This is the last blog entry, a year to the date that I first posted a blog. There are not too many blog posts — there are 15 in fact. All are very significant and relevant to help you as a new 1-1 parent, and no matter when they were written, they are all completely relevant and useful for you today.

So, what is my personal update? Well, my boys, 8-year-old twins, are thriving. They are now great listeners to Mommy and Daddy. They respect us, themselves and others. They have learned personal boundaries and natural consequences, and are well on their way to mastering life. Thanks to The 1-1 Parenting Principle, we have more energy, more meaningful moments together and memories to last more than a lifetime.

Thank you for viewing all the blog entries on this website. We think you will benefit from them all. Please continue reading on this page.

In my previous blog posts I was happy to report that I retired as a 1-1 Parent after only 6 months because my twin boys (now 8 years old) reduced their opposition to me by more than 92%.

However, I must tell you that I do pick up The 1-1 Parenting Principle from time-to-time when I need to. This week I brought back "Counting Minutes" with my boys because they began to fall back into a pattern of not listening and arguing with me.

Because they know what 1-1 is and that there are consequences attached to their opposition to me, they haven't really given me much of an opportunity to "Claim Minutes" so I could rest and be restored. This week I was only able to get 1 hour of time to re-energize. When I first started 1-1, I was getting 6-7 hours a week.

When I claim my minutes at critical moments when my boys want to do something, they lose out on the things they really want to do. I can chose to take a nap, read a book or go out and do something I've been wanting to do.

Please explore this website to better understand The Principle, The Benefits and see The Results. Everything on this site is free.

Have you ever thought about "your childhood," and if it was a good one or not? Have you been concerned about making a good childhood for your own child? Why aren't we talking about how "our parenthood" is doing today? So many parents want to make sure their child has the best childhood possible, but in the efforts to engineer that perfect childhood, they forget about themselves and how their “parenthood” is going.

So many books are written in that same vein, with a focus on only the parent making sure their child is physically, mentally emotionally, physically, socially as well as spiritually healthy and prosperous. But what about the parent? Don't parents need to be physically, mentally emotionally, physically, socially and spiritually healthy if they want the same thing for their child? Of course they do, and that is what The 1-1 Parenting Principle is about. 1-1 is a balanced focus between parent and child with the aligned goal of bringing everyone into a stronger and more fulfilled 1-1 relationship.

Here are some important links into this website to understand that 1-1 helps your child, AND YOU, to operate at your best and have a closer 1-1 relationship:

• The 1-1 Parenting Principle: Learn the 1-1 basics.
• Counting Minutes: Learn the simple 1-1 techniques.
• Claiming Minutes: Discover a way for you to parent with joy and sanity.
• The 1-1 Benefits: See what you, your child and your family will gain.
• The 1-1 Results: Understand how quickly you can see results.
• JOIN THE 1-1 PILOT PROGRAM: Free through Summer 2021

The 1-1 Parenting Principle is launching a free pilot program through the fall of 2021 for willing parents who need a solution for their children to listen to them. When your child is listening to and respecting your directions, and you are able to easily operate at your peak parenting performance, then your 1-1 relationship gets a lot closer and your whole family benefits. That is what 1-1 is all about.

If you are a parent of a child / children between the ages of 4-12 and are interested in participating in the 1-1 Pilot Program, we invite you to to read about what it involves and fill out the sign-up form below. The 1-1 Pilot Program is completely free!

After more than a month since officially quitting The 1-1 Parenting Principle, things with my twin boys are humming along like never before. It's so refreshing to not have to argue with my children all the time. Of course there is an argument here and there, but it's minor and it doesn't linger on and cause chaos in our home.

Why did I quit 1-1? It's simple. My boys reduced their opposition to me by more than 92%, and have easily earned my trust that they can make good decisions and not break the boundaries that my wife and I set for them. The reality was that I couldn't ever keep any of the minutes I counted.

More than anything, it's our 1-1 connections that have flourished. My boys listen to and respect me like never before. We spend more time together do more things as a family. Our photo and video library is bursting at the seams with such great memories. I feel very satisfied as a parent raising healthy, wonderful and amazing boys.

I encourage you to stay on the 1-1 path. It will bring you and your child closer together into a 1-1 relationship of love, trust and mutual respect.

As a result of such great progress with 1-1, I officially told my twin boys (age 7) that I was no longer going to count minutes. That's right! I actually quit 1-1. We don't need it anymore. My 1-1 relationship with my boys is closer than ever. They've learned to manage their own autonomy and are very agreeable and aligned with their mommy and myself. This is a far different day than when we first started.

Today marks the sixth month of using The 1-1 Parenting Principle since the day I stumbled upon this new parenting paradigm during a camping trip with my boys. Read The 1-1 Story. Within the first three months, the amount of arguments from my boys reduced by 92%, and while I haven't been recording data after the first three months, the amount of opposition from my boys has reduced even more.

Back when I started, my boys were arguing with me an average of 1440 times in the first full month. I don't know about you, but I don't like to argue, especially with my family members whom I love. But by the second month of using 1-1, those arguments decreased nearly in half. After the third month, the average monthly arguments reduced to 120 – a whopping 92% reduction! Check out The 1-1 Results page >

With six months of 1-1 now under my belt, I don't find myself "Counting Minutes" (The 1-1 Parenting Principle) all too often, because my boys are listening and not arguing with me. In fact, when I ask them to do something, they respond quickly and joyfully with, "Okay, Daddy!" Even if I were to start counting minutes again, they don't usually let me get to one. On top of that, my boys do more things around the house than my wife and I expect from them.

As a result of such few arguments and excellent listening skills, my boys and I are able to have more meaningful 1-1 moments together. These moments last a lot longer because I have so much more energy to give to them. And because we're having more moments that last much longer, we're building amazing memories together. We're trusting each other and becoming closer than ever before.

Please share our unique website address with parents: www.1-1.family

All the best to you parents this new year as we make New Year's resolutions to be better parents. You are already a better parent! It's all about having energy to be a parent that can operate at your peak performance.

Check out the 1-1 pages you may not have seen to help you perform at your peak:

• 1-1 Questions & Answers
  
• 1-1 Terminology
• 1-1 Tips & Tactics
  
• Other Resources

Spread the word about The 1-1 Parenting Principle

2020 was one of those years you want to forget... But I can honestly say that it has been a great year for me as a parent. I had to step up and home school my twin boys due to COVID-19. As a family, we spent a lot more quality time together. The best thing that happened to me, my children and our family is The 1-1 Parenting Principle.

Of the many benefits from 1-1 has been more energy and peace of mind. Because my boys have been able to respond well to 1-1, they have listened more, done more for our family, and provided me with more energy. Having more energy, as well as time for myself through The 1-1 Parenting Principle, I have as a result have more peace of mind. I can easily collect my thoughts, make plans, accomplish tasks and operate as a parent at my own personal peak performance.

My goal for 2021 is to get the word out about The 1-1 Parenting Principle to as many parents as possible so they can Live A Vibrant Family Life. Will you help me spread the word? It's life-changing. It's free. Tell everyone about www.1-1.family.

An Encouraging Note: Today I am simply reflecting on the last few months of using The 1-1 Parenting Principle. I am seeing such remarkable results in my twin boys. Not only are they listening to me right away, but they are actively offering and willing to do more for our family on a regular basis without complaining.

At this moment, they hardly give me any restoration minutes, because they are listening. If they do give me minutes, they are quick to get minutes back through the "Make-Up Minutes" method.

They are so much more cooperative and regulated, and as a result, we are doing much more things together and building up so many great memories. You can see in the chart below how my twins go from an average of 360 seconds of not listening to me each week to an average of 30. Each second is technically an argument with you. The hours on the left side are how much personal restoration time I get. My average personal time went from more than 6 hours per week to nearly zero. I now have the energy and sanity to be a better parent because my children are listening.

The 1-1 Parenting Principle has sort of coined the term "Micro-Argument" in the parenthood arena, and it is defined as: Moment-by-moment arguments your child will give you, on a second-by second basis, in an attempt to not listen to you and usurp control over you. Micro-arguments are clearly not good. While they are typically small and seemingly insignificant, they drain you of all your energy and keep you from operating at your peak parenting performance.

What does a micro-argument look like?

• Your child directly argues with you in opposition to what you want them to do
• Your child "ignores" you, choosing not to listen to you
• Your child negotiates with you to change your mind
• Your child begs with you (puppy dog eyes)
• Your child repeatedly requests something you've said "no" to
• Your child pretends to cry in order to manipulate you
• Your child talks-back to you in disrepect
• Your child starts calling you names
• Your child runs away from you to avoid your direction
• Your child learns to be passive-aggressive, pretending to listen but ultimately resisting you and your direction
• Your child breaks something because they didn't like your parenting
• Your child physically strikes you or hurts you in some way
• Your child does something worse

So, what do you do? First, realize that your child is arguing with you because they naturally want to test the boundaries of their own freedom and personal autonomy. It's in our nature to want autonomy. That's why The 1-1 Parenting Principle works so well. When you enforce natural consequences with your child by taking your personal restoration time, you are at the same time temporarily shrinking their freedoms while you are enjoying yours. Every second in an argument with you is a minute with limited access to do all the fun things your child wants and needs from you. So, the more you enforce the natural consequences and take your restoration time, the more your child will listen to you and stop the arguments.

Practical Process:

• Tell your child, "I love you too much to argue with you." (Love & Logic)
• Inform them, "Since you're not listening, I'm going to start 'Counting Minutes'"
• Start counting, "One minute, two minutes, three minutes..." until they stop
• Record those minutes you collected for personal restoration time later
• Follow-up to make sure your child listened properly
• Don't forget to "Claim Minutes" for yourself
• Repeat process if necessary

Remember, while it might be natural for your child to push the boundaries you've laid out for them, it is vitally important that you define and enforce those boundaries with natural consequences.

Today was a learning experience for me and my twin boys, age 7. The "Make-Up Minutes" aspect of The 1-1 Parenting Principle gave my boys a positive learning experience, and made me proud as a father.

At the beginning of the day, one boy had given me 10 minutes in the past couple days, and his brother had given me 20 minutes. As I am the home teacher during the COVID-19 pandemic, I wanted my boys to learn more than what is given by their teachers. I wanted them to learn to love learning.

After home school was completed, we played a learning game. I wrote words on a whiteboard and the first boy to say the word out loud, I would redeem a minute. By the end of the 15 minute game, one boy had his 15 minutes fully redeemed, and his brother had all but 3 minutes redeemed.

Here's the extra bonus thing that happened next. I started sweeping the floor in our home, and the boy that had 3 minutes left suddenly started sweeping the floor with a hand broom and dustpan. I didn't even ask him to help me! Home school was all done. He had the opportunity to go play, but he stayed and decided to help me. After he was done, I thanked him and showed him as I removed his last few minutes.

He had such as sense of pride in himself, and I mirrored my pride of him. He had such a sense of confidence and the two of us became closer today in our relationship.

Let me be clear... My twin boys (age 7) are not “zeros,” but they did give me ZERO restoration minutes by the end of the week. They were actually my little HEROES!

One of my sons had racked up more than three hours of time for my restoration. Let's call him "Son #2," (only because he was a big pooper today). He was in a highly oppositional mood the entire day. For every disagreement he had with me I counted out a minute for myself. For every time he did not listen, I counted out another minute. By the end of that day, he was not listening for 3 minutes and 10 seconds, which according to The 1-1 Parenting Principle, equals 3 hours and 10 minutes of time for me to restore my sanity. That may not sound like an awful lot of time that my son did not listen and too much time for myself, but it was needed to establish healthy boundaries for him and sanity for me. Think about it, those 3 hours and 10 minutes equates to 190 times he was in opposition to me or unwilling to listen to me. That's a lot for one day. This is nothing small for either of us, and our family couldn't sustain that atmosphere much longer.

My "#1 Son," in contrast, had only given me 30 minutes over the prior 2-3 days. When I decided to take my 3 hours and 10 minutes, I actually chose to spend time with #1 who didn't have as many minutes. My wife stayed with #2 at home for that time, while I went out and spent one-on-one time with his brother.

Of course #2 was extremely sad that he was not going to be with me for a big chunk of that Saturday. He cried in my arms for about 15 minutes. My heart was broken. I wanted to bail him out. I really didn't want him to have to experience natural consequences. I continually questioned 1-1. I felt like a bad father. But I also knew, that his oppositional behavior would not only continue, but get worse. Imagine me unleashing a young man like that upon this world in 11 years. No thank you!

When I finally came back home, my once-oppositional boy was happily playing in our backyard. He yelled, "Daddy!" when I went out to see him, and he ran to give me a huge hug. He had nothing but smiles and fun stories of his time playing. The 1-1 Parenting Principle doesn't suggest that I punish my son, but allow natural consequences as the outcome for his own actions. I was not the bad guy, because I didn't ground him from anything, put him in time-out or punish him in any way. In fact, we was able to do whatever he wanted.

I told him that since I had claimed all of my time of restoration, he now has ZERO minutes of time to give me. He smiled. I smiled. We hugged again.

At that time, my other son asked me how many minutes he had to give me. I told him that he has to give me 30 minutes of restorative time (30 seconds of him not listening to me). He hung his head in sadness because his brother had ZERO minutes to give me.

I reminded him that he could redeem his 30 minutes, by doing chores around the house for 30 minutes. He asked if that would get him to ZERO minutes, and I confirmed that it would. He then took off up to a bedroom that were were planing to transform into a playroom. There were many things our family planned to make the transformation possible, and our boys knew what they were.

More than 30 minutes later, he came downstairs to summons me to this room. He had taken all of his reading books out of a smaller bookcase, moved it to another room and then moved all the books and organize them in the bookcase. When I came into that room, I was blown away. He did so much of the things we talked about. In fact, his once-oppositional brother helped out even though he already had ZERO minutes for me. Together, they greatly helped in the transformation of that room.

I turned to both boys and said, "Wow! You both worked so hard for our family. I am so proud of you boys!" Their little eyes were filled with pride for their efforts and they had true joy in their accomplishments. Then, at the same time, my twin boys in unison said, "Now you have ZERO minutes, Daddy!" and giggled. I told them they were right and they ran to hug me. That's when I knew I did things the right way, and I was restored in my mind about being a good daddy. More than that, my boys were very calm and regulated for the rest of the day. They truly gave me sanity and renewed energy.

Later, when I put my boys to bed, I asked them how many minutes they gave me today, and they spiritedly yelled, "ZERO!" I then asked, "Why don't we spend the day tomorrow at the lake?" They were so happy, and started telling me everything they wanted to do at the lake.

UPDATE: Our family went to that lake for half of the day. The boys took their fishing poles to practice casting, chased fish in the stream and ran around like they owned the world. More than that, they listened to us and actually gave me ZERO minutes at the end of that day. Two days in a row at ZERO restoration minutes for me. That's okay, because I AM restored.

One of 1-1's vernacular is "Make-Up Minutes," which is the opportunity for your child to take back some or all of the minutes you collected from them. It's truly great to earn back something that was lost.

Now that school has started for my twin boys (first grade) as well as for me, their home school teacher during COVID-19, I am receiving minutes from them more than ever before. Most days I can only collect 5-10 minutes, but with the transition into this weird new school situation, they are less regulated than they would be in a classroom with a real teacher and their peers. Transitions mean less regulation. Less regulation means more time not listening. And that means more minutes for me to claim. But I am honesty racking up more minutes than I want or need at this time.

What to do in that situation? Let your child redeem their minutes back from you. There are so many things they can do for you that could reward them the minutes they lost and help you in the process. You can give them chores that they are not normally responsible for. But that might require you to be with them to instruct them, which might actually turn into them not listening and giving you more minutes.

Instead, you can have your child redeem their minutes by doing something that teaches them and enriches their lives without you needing to show them how to do anything. For me, I offer minutes back if they read for 30 minutes. If they can do this by themselves in a quiet spot, then I will redeem them 1 minute for every 1 minute they read quietly on their own.

Other ways for your child to redeem their time could be exercising, drawing something special, make a LEGO creation or other learning exercises. These are the things we do with our boys to decrease their minutes and increase their intellect.

Give it a try! Also check out our 1-1 Tips page for more ideas.

After a few months of using The 1-1 Parenting Principle with my twin boys, it was put to the test in front of a friend of mine. My boys and I went to at an eating establishment to pick up some food where I bumped into my friend. As I was telling my friend about 1-1, my boys started wrestling, jumping and running around like crazy wildcats. For me, their behavior was out of control. I told my friend to watch 1-1 in action.

This is what I said to my boys in a calm and collected manner:

My boys actually stopped the very moment I told them I was going to count, and I wasn't even able to start counting. My sons then came to me and held my hands and were quiet and still. I embraced them, patting their heads and gently rubbing their backs with affection.

My friend was very impressed, and I felt good about my stronger relationship with my sons. I didn't need to threaten my children and they weren't put in time-out, grounded or punished in any way.

My boys later giggled and taunted me that I didn't get any minutes. And I pretended I was upset that they won. We make these exchanges a fun game of not letting daddy get more minutes. And THAT is my favorite game!

Kinetic Branding is currently developing a new website for our parenting concept called The 1-1 Parenting Principle (www.1-1.family), which helps mothers and fathers parent their children in a simple and effective non-threatening method.