One of my goals, as a parent, is to teach my daughter coping skills and practical techniques for dealing with stress.

Personally, I've found yoga to be instrumental in building a core strength, core inner self and self worth, stress reduction and in communing with God.

Of course I want her to have access to skills like this before she hits adolescents and all the negative coping strategies become available to her.

I used to use negative strategies like smoking cigarettes, experimenting with drugs, defining my self worth by boys and men, and a daily diet of Wellbutrin and Xanex. One of my primary objectives is to prevent the adoption of those.

Over the summer I've been practicing yoga listening to Elsie Escobar classes on iTunes during Zack's nap. Sometimes I invite a friend. Sometimes I encourage Ainsley to try a few minutes.

She posed for these photos and then got bored before we moved out of the sitting pose. A fascination with the incense stick took over and she sat near me waving it through the air like a 4th of July sparkler.

The next afternoon I came out of the shower and found her teaching her friends yoga with a DVD, lit candles and burning incense.

Ssshhhh, Mom, we're having our relaxing quiet yoga time.

The APA's Report on Sexualization of Girls recommends teaching your children a way to center themselves, meditate, pray, and view one's body as having value beyond its appearance, beyond male entertainment. Yoga does that for me.

Hopefully, you have healthy coping methods that center and ground you and hopefully you're finding ways to teach those to your kids.

Teach what YOU know.

by Tracee Sioux

This is the view I was missing by going to the gym every day. Isn't it fantastic?

Honestly, my life to 33-years-old was not about health. One day I looked at my little family and realized every one of us had a medium-sized weight problem. Well, it wasn't exactly one day - I mean, my husband had been complaining for years and I was ignoring it until my pregnancy phase was over. Then Ainsley's doctor said she was on the border of having a weight issue. Even the baby was so fat I needed to lift weights to pick him up (but, it's cute on a baby).

If a plane gets into trouble they tell you to put the oxygen mask on yourself first. Otherwise, you will render yourself incapacitated and there will be no one to save your children.

I find this method to be useful for other things like creating habits and instituting change in behavior and attitude.

First I got a gym membership and spent a year developing a habit of exercise for the first time in my life. I changed my attitude about it and learned to love it.

I established a clear connection in my brain that said exercise was a real part of our lifestyle before I felt I could give up the gym membership and venture out walking with my kids.

We're up to an easy two miles now. And it's a piece of cake. It's great bonding time and great talking time. Check out the view I was missing!

Hey kids this is the Nickelodean Day of Play. Go outside and play. We're not showing any television shows until after 3 o clock today so unless you want to be bored listening to this message you shoudl just get up and go play. Go swing, ride your bike, skate board, jump on the trampoline, hang out with your friends. Get up off the couch and go play.

Hey kids, this is the Nickelodean Day of Play. Go outside and play.

I turned on the tv and it actually took me about three recorded loops to get it. They had really stopped showing television on a Saturday (I think) to encourage kids to go outside and play.

Virtual High Five Nickelodean!