Many parents are confident managing decisions and educational choices through the middle school years but shake with fear when looking ahead to the high school years. The issues seem to have greater consequences, but Dr. Smith will show a mindset and approach that can energize you to make them the best years. Your emerging adults can become the ones who praise you instead of being your greatest critics. Together, you can not only save money, but you can launch your teens to find their own purpose in life.

Learn from pediatrician Dr. Roger Smith how stress and trauma affect a child's ability to learn and perform. Research on stress has yielded a better understanding of the biochemical and neurologic responses we see as "behavior." Parents can tap into this research to better guide their children through life's stresses. This session will review both the science and the social impact of emotions in the context of a biblical worldview. Dr. Smith will transform scientific gobbledygook into layman's language with tangible applications.

What's a dad to do? In a busy home, dads often find themselves being dragged along in all the activities involving the children. But can it be another way? The influence of the father can be the thing that helps all the activities stay on course. Dads can make a significant contributions to the home even in the midst of a busy career. This will offer solutions and hope for increasing the influence of dad in the home, resulting in everyone being happier.

Conflict with our children can cause a great gulf between us. Discipline in the home is a must, but it need not create tension between our children and us. The Smiths will share how biblical discipline is often misapplied, but more importantly, how we can pattern our family discipline after that of our Heavenly Father. Stories of parents doing it well will empower you to make needed adjustments in your approach to discipline.

If the children are the glue holding your marriage together, you are on the path to divorce. A healthy marriage has characteristics that lead to a thriving home. Bringing 40 years of experience in marriage to bear on the subject, the Smiths recognize that some stages are harder than others, while it is never too late to improve the health of the relationship. The Smiths will share several tools that can help to restore or invigorate a marriage in a busy home where no one seems to have any extra time. Leave this session with ideas to make an immediate difference.