesus was called the “Prince of Peace” when His birth was predicted, as recorded in Isaiah 9:6. It would be wonderful if we could live at peace during this hectic season. Yet, kids will be excited, sleep-deprived, and on a sugar high. Let’s respond with compassion! Episode 14: Holiday Grief and Traditions #2 Jill Savage, Dr. Kathy’s coauthor on No More Perfect Kids, joins her to discuss changing holiday traditions because families change. They also discuss the need to be flexible and intentional in the moment so we reduce regrets as we look back. Episode 13: Holiday Expectations and Disappointments Jill Savage, Dr. Kathy’s coauthor of No More Perfect Kids, joins her to discuss how to handle disappointments that occur during family gatherings like Thanksgiving and how to set healthy expectations so future gatherings go better. They also discuss how perfectionism gets in the way of healthy relationships. Episode 12: Cultivate Gratitude We and our children can be regularly grateful and not circumstantially thankful. Entitlement isn’t healthy, but it’s common so we have to work against it. If we plan for it, our children can learn to be grateful. They will want to be grateful. It will be who they are and not just what they do. And, there’s a bonus. Listen to learn what attribute accompanies gratitude. Episode 11: Choosing Battles and Praying Dr. Kathy interviews longtime friends, Judy and Sandra. Speaking from many years of marriage, parenting, and grandparenting experience, they answer questions submitted by listeners about choosing your battles with your children and what to prioritize. They also talk about whether grandparents should talk with their grown children when they see things they’re concerned about and the role and the blessing of prayer. Episode 10: Suicide Prevention #3 Dr. Kathy shares numerous understandings that can result in confidence, contentment, joy, and blessing and decreased stress, anxiety, isolation, and suicidal tendencies. We can do what we can do! Let this soak in. Episode 9: Suicide Prevention #2 In this second episode about preventing suicide, Dr. Kathy shares things parents and others can be aware of and do to help children cope with any depression, stress, anxiety, and suicidal tendencies they have. This includes the role of play, school assessment, authority, antidepressants, planning for the future, and abortion. (The CDC recently published new research explaining that the suicide rate for children aged 10 through 14 nearly tripled from 2007 to 2017, while the suicide rate among older teenagers increased by 76 percent between 2007 and 2017.) Episode 8: Suicide Prevention #1 The CDC recently published new research explaining that the suicide rate for children aged 10 through 14 nearly tripled from 2007 to 2017, while the suicide rate among older teenagers increased by 76 percent between 2007 and 2017. This is tragic! In this episode, Dr. Kathy shares things parents and others can be aware of and do to help children cope with any depression, anxiety, and suicidal tendencies they have. This includes having real conversations, technology, resiliency, and loneliness. Episode 7: Communication - Feel Kids' Feelings and Hear Their Lies Dr. Kathy shares the value of feeling children’s feelings and using strong emotional vocabulary when listening and talking. She also stresses that parents must listen for lies, unrealistic statements, and negative and hurtful language to offer correction. Episode 6: Listen to Understand and Talk to Be Understood Dr. Kathy shares several things parents can do to improve communication with their children. Doing them consistently will encourage children and improve both listening and talking. Learn how to help children answer questions without feeling interrogated. Do more than imagine understanding your children and helping them understand you. You can do this! Episode 5: Marriage and Siblings Love Dr. Kathy interviews longtime friends, Judy and Sandra. Speaking from many years of marriage, parenting, and grandparenting experience, they answer questions submitted by listeners about why marriage matters to children and how to have a healthy marriage, including the role of forgiveness and how to forgive. They also discuss what they did when their children were younger that established healthy relationships among them and their adult children today. Episode 4: How do Children Best Concentrate? There are many things that affect children’s ability to concentrate. (These are true for adults, too.) Identifying these environmental preferences and helping your children use them to improve their motivation. Learn about preferences for time of day, temperature, lighting, sound, being with people, movement, food and drink, informal/formal, and messy/neat. When children know how they best concentrate, they can be empowered to be successful! Episode 3: Questions/Answers: Smarts, Strengths, and Self-Worth Learn six ways of determining which of the 8 multiple intelligences are strengths for your children. Dr. Kathy also shares how we can help children believe they have strengths in general. And, learn how we can help children believe in their worth. This question-and-answer episode is hosted by Nancy Matheis, the Celebrate Kids Project Manager. Episode 2: Four Parent Roles That Increase Children's Motivation Parents need to be teachers, coaches, cheerleaders, and referees to motivate kids well. Dr. Kathy explains what’s involved in each role, how they’re different, and how and why to take on each one successfully. Each role is essential! Episode 1: How to Talk with Your Kids About School Children learn what parents value by the types of questions we ask them. Therefore, Dr. Kathy recommends 8 important categories to ask about and many creative ideas for how to ask. Her ideas work for all ages and for homeschool families, too, and will help children actually answer your questions with more than a grunt, “okay,” and “fine.” You’ll love her ideas for “go-fish piles” and dice. Welcome to the Celebrate Kids Podcast with Dr. Kathy!