Helicopter Parents

Well, I'm not a parent, so I am a little biased. I may change my mind when I have my own kids, but for now, I'm speaking as a teacher and child. My dad took a very different approach. I remember going to McDonald's after begging for an ice cream. We would walk in and my dad would hand me a $5 bill while he took a seat. I'd sit too. Then I would tell him what I would want. He'd basically ignore me. Then he would finally tell me to go order whatever I wanted. I hated him at the time, and probably shed tears over these instances. I'd finally order when he would threaten to leave. Then, I would get a sandwich with everything on it, despite the cheese and ketchup only request. Again, probably tears because I HATE mustard. I'd beg my dad to go fix it. He'd refuse. He'd pack up ready to go to the car and again, I'd go and resolve the situation. I never quite understood why a dad would make their 5 or 6 year old go through this pain. Why couldn't he just do it? He has more power than a 5 year old, right?! As I grew up and even without a curfew, I realized that this was my dad's way of parenting. Yes, PARENTING! Parenting doesn't require handcuffs on the children. It's a place to empower your children to take responsibility for their actions, good and bad. Through all of this, I was well-prepared to be on my own and stand up for my beliefs, not my friends, dads, or anyone else's. Helicopter parents, quite the opposite. I'm thankful for my dad and his parenting techniques. Sure, my dad missed some games and school activities between me and my two sisters. I would have loved for him to have attended more. But as a single parent, a FATHER, raising three teenage girls, he worked his tail off to provide the best life for us. Plus, I think raising three teenage girls was enough estrogen for him. I'm sure he needed some work to escape any more bows and make-up. So, here's an incredible article on Helicopter Parents. Please don't be one.

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1940395,00.html