Manageable Doses of Advice for Parents

It is hard to receive advice when you are in the thick of parenting young children. Survival mode is a recipe for fierce boundaries. Perhaps a morsel or two of what you read here and in a three-part blog series in 2025 could inspire a wee crack of openness to consider ideas and resources that could make parenting easier and more joyful as you go forth.
The only thing that helped my husband, Bruce, and me stay afloat while parenting younger kids was to ask for help from other parents without shame. Thank goodness for the Village! We regularly tapped into a fleet of like-minded, experienced friends and wise parents of older kids who had been through it. We read articles and books about the many aspects of parenting we found challenging. Working with parent expert Vicki Hoefle was a game-changer. The podcasts available these days are a treasure trove for parents seeking to ease stress.

While plenty of the things we learned were useful for the 2nd and 3rd kids, each one of those goobers came up with new material that often had my husband and me scurrying away to the furnace room for a whisper consult to figure out how the heck to manage being thrown off balance. And then, we would reach out to experienced parents for more advice. We still do! Paradoxically, parenting requires adaptation on the run while tuning into behavior patterns. This is one of the more exhausting features of parenting that often goes unsaid.

Navigating this parenting dance while short on sleep and with work, family, and/or life stress breathing down your neck is challenging enough. Here is another twisty paradox: Openly admitting fear and doubt to help yourselves become better parents is an act of courage. It was easier to be shameless and vulnerable before social media notched up the judgment factor, causing many parents to retreat to defend their approach rather than reach out for support. Break free, people, on behalf of your children and yourselves.

Over the next few months, I will share a three-part blog series with advice on a few topics for parents of children and teens:

  • January 2025 Newsletter: Update your understanding of the impact of screen time on kids and make changes. The latest information and research confirm the need for a proactive approach.
  • February 2025 Newsletter: Help your children build their mental health toolbox starting when they are young. Investing early can help break parent reaction patterns and improve a child’s mental well-being.
  • March 2025 Newsletter: Swallow your imagined and real shame to access support in every way possible. Admitting that you need help takes courage!

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