Parenting Tips
Now, I don’t fancy myself an expert on parenting — let’s be honest, who really is? But with nearly 20 years of being a mom to a bustling crew of kiddos, I’ve definitely picked up a thing or two. Like how to negotiate bedtime like a pro, master the art of the snack bribe, and survive the chaos with a sense of humor intact.
Parenting a big family is equal parts exhausting, hilarious, and utterly rewarding. Here, I share the hard-earned tips, funny stories, and sneaky hacks that keep our household running — or at least mostly sane. So if you’re looking for real-life advice sprinkled with a bit of wit (and a lot of coffee), you’re in the right place!
Have a Teen Afraid to Drive??
We are currently on our second 15 year old who is getting ready to drive. With our oldest daughter, we “followed the rules,” meaning she took Driver’s Ed at 15 and got her permit…but thats where following the rules stopped. This child had no interest in driving. This is also our fearless kiddo, so to see her too nervous to drive was heartbreaking. Long story short, she ended up waiting until she was 18 to get her license.
Jump to early this year, our second oldest daughter turned 15 in January. We were seeing the same patterns we saw with her older sister. She was overly nervous, scared she couldn’t do it, and had no interest in taking Driver’s Ed. We eased up on her since we really didn’t want her first driving experiences to be in the middle of a Minnesota winter anyways! But, by June, my husband and I decided we were going to give her a little nudge and get her to ultimately decide if she was ready or still wanted to wait.
This is where the hack comes in! We found a large, open parking lot near our house that had no other cars in it at the time. We stuck the 15 year old behind the wheel, talked her through the basics, and just let her drive around! Super easy hack, right? But, we walked (or drove) away from this experience with a kiddo who decided she is ready to get her permit and work towards her license. And, if she had told us she wasn’t ready, we would have been okay with that. It’s giving them the opportunity to push outside their comfort zone in the safety of your presence. Sure, we might have broken some laws, but it was worth it to help her make that decision. I will update later on how the process is going!
