You Don’t Have to be Perfect to be a Perfect Parent

I’ve been reading a lot of articles, blog comments and Facebook messages from parents that seem to be struggling when caring for little ones. It seems there is more pressure placed on parents these days. Parents get messages from various sources like; go green . . . eat organic . . . no TV or screen time . . . eat healthy . . . no fast foods . . . sign them up for sports . . . stranger danger . . .is your house childproofed enough . . . protect from germs . . . is your child getting bullied . . . save money for college . . . place them in the best schools. The list is endless. No wonder parents are stressed. They can easily be overwhelmed with trying to be perfect.

Listen, you don’t have to be perfect to be a perfect parent. Don’t get so stressed over the fear of not doing enough for your child. Take a breath, relax and embrace time spent with your child.

If there was a recipe to follow that will assure your child will grow up as a beautiful confident individual, it would look something like this:

An equal amount for all below . . .

Patience

Encouragement

Good advice

Praise

Fairness

Security with boundaries

Approval

Acceptance and respect

Opportunities to create and express

Humor mixed with laughter

Lots of hugs

Setting a good example by words and actions

Community for a sense of belonging

Oh, hold on . . . don’t be overwhelmed. I’m sure that naturally you are already attracting this in your child’s life.

By the time your child becomes an adult, it does not matter what your house looked like, how much money you had, or how much stuff they got. They will look back and value the love and patience it took to raise them. Sometimes this takes several years into adulthood before they even admit it to us parents. Sigh . . . So do trust that doing your best is enough. Go by your Motherly or Fatherly instincts when making choices for your child’s individual needs. No one knows your child best as well as you.

I am an author and recently published a book under the name of “Precious Years Leaps & Bounds” (click on link). This book’s sole purpose is to help ease parent’s daily routine when caring for little ones while teaching them the love of learning. I am a parent of two young adults and a child care provider for little ones with 18+ years of experience. I know and truly understand the struggles of raising kids. I realize there is a strong craving and desire from parents and caregivers that need encouragement in raising little ones at home. I’m here as your advocate to help minimize those frustrations.

I know I’m not perfect either. Even with the experience I have with caring for little ones. I have those days that nothing seems to go right. I’ve learned to be flexible in finding what works best for each child as each individual needs are different.

Compassionately,

*Iva

(Click here) Vote for Precious Years Blogger on Top Baby Blogs 

What do you hold dear to your heart?

Does this give you a sense of purpose? Celebrating traditions and sharing our beliefs are important when raising children. How do we contribute in celebrating traditions with our children and grandchildren? What are our true beliefs religious or non-religious? How do we set the example of these beliefs in our everyday lives beyond this season of good cheer? The answers are up to you. I encourage you to think about these questions, as little ones look up to the adults in their world. They are attentive in how we live our lives even as young as toddlerhood. 

So don’t shy away in talking to your little ones (in words they can understand) about why we celebrate these traditions and what your beliefs are. Share why these are so important to you. They don’t necessarily have to agree with you, but I personally feel it helps them understand why we live our lives the way we do . . . why we place a high priority on certain traditions and beliefs. I also feel it’s important because when our children grow up into adulthood, they can see the importance of traditions and decide what they believe. This gives a person an awesome sense of purpose.   

May you have a joyful & peaceful holiday season when celebrating and connecting with your family, little ones, and of course your grandchildren.

Roughhousing with a baby/toddler? Appropriate?

I’m curious what other parent’s thoughts or opinions are after watching this video: (Click on link) Link to video

Here are 2 reasons why I feel this is dangerous: 

• There is always a risk of injury no matter what type of surface you are playing on. 
• Roughhousing with a little one this young gives them the wrong message in how to play with others appropriately. If Daddy or Mommy likes to roughhouse at home for fun, the little one will take this behavior into their child care environment.   

As a child care provider I have observed how toddlers love to mimic. This age group doesn’t know the difference between playing rough with Daddy or Mommy and playing rough with their playmates at a child care. Toddlers like to mimic what they see others do. 

It can be difficult to teach toddlers what is appropriate for social skills when this type of behavior is rewarded at home.

I can appreciate the parent’s need to teach their child to be tough, however, maybe we should hold off this lesson until later years. Maybe teach older children as young as elementary age self-defense rather than physical fighting. Also, if we hold off until they are older, you would be able to talk with your child about when and where “roughhousing” is appropriate.

I’d love to hear your thoughts or opinions on this topic.