June 4th Meeting Recap

Hi Connect!

How are you? 

Yesterday was the last day of school for my kids, let the summer begin! =)

We had another great meeting earlier this month. There was lots of food to share and this time we had multiple guest speakers! Nieves invited her friends to share their stories of successful parenting. Most of their kids are in their teen years. It was very enlightening and encouraging especially for me raising 1st grade boys. 

 

Summary of successful parenting:

Each child is a gift from God and each one is blessed with their own different personality. It's important for parents to not lose faith, be close to God, respect each other and self, keep an open communication and be on the same page. This sets a great foundation for the kids to follow.

Constant statements by the guest speakers were to keep an open communication with your children, set clear expectations, discipline, respect and unconditional love. I liked the reminder to be conscious parents. Be actively involved with your children. Be deliberate in your parenting role and not let others, society, friends be the main influence of your kids. 

Here are some great ideas of how they have made it happen in their home.

After Sunday mass, take home the homily to discuss further with your child to help them understand what it means. Be encouraging and remind them when they are hard on themselves that at least they tried their best. Set clear expectations from the beginning, don't be afraid to discipline. Encourage them to have friends with the same values and respect. Invite their friends and their friends' parents over for dinner at your home. After school, ask them to share with you three things they did that day, be engaging. Then actively listen and remember you don't have to fix their problems. Make them feel appreciated, say thank you or please to your child at least three times a day. Make time for quality family time. Don't let work steal all of your precious time away from your kids.

Proverbs 22:6 Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.

Thank you, Nieves for leading a heartfelt discussion! Thank you to our guest speakers for sharing their stories! It helped to reinforce what some of us are already doing or thinking of doing, and needing to hear that it does work in the long run. I learned a lot!

 

Our next meeting is on July 2nd. I will send another email out with information about our next community service event on July 14th at the Ronald McDonald House. Please check your schedule if you are available to help out!

Take care and God Bless!

Reggie