The Life Lessons That Are Worth Passing Down To Your Kids

We all go through life with a different experience on how you navigate it. And when you have children, you only want the very best for them. So with that in mind, you may have a few life lessons that you want to pass down. Here are some life lessons that are worth passing down to your kids.

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Always Respect Others

Respect for others is an essential life lesson that not every parent is giving their child to learn as they’re growing up. That can seriously affect their attitude and viewpoint to other members of society that are in certain positions or maybe a minority in comparison to your child. Having love and respect for everyone is important because otherwise, it allows hate to boil over, and that’s never going to end well for anyone. So try to teach your children about respect and having respect for everyone that they interact with right now and moving forward.

Think About Moderation

Moderation is very important because, without it, it’s unhealthy. Moderation when it comes to alcohol is important to avoid having to attend a teen alcohol rehab center. There’s moderation in what you eat and what you do in life that might have an overall effect on your health. A good moderation in life is good to know about, and this is something that you can teach your children to have more control over. Anything that’s going to harm their health is not something you want to be actively promoting when you’re in that role model position. Setting a good example to them is very beneficial, and so they’ll understand and learn this quicker.

Speak Up When You’re Feeling Sad

Mental health is one thing in life that has become a topic that’s talked about more than usual nowadays. And that’s very important because your mental well-being can really affect how you live your life, not to mention it actually being harmful to your physical health too. Speaking up about how you’re feeling isn’t always communicated from parents when children are growing up, so they are often afraid to do so. Make sure you communicate this to them and that talking about your feelings is a good thing, not a bad one that should be shamed.

Learn The Value Of Money

The value of money is one thing all children could do with knowing, and it’s not always done within the school system. Being able to know where it comes from, how it’s earned and to appreciate it, is essential. Helping those with less of it is also important to do, even if they don’t know these individuals personally. Being able to respect and learn about the value of money will make them less spoiled and more appreciative of having wealth.

The life lessons we give to our children to have more of an impact than you’ll know. Make sure you’ve thought about what you want your children to know as they grow and become a model member of society that you’re proud of.

4 Areas Of Support You Can Offer To Your Aging Parents

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Your parents aren’t getting any younger. It’s something that they and you will have to deal with, that inevitable fact of life that affects us all. 

And as your parents get older, it might be that they need your extra help and support in their lives. Where once they did the same for you, you might one day have to return the favor. If you feel too overwhelmed or live too far away to care for you parents, you can utilize the help of an in-home care service. Some home healthcare providers use home health software to update notes and communicate effectively with clients, so you can have a hands-on approach, even if you live far away. Having an overview of your loved ones care can give you peace of mind, while supporting an aging parent.

Chances are, you don’t need us to remind you of the kinds of support you can offer to them. If you have elderly parents, you might have taken up the mantle of help and support already. It might be that they have come to you themselves to ask for help. Still, a little reminder is never harmful, so consider these areas of support that you might be able to offer your aging parents.

#1: Daily living support

Particularly if your parents are frail and unable to manage certain aspects of their lives themselves, you might want to help them with shopping, making meals, and home maintenance. You might want to transport them to and from medical appointments too, and find them the home help they need for extra assistance with their daily living. 

#2: Health support

Some people neglect their health needs as they get older. This might be on a conscious level, or it could be because their ailing health makes them forgetful or unable to  help themselves. This is where you can make a difference, as you might be able to recognize the signs of age-related health issues that they might have missed. You might also have the opportunity to improve their health by encouraging them to exercise, perhaps by inviting them to your family outings. You can encourage them to eat well too, perhaps by arranging a meals-on-wheels service for them. And you can research areas of health advice on their behalf, such as tips on getting used to hearing aids, and suggestions on managing chronic conditions.

#3: Social support

Many older people become isolated and lonely as they age, especially after losing their peers and partner due to age and disease. Such loneliness can lead to depression and other mental health problems, so your support in this area should be considered vital. As a means of help, you might want to phone your parent/s regularly, invite them to family occasions, and visit them whenever you can. There are often senior befriending agencies available too, so get in touch with the relevant charities and businesses on behalf of your parents. And enter terms such as senior activity centers near me into Google, as you should be able to find local hobby groups that can give your aging parents a social outlet. 

Housing support

Many older people prefer to age-in-place, so if this is possible for your aging parents, look into ways their homes can be adapted to support their various needs. So, you might install mobility fixtures around their home, for example. On the other hand, your aging parents might get to the point where they can’t manage alone, so you might consider assisted living options, care home providers, or the possibility of them coming to live with you. Speak to your parents about their preferences, and seek professional support for further advice. 

Thanks for reading.

Three Ways To Win The Healthy Eating Battle With Kids

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When it comes to nutrition, most of us are pretty good on the basics by now. Eating a rainbow of seasonal fruits and vegetables, adding probiotic foods and supplements to our diets, finding healthy recipes that we can batch cook and prepare in advance and staying hydrated are top of a lot of people’s must-do lists. When it comes to kids, however, sometimes healthy eating isn’t so straightforward. A lot of conscientious parents with junk food loving kids or little fussy eaters in the family are in despair trying to enforce the rules – no dessert on a weeknight, eat all your vegetables –  and it can result in a lot of stress. As parents, it’s important that we approach food holistically with our children. Eating isn’t just about nutrition –  food is also there for fun, for comfort, for celebration and so much more. Valuing healthy food and teaching your children how to eat well shouldn’t be a daily battle.

Take A Step Back

If you’ve been caught up for a while in disagreements with your children about what they eat – perhaps you’re parenting a fussy toddler who will only eat plain pasta and freaks out at the sight of anything green hitting their plate, or a picky teen who is becoming body conscious – it’s hard to always do the right thing. We get so caught up and focused on a single issue, such as them finishing what is on their plate, or eating a certain amount of carrots before being allowed to leave the table. Take a step back for a moment. It’s perfectly normal for kids appetites to fluctuate with mood, growth stage and level of activity. If there are a few unbalanced days, try not to worry too much. Trying to control the amount your child eats is often a losing battle, and although it can be frustrating, try to focus more on doing the job of providing healthy meals, while your kid follows their own signals on how much they want to eat. Unless there is a medical issue, it’s far better to allow children to regulate the amount they eat and learn to listen to satiety signals in their body.

Involve Them In Cooking

Kids are generally far more interested in what’s on their plate if you can involve them in how it got there. Simple ideas, such as starting a vegetable garden and growing thing together, letting them help to make a simple and fun dish like zucchini bolognese, or finding healthier cook-at-home versions of favorite treats, like the low carb cookies recipe here can make them keener to eat the right things. Another big hit is usually ‘build your own’ meals like pizzas, salad bars or fajitas – just set up a station of healthy ingredients and let your kids do the rest.

Don’t Forbid Treats

Generally banning or otherwise overly demonizing any food is not a good idea, as it quite frequently leads to eating issues later in life. Work on introducing more healthy options that your child enjoys instead. Not keen on broccoli? Don’t push on that – but offer alternatives like sugar snap peas or mashed sweet potato that may go down better. And remember to allow the odd cookie or bag of chips – it’s okay every once in a while.

An at-home dad on a mission to keep it real when it comes to food, fun, and raising a healthy, happy family.