Blog - Pear Tree Family Therapy, Winnipeg

Tool #15: The Kindergarten of Curiosity

When my son started kindergarten, he was electric with excitement. He spotted a friend from daycare the moment he walked in, and the two of them lit each other up like only five-year-olds can. For his mom and me, it was a beautiful moment. We loved the idea of James...

Tool #13 Grocery Store Divider of Discernment.

Imagine the following scenario: Your neighbour is taking out the garbage. You wave at your neighbour. He doesn’t wave back. Now because you’ve had a hard day, this doesn’t sit right. And in your imagination suddenly he becomes cold, rude, standoffish, or secretly...

TOOL #14: THE CARPOOL KARAOKE OF DISRUPTION

I pick James up from school and we ease into our usual after-school drift. Backpack and trumpet thump into the back seat, he gets in the passenger seat with that end-of-day heaviness, and I point the car toward the pool. I try the standard openers. "How was your day?"...

Fears of a First Time Coach, Revisited

Note: This post was written way, way back in 2018. I’m happy to say my son still plays baseball and loves it. Fears Have a Back Story On the afternoon of my debut as an U7 baseball coach, I caught myself wishing for rain. Not a thunderstorm—just enough drizzle to make...

Conversation Killers #2: Ad Hominem Attacks (Attacking The Person)

Ad hominem means “against the person” and it is an illogical – and unkind – way of trying to win an argument. Here’s how to respond to them well.

Tool # 12: The Sandwich of Meeting Basic Needs (Don’t Hargue With Hangry)

Don’t hargue with hangry.

Tool #11: The Parka of Feeling Wisely

When we feel wisely, big emotions don’t make us their lunch.

Ten Year Anniversary!

October 16th, 2025 marked my ten year anniversary as a Marriage and Family Therapist! It's surprising how much things change and how much they stay the same. I think (and hope) I'm ten years wiser. (The jury might still be out on that.) I do know for certain that from...