Parenting Philosophy Toolbox, Summary

Over the past few months, I've been sharing some ideas on parenting that my husband and I use on a regular basis. Many of you have told me that you have found this information very valuable, which makes me quite pleased. What is especially pleasing is that a large percentage of my readership for this series on Parenting Philosophy are not yet parents or even necessarily in a relationship.

I'd like to take a moment to commend those of you in the non-parent-as-yet category for taking the time to read on this subject. Very few people are fully prepared to become parents. In the United States, it is becoming a standard that first time parents decide to take a class on how to be a parent. If you have not yet had children of your own, it may be difficult to visualize some of the points I have been referencing, but you have an advantage now in that you have exposure to some ideas that have been designed to prod the mind into thinking about the process of parenting. You have been given an opportunity to receive insight from at least one parent (two actually, as Andrew helps me edit all my posts) with the hopes that your future work as the guidance counselor for your own progeny with have some basic foundations--that you will THINK about the kind of parent you want to be for your child.

Those of you who already are parents and who are reading this blog, bless you! Too often many of us get to a point where we feel we know what we are doing and no longer bother to read up on ways to improve our parenting skills. I feel this is folly. There is always room to improve; quality professionals call it kaizen, which means continuous improvement. This is not just applicable to manufacturing but to everyday life as well. Maybe you agree with the points I've highlighted in this series, and maybe you do not. But at least you have taken the time to consider them, so kudos to you for caring enough about your role as a parent to want to do it as best as possible!

And to make life a little easier for us all, I am posting a list of the gist of each of the 10 points of the series as well as linking the list items to the corresponding posts. I could have added others, but I really wanted to focus on the core concepts to start.

1. Babies cry for a reason.
2. Babies (and children) are emotional, not rational, beings.
3. Parenting is a full-time job.
4. Life will never be the same again.
5. Children, even very young babies, LOVE a predictable schedule.
6. Cooperation is essential between parents; there must be agreement.
7. Raise the child(ren) you have.
8. Be creative.
9. What lesson is my child learning from this?
10. It takes a village to raise a child.

A part of me especially wanted to add an 11th element to the Parenting Philosophy Toolbox under the heading Be Respectful. I feel that it should be obvious if someone reads and follows the other 10 ideas, but it may need to be explicitly made its own tool in the kit for some parents. I still may do this because I feel it is a very important consideration for a parent: that children deserve respect and need to learn how to be respectful through example.

I hope you have enjoyed reading this series. If in the process of reading this you have some idea(s) you would like to share to expand on or refute a concept I've outlined, please feel free to place a comment below or on the comments section for the post in particular. I read every comment made on and about my blog and greatly value feedback.

Thank you to all of you who have been regular faithful readers. I've been stalking you with Google Analytics, so I have a pretty good idea who has been reading and who has not.

I'll be starting a new project with the blog soon. It's still in the early development stages, so bear with me. Also, if there is anything in particular that you would like to see discussed or elaborated in the blog, let me know!

~Jessica Adams