Carla Naumburg - Ready, Set, Breathe: Practicing Mindfulness with Your Children for Fewer Meltdowns and a More Peaceful Family

Carla Naumburg, PhD, is a clinical social worker, writer, and mother. Her first book, Parenting in the Present Moment, was published by Parallax Press in 2014. Naumburg is the Mindful Parenting blogger for psychcentral.com, and a contributing editor at kveller.com. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Huffington Post, as well as in a number of academic journals and online magazines. Naumburg holds an MSW and a PhD in social work, and she has an advanced certificate in mindfulness and psychotherapy. She currently lives outside of Boston, MA, with her husband and two young daughters. Connect with Carla and read all of her writing at www.carlanaumburg.com.

Full of wise, playful, and effective strategiesif every parent picked up this book, wed have a lot happier families.

Elisha Goldstein, PhD, cofounder of the Center for Mindful Living and author of Uncovering Happiness

This book is a great introduction to mindfulness, and it has a wealth of simple but effective practices that parents can do with their children. Carla shows us how to help our kids pay attention, regulate their emotions, develop empathy, and ultimately understand themselves. Carlas writing is honest, relatable, and funnythis book will be a blessing for parents (and their kids)!

Sarah Rudell Beach, MEd, mindfulness instructor, executive director of Brilliant Mindfulness, LLC, and creator of the website leftbrainbuddha.com

Carla Naumburg always keeps it realwith wisdom, humor, humility, and profound compassion. In Ready, Set, Breathe, she offers simple, practical tools for parents and kids to be more mindful, starting today.

Deborah Sosin, LICSW, MFA, author of Charlotte and the Quiet Place

Ready, Set, Breathe fulfills on its promise, providing simple, doable practices to support parents in bringing mindfulness into the sweet chaos of family life. The writing is honest and engaging, with healthy doses of the humor and compassion all parents need.

Amy Saltzman, MD, author A Still Quiet Place

Multitasking parents can take more than a page from this simple, sweet, and straightforward guide to mindfully preventing meltdowns not just in our kids, but in ourselves as well.

Christopher Willard, PsyD, Harvard Medical School, author of Growing Up Mindful and other books

Clear, thoughtful, and funny. This wonderful and candid book gives us ways to bring the miracle of mindfulness to our families. For all the parents out there who have been wondering how to bring mindfulness to their children, Carla has written the comprehensive guide. I will be recommending and referencing this book for a long time to come! Carla gives so many simple and varied ways to share mindfulness and have more peaceful families. Plus, shes the clearest, most down-to-earth writer about mindfulness that Ive ever read (and Ive read many). A book that may change your life!

Hunter Clarke-Fields, MSAE, RYT, founder of Hunter Yoga

This book gives parents a wealth of tools, activities, and explorations that can make parenting more joyful and engaging, while supporting the well-being of the entire family. Carla shares these ideas in a loving, humor-filled, realistic way that will immediately put you at easeyoull feel like youre talking with a good friend.

Jennifer Cohen Harper, MA, E-RCYT, founder of Little Flower Yoga and the School Yoga Project, author of Little Flower Yoga for Kids, and mom of Isabelle May

Carla Naumburgs book Ready, Set, Breathe is a wonderfully engaging and easy-to-understand gift to parents, offering simple yet meaningful ways to practice mindfulness themselves and with their children.

Susan Kaiser Greenland, author of The Mindful Child and cofounder of Inner Kids

Publishers Note

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering psychological, financial, legal, or other professional services. If expert assistance or counseling is needed, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

Distributed in Canada by Raincoast Books

Copyright 2015 by Carla Naumburg New Harbinger Publications, Inc. 5674 Shattuck Avenue Oakland, CA 94609 www.newharbinger.com

Cover design by Sara Christian

Acquired by Melissa Valentine

Edited by Brady Kahn

All Rights Reserved

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Naumburg, Carla.

Ready, set, breathe : practicing mindfulness with your children for fewer meltdowns and a more peaceful family / Carla Naumburg.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978-1-62625-290-5 (paperback) -- ISBN 978-1-62625-291-2 (pdf e-book) -- ISBN 978-1-62625-292-9 (epub) 1. Parenting--Psychological aspects. 2. Stress management. 3. Games--Psychological aspects. 4. Parent and child. I. Title.

HQ755.8.N387 2015

306.874--dc23

2015030062

This book is dedicated to my villageto all of my parent friends out there who are also struggling to raise their children with as much kindness and skill as possible. Parenting isnt an easy journey, and I am so grateful to be traveling it alongside all of you. Thank you for your humor, your honesty, and your support. My life with two little ones wouldnt be half as much as fun without all of you.