Makings of a Good Parent

What makes a good parent? Parents do not become good parents overnight. Parents grow and apply lessons that they have learned through their lifetime. Parents are continuously trying to improve themselves and their parenting skills and with any kind of luck, the parents become good parents.

The first thing that is on the road to becoming a good parent is to realize that the parent is going to make mistakes. No one is perfect and the parent should not try to be. The parent is going to make some big mistakes and even some small mistakes. The key, however, to making these mistakes is to learn and grow from them, so the parent will not make the same mistake twice.

The second bump in the road to becoming a good parent is to provide the child with unconditional love. Saying "I love you" at every given chance and showing the child that you love them will benefit the child because he/she will know that their parents love them. Showing children love by spending time with them, playing games with them or just talking with them can go along way with the child. Unconditional love is tied in with support. Children need to know that their biggest "cheerleader" is mom and dad. This helps the child think that they can do anything with their parents cheering them on and showing support.

The third stop on the road to becoming a good parent is recognizing that no two children are alike. One child may love sports and the other child maybe into reading or studying. Do not insist your child do something that really doesn't appeal to them. This will make the child detest doing anything and make the child become secluded and withdrawn.

Include the child into major family decisions such as moving, decorating their rooms, the color of the car, changing schools, etc. This makes the child feel as though the parent values their opinion. This also teaches the child to communicate and to listen.

Pick your battles! As a parent, you should try to not get stressed out about the small stuff and let it slide. Save the drama for the bigger battles such as missing curfew, smoking, drinking etc. This is tied into the discipline also. Do not spank your child at every turn but do pick a disciplinary action that works best and follow it all the way through. Meaning if you sit the child in time out for five minutes, then do not let the child leave the time out spot until the full five minutes has passed. For if you do, that teaches the child that the laws do not apply to him/her and nothing will be followed through.

Create a routine. It can be a simple routine that parents and child do. For instance, a mother can spend one day a week for each of her kids (one day it will be mom and son and the next day mom and daughter). Pick fun things that they like to do. Another routine would be to give the kids kisses upon waking up in the mornings and before bedtime or even reading to them at night. This boosts children's self-esteem and confidence.

Finally, the last stop on the road to making a good parent is for the parent to realize that parents need time for themselves every once in awhile. Spend time together every evening when the children are in bed. Have a "date" night every other week or so. Parents who are running on empty is not going to do their children any good. It is good to refuel every now and again.

While these suggestions might not make a person feel like they are good parents, it does help. Once the children are grown and out of the house, the parents will not have to worry about being good parents, they will know. The parents will know that they were good parents by watching their children grow up and lead happy, healthy and safe lives.