by Haylee Hackenberg (follow)

Your Stories (100)      Parenting Tips (83)     

I don’t want my children to have an ok life. I want it to be extraordinary.

I’m a reader. A researcher. I always have been. If I’m going to a restaurant, I look up the menu. If I’m buying a new appliance, I trawl the online reviews. We live in the information age, no matter the question, the answer is literally at our fingertips.

Why then, when it comes to raising our children (no doubt the most important task we will ever undertake as parents), is it considered OTT or extreme to do the same?


When my daughter started daycare, I spent a lot of time trying to find the right fit for her and our family. I did a lot of research and asked a lot of questions. Over and over again though, the answer to my question would come back the same, “She’ll be fine.”





You get the idea.

No doubt those three words, usually delivered flippantly and with the occasional eye-roll, were an attempt to reassure me. I did not feel reassured. I felt frustrated. “Fine” is a term I would accept for the weather. Maybe even a meal (actually probably not a meal). But certainly not for the care of my children or any other aspect of their lives.

Now don’t get me wrong, we definitely have days as a family where “fine” is all we manage. In fact, we probably have a couple of days like that a week. On the whole though, ”fine” as an aspiration just doesn’t seem like enough. I don’t want my children to have an ok life. I want it to be extraordinary.

So I do the research. I talk to experts. I ask questions. I use my instincts. I suffer the eye rolls. If that makes me extreme, then I am totally “fine” with that.

#Your Stories
#Parenting Tips

Read No, But Thank You
Read I Don't Want To Be A Mum Today
Read What I Wish I Knew Before There Were Two
Read Putting Yourself First
Read I Never Met You Fellow Mum, But I Had Your Back
Read Chasing The Joy: Lessons From A 3 Year Old
Read Three Is A Magic Number
Read The Seven Sins Of Motherhood
Read To The Mum In The Bathroom: You Are Not Alone
Read A Letter To My Daughter: You Don't Have To Be A Good Girl
Read Dear Daughter: Don’t Be Careful, Be Courageous

I like this Article - 3

ID: 74941