Dear Parents - Confide in Your Children

Dear Parents,

Tell your children what troubles you, confide in them. When they are in their teen years they need to know more than ever what the real world is like. They need to know that life is not about

relationship status, getting drunk and having sex. Our teens need to know that they are valuable, unique, trusted, and above all; loved.

It can be difficult to maintain a close, intimate relationship with your child. during their Jr/Sr high school years especially. Tell them something that you appreciate them doing, something unique about them that you enjoy seeing, something you wish they did differently - constructive criticism here, don't bash them for doing something incorrectly, tell them why you would have them do it differently. Tell your child what bothers you, let them know what your values are, and the battles that you are facing.

Let your children know that it is ok to mess up, but that we need to learn from each mistake. Let them know that you mess up too, you are human. Just like them.