Parenting and family stuff
good stuff from around the internet on raising good kids, building a family, etc.
sari and
Parenting and family stuff
“Having parented successfully in the past may rank as a satisfying accomplishment retrospectively; but the bulk of research finds that being a parent, while it is happening, does not increase life satisfaction and may reduce it.”
Jonathan Rauch • The Happiness Curve: Why Life Gets Better After 50
I’ve taken to accepting that I’m messing up all kinds of things, and mainly just try to have fun with my little friend. To the extent that I have a strategy, it’s basically:
Spend lots of (phone-free) time with her
Show her that the world is a fun and fascinating place
Encourage her to reason from first principles
Don’t interrupt her when she’s focused... See more
Spend lots of (phone-free) time with her
Show her that the world is a fun and fascinating place
Encourage her to reason from first principles
Don’t interrupt her when she’s focused... See more
But because adults conceal their flaws, and at the same time insist on high standards of behavior for kids, a lot of kids grow up feeling they fall hopelessly short. They walk around feeling horribly evil for having used a swearword, while in fact most of the adults around them are doing much worse things.
Lies We Tell Kids
The questions from the article:
“What did you learn today?” vs. “What did you disagree with today?”
“What did you accomplish this week?” vs. “What did you fail at this week?”
“Here’s how you do that.” vs. “How would you solve this problem?”
“Here’s your new kindergarten” vs. “What kindergarten do you want to attend?”
“That’s just the way it is.” vs. “Great question. Why don’t you figure out the answer?”
“You can’t do that.” vs. “What would it take to do that?”
“Did you make a new friend today?” vs. “How did you help someone today?”
