Ask “Is your belly full?” Instead of saying “Clean your plate!” Have them stay in touch with hunger/food connection.


3



Anger is the bodyguard of sadness.


12-15, 21



Great reminders for how to deal with belligerent kids. https://mailchi.mp/ahaparenting/8-things-you-can-do-when-your-child-is-belligerent


4



take advantage of the bike trail. Bike places as a family.


11



Your brain seeks novelty. Try new things as long as you live. Take risks (but not safety risks!)


20



If you don’t know where to begin, picture where you want it to end, and work it backwards.


15, 21



Be willing to say “I don’t know” if you don’t know! Don’t just make stuff up.


15, 20



If there’s a ever a bird in the house, close the interior doors, open the doors to the outside and shoo it out with a broom.


18



Ask “What are you going to teach ME?” Let him work on something to teach.


11



Action is the antidote to anxiety.


12, 14, 17, 21



Check in on your friends. Even the ones that seem fine.


14-21



1

“A recipe for being mistaken: 1. Dislike someone who's often right. 2. Never agree with someone you dislike.” ——- Paul Graham


16



Read Big Magic by Liz Gilbert. Re-read every 5-10 years.


19, 21



Let’s talk about how we can bless people - with what we have and by how we act.


7



A friend of mine lost her son in a horrible accident. She wrote “I don’t believe God caused this but I do believe he can redeem it.” That has stayed with me for years. God doesn’t cause suffering... He showers those who suffer with his grace.


18



Sometimes when you win, you lose. And when you lose, you win. Meaning that sometimes when you get what you want it doesn’t work out well. And sometimes wonderful things happen as a result of a failure or disappointment. Chin up. There’s a million paths to happiness and fulfillment. If one doesn’t work out your will find another.


12, 21



Physical contact between two people is only fun / appropriate / legal / healthy if both people are into it. If one party objects, demurs or even acts less-than-interested, that’s the ballgame. Stop physical contact immediately. Be kind and respectful at all times.


15, 18



“Write hard and clear about what hurts.” - Ernest Hemingway


12, 15, 21



Kids make fun, it’s not nice but they just do. Just blow it off if kids make fun of you got something silly. They’ll drop it if they don’t get a ride out of you. ... But bullying is different. If kids are being mean, threatening or scary, tell me and your teacher.


7



When driving in the car with your kids, ask them to count motorcycles, cyclists, pedestrians. Prize to the highest count! This will train them to be on the lookout for them.


10



Read Moth by Amber McBride. Young adult fiction in verse about grief. Twists and turns.


15



Everybody emits energy. What sort of energy do you want to put out into the universe? Your thoughts, actions, prayers, struggles, laughter, etc. that’s all you. Your energy is all your own. Spend some time thinking about what kind of aura to want to have.


17



The moment you lose your cool, you’ve lost.


12,13, 14, 15, 16, 21



Teach them that when we hear sirens it means someone is in trouble but help is on the way.


2-5



Time is of the essence


16



If it’s the right thing, if something needs to be done… Make yourself do it. You’re never going to “feel like it.” Practice daily with things big and / or small without complaining.


9, 12, 15, 21



Read Admiral William McRaven’s autobiography Sea Stories.


17



Change the furniture around in your dorm, apartment or bedroom every once in a while. It’s an easy way to break up a timeline like for a holiday a season or after a breakup, etc.


18



“It’s best if we don’t speak for a while.” Practice it


19, 21



Curate a presentation on heartbreak. Talk about heartbreaks endured by people we know, fictional characters, historical figures, etc. Point is to normalize it, prepare them for it and teach them that they will come out the other side.


14, 20