1.07 Parenting Skills

1. My baby started walking and talking earlier than other babies. I know he will grow up to be a smart adolescent.
A. This is one thing I have learned to accept as a parent myself and that is that every child is different. With that being said, I really don’t believe that being able to talk and walk sooner than their peers have much to do with how smart your child will become. It seems silly to determine someone’s future intelligence by what they do and don’t do as an infant. I also know personally that some who are advance at an early age can regress and have autism.
2. My great aunt has been diagnosed with terminal cancer, and she acts as if nothing is wrong. This must be unusual for a person in her situation.
A. It doesn’t help anyone to

be unhappy about this certain situation. People who know that their time has almost come seem to want to make the best out of the time that they have left. Little things mean that much more to them.
3. I've just moved out of my parents' house. I wonder if their marriage will suffer now that I am gone.
A. It is natural for kids to worry about their parents when they move. It will take some getting used to as you have been with them for the last 18 years of your life. However, their marriage is not your responsibility. I’m sure they wouldn’t want their children to worry about such matters.
4. My son just turned 13, and I'm worried about how our relationship is going to change because adolescence is always a difficult time for parents and children. Teenagers just seem destined to be difficult.
A. I don’t have teenagers yet, but it seems better to remember who is in charge. I don’t necessarily agree that teenagers are destined to be difficult. However, they can be extremely challenging. The thing that must be done is that you raise them to the best of your ability. You guide them and send them out in the world where they will make their own decisions at some point and hope you raised them to be good people and make the right decisions.