Write your own job description. When you've been around long enough to know what you're good at and can identify what needs in the company you can help with.


21



Lookout for the girls when you’re in a group. Some boys will try to take advantage or straight up r@pe them. Your responsibility goes beyond avoiding harming anyone. Your male privilege is a perk…earn it. Protect girls from sketchy dudes. No big deal, just help when you can and then move along. Don’t expect a cookie.


14,15, 16, 17, 21



Learning to keep your composure and maintain a respectful tone when you’re frustrated/angry/afraid/upset, etc. is a skill. PRACTICE it.


4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 12, 14, 16, 19, 21



Practice sitting and standing "like a statue" to teach them how to be still. Start with a goal of 5 or 10 seconds, gradually move to 2 minutes. Same thing for "silent game" to teach them how to stay quiet when they need to. Bribery helps teaching this concept!


3-4



IMPORTANT: If you borrow money from someone pay it back as soon as possible. In full. If you borrow an item, return it in excellent condition. I’d say if you borrow a car, return it with a full tank of gas but hopefully by the time you’re driving there won’t be any combustible engines. So return it fully charged!


12, 14, 16, 21



Don’t worry if they’re not listening to what you say...They watch what you do. They study it.


13



Read everything Brene Brown ever wrote.


20



“Be brave. Be resilient. Be kind. Be grateful.” -Hillary Rodham Clinton


12



Sex is not an act, it’s a pool. Stay in the shallow end for as long as possible. Have fun. Be safe. Be respectful.


15



“Love is giving your heart without expectation.” - Dan Fogelman


16, 21



Keep a pair of nail clippers in the car - much better lighting outside. Clipping tiny fingernails is terrifying!


Infant-1



1

Read up on the adolescent brain.


11, 13



• you can't make anyone love you • not every relationship is meant to last forever • sometimes two good people can make one bad relationship.


16-20



Make a separate piggie bank together for money to donate. Talk about how we manage what we have thoughtfully: Save some, spend some, donate some.


5-8



Do not be daunted at the world’s grief. Do justly now. Love Mercy now. Walk humbly now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it. -The Talmud


15



Do something that feeds your soul every day. Experience or create joy, even if just a small spark of it.


17



Watch “The Sandlot” together. Great story about friendship and showing up for each other.


8



Read blog post from Parent's Corner: The Letter Your Teenager Can't Write You By Gretchen Schmelzer June 23, 2015


13-17



When it comes to judging your behavior at school/ sports/ work, ask: Was I fair? Was I kind? Did I put in the work? If the answers are all “Yes,” then rest well. If an answer is “No,” then fix it.


16



Re-Read Tim Russert's Big Russ and Me.


14



Teach how to carve a turkey.


15



Enroll in cooking lessons. We'll need to find you someone who knows how to cook. (Don't tell mom I said that.)


14



“You can miss a person every day and still be glad that they’re no longer in your life.” — Oprah Winfrey


19



Ask your emotions “why” three times.


14, 16, 21



We struggle so much when we don’t know ourselves. Are you a thinker (creative, big picture) or a doer (meticulous, task-oriented.) Both are great by the way.


16, 21



“Tell me the story of your day.” (Works better than “how was your day?”


5, 6, 10



Ask him to memorize and recite William Ernest Henley poem “Invictus” as a Christmas present for me.


15



Read Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson together.


17



Read If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin. Young adult coming of age story.


14, 17



Getting your drivers license will depend not only on government requirements (age, passing tests, etc.) but also maturity and trustworthiness.


14