ABOUT KATHERINE

I am a social worker, a PhD student, and a mom of three who is on a mission to help other parents feel more calm, confident, and connected in parenting and in life.

I did not start out all calm and mindful, though! In fact, when my kids were very little, parenting mindfully was really difficult for me…so I decided to get a PhD in it! (No, seriously…I am writing my dissertation on mindful parenting!)

As a mom in graduate school, I have felt the overwhelm, stress, guilt, and even despair of trying to balance my professional goals with family life.

What has helped me get through it all? A combination of time management strategies and organizational hacks, and tiny daily practices that help me stay connected to myself and my people. Learning about child development and how human brains work helped me understand what was happening with my kids (and with myself!) and I have incorporated this knowledge into the work I do with parents.

I was born and raised in Kennebunk, Maine, a seaside town in one of the most beautiful places in the world (in my humble opinion!) The youngest of 3 and the only girl in the family, I learned early that a good, loud tantrum was an excellent strategy for getting what I wanted in life. I was a good student and am, to this day, a lifelong learner, a sponge for new information.

I also loved little kids. I started babysitting when I was 11 years old (!!) and just loved learning about babies and young children. I was sure I would be a teacher when I grew up.

I attended college outside of New York City, met my husband, moved back to Maine, and before I knew it - and before I was ready! - I was pregnant and getting ready to become a parent. For all the years I had babysat other people’s children, I suddenly felt like I had no idea what I was doing.

And then I went back to school…when my daughter was 9 months old.

Needless to say, the next several years were extremely overwhelming. After my second baby was born (2 weeks before I graduated with my Master’s in social work!), I took a parenting class that changed my parenting and my career. I learned about the developing brain, about how to parent without relying on punishment, and, most importantly, how to prioritize my relationship with my kids, above all else.

As much as I loved working with children, it was clear to me that working with parents was where the real change was going to happen. And I wanted to share what I had learned!

I became a therapist and parenting educator for moms of 0-3 year-olds and was the clinical director of a small mental health agency in Southern Maine. As much as I loved helping moms learn new ways of disciplining and caring for their young children, soon I was ready for more.

Since college, I had always known I would get a PhD. With three young kids, a husband, a house, and a career, I looked at my life and realized if I did not get to it soon, the PhD was never going to happen. In spite of how crazy it seemed to uproot everyone from our cozy life in Portland, Maine, I followed my passion and moved the family to Baltimore to get my PhD.

I am now sharing what I have learned from the last several years of researching mindful parenting and parenting stress by offering parent coaching and mindful parenting workshops to parents all over the world!

COACHING

As a mom in graduate school, I have felt the overwhelm, stress, guilt, and even despair of trying to balance my professional goals with family life.

I also loved little kids. I started babysitting when I was 11 years old (!!) and just loved learning about babies and young children. I was sure I would be a teacher when I grew up.

I attended college outside of New York City, met my husband, moved back to Maine, and before I knew it - and before I was ready! - I was pregnant and getting ready to become a parent. For all the years I had babysat other people’s children, I suddenly felt like I had no idea what I was doing.

And then I went back to school…when my daughter was 9 months old.

I am now sharing what I have learned from the last several years of researching mindful parenting and parenting stress by offering parent coaching and mindful parenting workshops to parents all over the world!

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