Life Skills

When we think of life skills as parents, I think sometimes our brains go to things like toothbrushing and crossing the street. While these are vital skills, life skills are really any skills, strategies and approaches our kids can use on a regular basis to keep themselves safe, happy and fulfilled. Life, after all, is more than just staying alive. We want our kids to have full lives with wonderful experiences. Exactly how that looks will depend on your child and your family.

When I say that you are uniquely qualified to raise your child in your home, I’m not only being motivational…it’s really true!  In our house, we have fires inside and outside all year round, so for us, being safe around a fire is really an important life skill. 

Other vital life skills in our house include:

• knowing how to behave around dogs
• helping out, in whatever way you can
• tolerating the smells of lots of different recipes
• being patient with each other’s differences
• coping with big, loud, joyous family gatherings
• being encouraging of other family members (like listening to your brother play some tunes on his saxophone)

In your house, this list might look totally different!  You will naturally teach your child how to find their own space in your home environment. Trust yourself!