💬 Parenting Out Loud: Go Ahead, Brag a Little
What’s something you’ve gotten better at as a parent?
I can’t shake something Guen Bradbury said recently: “We should see how much we’ve grown as parents.”
We’re quick to notice where we’re falling short or what still needs work—but what about the places we’ve grown? The habits we’ve changed. The patience we’ve built. The moments we’ve responded differently than we might have before.
Big or small, those wins matter—and they deserve to be seen.
What’s something you’ve gotten better at—or a way you’ve grown—as a parent?
💬 Share your growth in the comments. It just might be the very encouragement someone else needs to push through. I’ll meet you there.
I have two children. This summer, my youngest will become an adult. My oldest--my daughter's-- adolescence literally broke me, humbled me, and demanded that I figure out new ways to move forward in my life. What it took to keep my sanity ended up being a full reorientation that brings to mind the Serenity prayer. I had to grieve the things I could not control and learn to relate to my loved ones differently, to see them as whole human beings rather than extensions of myself. This has profoundly changed my life, saved my relationships, and grown me up in ways I didn't even know were possible. The way I see my husband now, the awe I have for my children and my role as their mother; as I write this, it fills me with emotion to think of the gratitude I have for my daughter's "troubles" that broke my heart and life open.
Apologizing and acknowledging after I’ve lost it or reacted in an unconstructive way. Rather than beat myself up, I want to show my kids that we parents make mistakes and we can own them and move on in a healthy fashion. We have a rule in our house that we don’t go to bed mad, and we always say I love you at the end of the day, no matter how out of sorts we’ve been.