Big Sky Pediatrics

02/15/2026

I decided to give the AI thing a try. Here's what it wrote about teaching kids to self-regulate their emotions. It's useful information.

Teaching kids to self-regulate involves co-regulation (modeling calm), building emotional awareness, and practicing coping strategies like deep breathing . Key techniques include naming emotions, creating "calm-down corners," using visual schedules, and providing positive reinforcement for managing feelings. Consistency and patience are crucial, focusing on skill-building rather than punishment.

Key Strategies for Teaching Self-Regulation

Co-regulation & Modeling: Stay calm yourself to help your child navigate "survival mode". Model emotional regulation by verbalizing your own coping, such as "I'm feeling frustrated, I'm going to take a deep breath".

Name and Validate Emotions: Help children identify what they are feeling (e.g., "It sounds like you are feeling angry"). Validate their feelings while setting boundaries on actions.

Develop a "Calm-Down Kit": Equip children with tools such as sensory bottles, fidget toys, books, or coloring materials to use when feeling overwhelmed.

Breathing and Sensory Techniques: Teach deep, slow belly breathing (e.g., "breathe in 4 seconds, hold, breathe out 6 seconds"). Use physical, calming activities like yoga, stretching, or listening to music.

Structure and Routines: Create predictable daily routines and visual schedules to reduce anxiety and stress.

Positive Reinforcement: Praise specific efforts to regulate, such as "I saw you take a deep breath when you were mad—great job!".

"Dry Runs" (Practice):: Practice challenging situations in low-stress environments (e.g., practicing walking with hands to themselves in a quiet store).

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01/28/2026

The 5 senses exercise is very helpful to calm yourself when you or your child feel upset. It focuses your attention and allows you to decrease anxieties.

How to Perform the 5-4-3-2-1 Technique

Before starting, take a few slow, deep breaths to calm your nervous system.

5 - Sight: Look around and identify five things you can see (e.g., a chair, a pen, a cloud, a spot on the wall).
4 - Touch: Identify four things you can feel, such as your hair, the chair under you, or your feet on the floor.
3 - Hear: Listen for three distinct sounds, such as birds chirping, traffic, or a refrigerator humming.
2 - Smell: Identify two things you can smell, such as air, coffee, or clothing.
1 - Taste: Identify one thing you can taste, or your favorite taste

01/05/2026

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS

Do you make New Year's resolutions? Have you decided to stop smoking, or lose weight, or drink less soda?? Many of these resolutions, while well-intended, rarely last even past the end of January. It doesn't mean we don't try, it's just hard to make immediate changes that last.

Instead of these types of resolutions, maybe we could try to make a different type. What if you vowed to look for JOY around you? What if you made a promise to PRACTICE RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS? What if you decided to interact with others with more EMPATHY? Could you work on those? What would be the benefit to you?

As we move forward in a new year, we can find that looking for joy, finding something good, and identifying things that make us happy becomes easier. When you focus on that concept, even when you are frustrated in traffic, or discouraged about your job, you can still take that moment to think about it for a moment. When you are in traffic, can you turn on some music that you enjoy? Can you look around and notice when the spring flowers start showing up? Can you take some slow, deep breaths to decrease your anxiety and frustration?

If you see someone having a bad day, are you able to take a moment to empathize? Could you tell them that you care, right then? If a mom is having trouble managing with a bag of groceries and a 2-year old, could you offer to help for a minute? It may take a tiny bit of your time, but it may mean all the difference to that mom!

What does it take for you to say “Good Morning” (or afternoon, or whatever) when you step into an elevator with other people? It seems like nothing, but you would be surprised at the effect it might have on a person who wasn't sure how they would get through the day.

And take care of yourself! Breathe. Try to eat healthy food when you can. Get enough sleep. Be kind to yourself as well as others.

You may actually find that these resolutions help YOU feel better. You may smile more, feel more relaxed, and things get easier to deal with.

I wish you all a Happy New Year!

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01/03/2026

I appreciate all my patients!! There may be some families who change insurance or are not able to have any insurance for their children. I want to let everyone know that I am available for cash pay visits. I charge $75 for any type of appt (well check, illness, mental health, etc.). I prefer Venmo, but PayPal and Zelle are also available for payment. Thank you all!!

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12/07/2025

TODDLER SPEECH

A few weeks ago, I had a problem with my website. I couldn't figure out what had happened. I made some calls, but I wasn't able to explain my problem. Either it was the wrong person to talk with, or they didn't understand what I was trying to say, or I didn't know the right terms. Eventually, after quite a bit of frustration, I finally got it worked out- got a new domain, transferred the website and I was back on track.

The whole situation made me think about toddler's trying to speak. When babies start exploring making sounds, they start with cooing. Those are vowel sounds like “ooh” and “aah”. Next, they move to babbling which is a string of consonants with some vowels thrown in, such as “baba”, “gaga”, and “dada”. “Ah” sounds are still common, but they may start to use other vowels. They respond happily when their family reacts to their sounds.

Imitation is necessary for babies to move to more complex speech. They need to hear other people, not speaking “baby talk” but clear speech. They will understand what you say long before they can say it. At some point, when you say “Where is Daddy?”, they will start looking around. As they hear more speech, they move to jargoning. Jargoning is when the child uses sounds with inflections (the ups and downs) of speech. I describe it as sounding like they are talking, but in a language no one else understands! If you get the idea of what they want (in spite of it being in a different language!), say something back like “Oh, do you want your blue bunny now? Here's the blue bunny.” If that's not what they want, they will surely let you know!

Eventually, they start picking up understandable words. Usually, by 12-18 months, they will use single words, often pointing as well. They may start with only a couple of words, but they rapidly increase to 10-50 words. By 2 years old, they may start putting words together such as “More milk” or “Go bye-bye”.

During this whole process, it's critical for parents, guardians, siblings, everyone to talk to the child clearly, repeating words that the baby is trying to say. Describe what you are doing - “We are going to go pick up Daddy at work”, “We are putting on your shirt now. It's a green shirt”. Talk about anything and everything. I think my father read to me from his textbook when he was in graduate school.

Reading is fantastic for speech development (as well as social skills). Read aloud to your child every day. If they are not very interested in the story, point to pictures and name them. Describe what they are doing. Your child will gain far more vocabulary than from what you ordinarily talk about. Sing songs, especially with hand motions. When you learn something in a song, it stays with you for a long time. When I started singing to my babies, the first songs I remembered were the Sunday School songs I had learned ages ago.

Learning to speak is hard work for your child. They may get frustrated at times when you aren't understanding what they mean (like me with the website support people!). Be patient and work with them to find what they are trying to say. Listen and repeat more clearly, if you think you have an idea. It takes time.

If you have any concerns about your child's speech development, be sure to mention it to your child's provider. If there is a problem, it's always best to treat it early.

Contact Dr. Cheryl Coldwater at Big Sky Pediatrics for more information about your child's development.

Big Sky Pediatrics Dr. Cheryl Coldwater, MD A new kind of Pediatric Practice. Do you want care for your child or adolescent that works *with* you? Big Sky Pediatrics is a unique practice. I am a board-certified Pediatrician with 39 years of experience. I see patients in my office in Marble Falls by....

11/25/2025

Wishing you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving.

11/10/2025

Big Sky Pediatrics has a new website address.
It's now

Big Sky Pediatrics Dr. Cheryl Coldwater, MD A new kind of Pediatric Practice. Do you want care for your child or adolescent that works *with* you? Big Sky Pediatrics is a unique practice. I am a board-certified Pediatrician with 39 years of experience. I see patients in my office in Marble Falls by....

11/08/2025

This is helpful information. I agree with the ideas of correcting someone who is making negative comments about your child. Speaking up to them and giving a positive comment in front of your child.

Your child definitely hears you if you give positive or negative comments to someone else.


By--School Counselor Mama is in Pittsburgh, PA.

When someone makes a comment about your child that doesn’t sit right—
you don’t have to freeze or fake a laugh.
You can gently reframe it in the moment. Here’s how:
✅ Replace labels with descriptions.
Instead of “He’s shy” → “He likes to take his time before jumping in.”
✅ Shift the narrative.
Instead of “She’s bossy” → “She’s learning to be a strong leader.”
✅ Acknowledge growth.
Instead of “He’s so emotional” → “He’s working on handling big feelings.”
✅ Speak to the truth you want your child to believe.
If they hear you correct it calmly, they start to absorb that instead.
Because our kids are still becoming.
And one quick comment can stick longer than we think.
🙋🏼‍♀️ Follow for more ways to protect your child’s inner voice—without guilt.
📌 Save this for the next awkward moment you’re not sure how to respond.

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10/31/2025

Happy Halloween. Stay safe and enjoy!

10/29/2025

The Big Sky Pediatrics website is temporarily down. I'm trying to get them to get it back up. Thank you for your patience.

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09/17/2025

DENTAL HEALTH

Taking care of your child's teeth is important from the very beginning. Your teeth are important for eating, talking and smiling! The health of your mouth can also affect your general health as well.

Before their first tooth, wiping their gums with a clean, damp cloth helps prevent problems. As soon as they get their baby teeth, you can start brushing with a soft brush without fluoride toothpaste at first. The first dental appointment should be within 6 months of the first tooth or at 1 year old. This helps to find problems before they become major.

Brushing teeth is important, but it's not the only thing to keep your child's teeth healthy.

**Start introducing a cup around 6 months. If your baby is breast or bottle fed, you can offer water in the cup to get them used to it. **When you start putting formula, breast milk, or whole milk (after 12 months old) in the cup, start putting water only in the bottle so your baby will prefer the cup.
**Avoid juices and sugar-sweetened drinks (soda, sports drinks, etc) since they have a lot of sugar. If you give juices after a year old, limit it to 6 ounces per day and always use a cup not a bottle.
**Don't give your child a bottle or cup in bed.
**Wean your child from the pacifier. If you “disappear” it when they are 4-6 months, it is much easier. If not, you can start limiting where they get it (like only at bedtime), and when it I gets lost, don't replace it.
**Never put your baby's pacifier in your own mouth and then give it to the baby. Adults have different bacteria in the mouth and early exposure may increase the risk of cavities in your child.
**Start a routine of tooth brushing early- every morning and every evening. If your child is resistant, let them play with a separate toothbrush while you clean their teeth, so it's a bit of a game.
**As your child gets older, let them take more responsibility for brushing regularly.
**Help your child learn about healthy food and drink choices. Lead by example by eating healthy foods yourself. Keep sweets and junk foods for a special occasion.

Help your child to have strong, healthy teeth right from the beginning. If you have any concerns, talk with your dentist.

09/03/2025

You are not alone.
It's ok not to be ok.
You matter.

September is .
If you or someone you know is struggling, please reach out for help.

Lend an ear, reach out a hand, support each other.

🌎 www.988lifeline.org
☎️1-800-273-TALK or 988
📲Text "talk" to 741-741