In honor of our beloved Henriette’s 7th birthday, here are 7 NEW #parentinghacks for 2022:

 

(1) No two children are the same. Evolve your parenting style as needed by each child. Some need tougher love, some don’t. I never expected to have girls as different as Elsa and Anna but alas, we do!
 
(2) Each parent ends up with his/her own relationship with each child.The 1:1 time with one’s children is a treasure. This year, I have realized setting the goal of 1:1 experiences (2-3 day) per year with each of our girls is a gift and I plan to make it happen annually from this point forward.
 
(3) Mission. Vision. Values. These are the guiding principles in tremendous companies, families, and people. Never too soon to instill this sense of purpose in young people.
 
(4) Fill thy child’s life with Legos! Whether Audrey working through the Architecture Series during the pandemic or Henriette exploring her equestrian loves via Legos, the benefits of honing problem-solving and engineering skills through play seem endless.
 
(5) Bake with Kids. Our girls love watching the Great British Baking Show with Hal and making lesser creations with me. Working on pies, cakes, cupcakes, muffins et al is not only fun bonding time, but reinforces basic math and science principles like units of measurement. My favorite thing now when they make “staples” like pizza dough is to hear them say, “No recipe needed.”
 
(6) [Reprise Hack] Take Local Field Trips. Whether scootering/running through the local forest preserve or exploring some of our city’s great, kid-friendly cultural institutions like the Shedd Aquarium or Museum of Science and Industry or Brookfield Zoo, the more we explore, the more fun we have.
 
(7) [Reprise Hack] Let Your Children Help Prep for Dinner Parties /Set the Table.
Whether writing place cards to practice penmanship or spelling, setting or clearing tables before or after a meal, engaging kids in dinner party or simply meal prep teaches manners and responsibility. We cannot seem to get enough of those learning opportunities!

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