Why Parenting is Difficult: Introduction to the Series

Saturday, July 11th, 2009 by Kristin Slevin
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This entry is part 1 of 3 in the series Why Parenting is Difficult

Do you ever find yourself in situations with your child thinking, “Why is this so difficult?!?!” For something that is as old as creation (or nearly) you would think that by now we humans might have figured out a thing or two about parenting. And we have, sort of. It is just that there aren’t any tricks or magic formulas that can make parenting a breeze. There are things that can make parenting easier. This series will: explore some of the things that make parenting difficult; and offer directions that parents can pursue to help make parenting easier.

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Why Parenting is Difficult: Loving and Letting Go

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009 by Kristin Slevin
Intended Audience: ,
This entry is part 2 of 3 in the series Why Parenting is Difficult

Parenting is a deeply vulnerable endeavor. Here is this young person who is simultaneously deeply intertwined with the persons of the parents and yet is also separate and who needs to go through a process of separation with the parents. Separation of any kind is painful. The deeper the love and connection between two people, the more painful the separation is. There is probably no deeper connection than that of a parent and their child. No wonder parenting is difficult!

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Why Parenting is Difficult: Loving the Hard to Like

Monday, August 10th, 2009 by Kristin Slevin
Intended Audience: ,
This entry is part 3 of 3 in the series Why Parenting is Difficult

Have you ever stopped in horror and realized that at that moment of time you are feeling hate towards your child? Or maybe you have found that while you love your child you really don’t LIKE them. Or perhaps somewhere deep down inside you feel disappointed about some of the qualities of your child. (For example, you always dreamed of playing baseball with your son, but you had two girls instead, or your son doesn’t want to play baseball, or your son has physical/mental limitations and can’t play baseball.) These are things that many parents feel but have a hard time telling even a counselor (whom is bound by law to never tell another soul). This is one of the difficult things about parenting: you don’t get to choose your child.

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