MARCIA KUEHNEN
Certified Simplicity Parenting Group Leader
Early Childhood Educator
Dedicated Mother of Two. Wonderful Wife (his words, not mine!). Experienced Early Childhood Educator. Birth Enthusiast. Loyal Friend. Woman Warrior. Village Facilitator. Planet Protector. All of these are hats Marcia wears (sometimes all in the same day!), but because they are things she feels deeply passionate about, it never really feels like a 'job'. As the saying goes, "If you love what you do, you never work a day in your life", and Marcia knows it is all worth her time, devotion and effort if it is making life easier on those around her. Working with families all over the world for more than two decades, Marcia has come to incorporate customs and philosophies into her daily practices with young children (including her own, now a Teen and a Tween-ager), but none so impactful as 'Simplicity Parenting'. The resonance felt with leading a simple, structured, connected and authentic life struck a cord deep inside her, and she is a motivated advocate for bringing this message forward to parents who are seeking direction and support, while fostering relationships to create a "village" and trusting your own instincts when it comes to parenting YOUR child.
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CERTIFICATIONS: Family Life Group Leader and Discipline & Guidance Group Leader
What is Simplicity Parenting?
The Simplicity Parenting Institute was developed after Dr. Kim John Payne, MD wrote a book by the same name (c.2009). He has since written The Soul of Discipline (c.2015), Being at Your Best When Your Kids are at Their Worst (c.2019), and most recently, Emotionally Resilient Tweens and Teens (c.2022). This approach to parenting is all about simplifying daily life while keeping core family values at the center of your approach; establishing boundaries and rhythms unique and significant to your family unit and lifestyle. and many other practical tips and advice.
Parenting Plain & Simple
Mission Statement
When it comes to Parenting, the only thing we know for sure is how we were raised. But, our children are not us, and our skills develop and change as our children do. Child developmental stages are ever evolving, and the pace of our daily lives is always increasing. However, this is misaligned with the pace of childhood, which should be protected for its gradual expansion of identity, resiliency, and well-being. There are thousands of blogs, hundreds of books, and multiple friends going through the same trials and tribulations and many are asking: How can the biggest, most rewarding (and exhausting) job of our lives seem so difficult and overwhelming?
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The real secret? It's all Trial and Error.
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Trial (sometimes by fire!) see us following fads, trends, and outside influences, constantly trying to measure up… all while getting lost ourselves.. Then, we arrive at Error: comparing our approaches to what the experts and parent groups are saying, ignoring the everyday challenges we face, neglecting the personality of our own children, and forgetting the goals we created when we started our family. Essentially, it removes the heart (YOUR child) from the matter (YOUR family).
When we live in a world where busyness is considered a badge of honour, all it really does is distract and remove us from the calm home we most desire. We feel stuck, stressed, and hopeless having the same arguments repeatedly, while negotiating and making up ultimatums with ineffective results. We are overwhelmed by the push-back and conflict. All of this shakes our confidence leading us to believe that we aren't doing any of it “right”. However, it does NOT have to be that way and I can help get you to a place of orientation, security, and purpose.
This is Parenting Plain & Simple.