Recently, I took my daughter to the restroom at a local restaurant. As you might expect in a health-food restaurant located in a progressive city, the restroom was labeled not men, not women, not family, not restroom; it was labeled ‘all genders.’ It didn’t occur to me to think about my daughter’s reaction to this term, given the Class One Potty Emergency at hand.
“Planning for my death and mental or physical incapacity was so much fun!” Said no one, ever (and I don’t expect to see a song titled, “Let’s Talk About Death” hit the top 10 anytime soon). Let’s face it, discussing death and incapacity is not one of the highlights of adulthood. It is, however, an important and oddly comforting task to check off your to-do list.
Like a lot of married couples, my husband and I rarely get to enjoy a date night. Busy work schedules, family obligations, and - let’s face it - sometimes sheer exhaustion prevents us from making quality couple time a priority. But according to a recent study conducted by The National Marriage Project, today’s parents are foregoing date night at our own peril. Researchers at The University of Virginia determined that couples who go out together at least once a week are three times more likely to report being ‘very happy’ in their relationships, they are less likely to get divorced, and they make better parents, too.
How often do we hear a sigh from a parent and then, “I wish my children acted more responsibly!” I’m sure you’ve also heard, “She is so irresponsible. I have to do everything for her.” Or, “At his age, I had to act responsibly; I did not have any choice.” What has happened in an era when children have more privileges, opportunities, and freedoms than ever before, but often show little inclination toward responsible action? Here we explore how we might build resilience while encouraging the development of responsible children. Many of us grew up with too much responsibility and little freedom. Today’s parents are witnessing, often encouraging, children to have little responsibility and too much freedom. Too much freedom means having and doing whatever they desire without earning it and without a sense of ownership or accomplishment.
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