The Little Paper on Helicopter Parenting

Vicki Bell over at the little paper wrote a fabulous piece about how she made the switch from being a “satellite of love” parent:

“orbiting [her] daughters with purse and pockets full of tissues, snacks, lip balm and sippys; delivering explanations, juice, stories, hugs, squabble mediation, undivided attention and under-doggies,”

to a “center of the universe” parent, whose children orbit around her, so that she can set an example for her children of

“an accomplished woman of varied interests and talents, foibles and flaws … who takes care of herself first so she has the energy to take care of her children, her work, her home, her family and her friends.”

How’d she do it? My three favourite suggestions include:

1. Teaching Independence – teaching children how to do things themselves and when they need to ask an adult for help
2. Chores – in Vicki’s words: “We all do them (and nobody gets paid for them) and we compliment each other prodigiously,” AND there’s no correcting or fixing afterwards
3. Play – Vicki is using some of her new-found free time to have fun playing with her children

Click here for the full article to read about some of the other changes Vicki made.

* You may also be interested in:

Helicopter Parents – Are You Stressing Out Your Child
The Difference Between “Helicopter Parenting” and Attachment Parenting
Play is the Thing

"Connected Parenting advises us not just how to parent, but—far more important—who to be as parents. The therapeutic methods suggested by Jennifer Kolari are based not on simple-minded behavioural solutions, but on building warm, nurturing relationships with our children, with insight and compassion not only for their little flaws, but also for our own larger ones."
—Gabor Maté, M.D.

"A must read for parents, educators, and any other adults who want to connect in a deeply caring and positive way with the children in their lives."
—Barbara Coloroso