My husband, Byron, and I have been asked to lead a parenting seminar during the third session of the adult education sequence, beginning January 22, 2006 and running through March 10, 2006. We are, of course, delighted to do this. I have been a school psychologist for some 25 years, retiring in 2000 from having been the lead psychologist for the Long Beach Unified School District. I teach child and adolescent development classes to aspiring teachers and teach and supervise potential school psychologists at Long Beach State College. Byron has spent his career as a clinical psychologist, primarily doing family therapy in private practice and most recently spent the last ten years of his career as a clinical psychologist serving the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. He retired in 2001, and spends his days supporting my work at the university and by providing informally therapy to family and friends. We have four adult children (two born to us and two adopted) and three grandchildren, Isabella, 11, Nicolas, 8 and a half, and Oliver, 4.

As we did when we lead such a group previously, we will focus on helping parents to teach their children to understand, regulate and master their emotional world. This skill will lead to increased self-confidence, greater physical health, better performance in school and healthier social relationships. Our roster four years ago notes that, among others, Maggie and Nicky Heiderman were 5 and 3, Francesca Pavia was 4, and Zach Edwards was 10; can that be!!??? The content will not be a lot different, because we believe that the basics remain the same; the way in which the basics are applied will vary with changing ages of the children. Therefore, we will be using the same text, The Heart of Parenting: Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child by John Gottman, Ph.D. The books will be on sale in the bookstore, so please sign up on the patio so we know how many to order and note if you plan to attend but already have the book. Parents (and potential parents) of children of all ages are invited. When topics that invite discussion particular to younger vs. older ages occur, we will break into two groups.

We believe that one of the most delightful aspects of church membership is watching the children grow and we are pleased to be able to help support our wonderful families as they continue in the very difficult but highly rewarding responsibility of raising children.