Hi Michael... =============== Forgive me once again. I'm yoinking another Article From you....er...and...a marshmallow. =============== By all means - help yourself! ... And if you wait 20 minutes, you can have TWO marshmallows. LOL L

Hi Deb; ======================================= Some parents feel that by giving their children carte blache they are compensating for what they went without in their youth... If parents step up to the plate early enough in their childrens lives and teach then even a modicum of self dicipline, most children will develop into responsible adults. ======================================= Years ago, when my daughter was small, I used to be a "safe home" for latch key kids. If their parents weren't home, they could come to my place. I had kids from all walks of life. I saw a lot of that in people that grew up poor and succeeded as adults. They try to give their kids everything they didn't have, and end up with spoiled rotten little monsters on their hands. At the same time, I've seen a lot of really bad attitude out of kids from low income homes. It's almost like they have their parents' sour and bitter "life done me wrong" attitudes already. You're right, though - it boils down to parents stepping up to the plate and teaching self discipline right from day one. I saw some good parents in all socio-economic groups... though not nearly enough in any one of them. lol : ) L

Hi Linda, I couldn't agree with you more, about not having enough good parents in any socio-economic group. But all parents, no matter their backgrounds, want their children to have a better life than they did. And there lies the rub. Instead of teaching children values they give them things to compensate for what they didn't have. And they are not teaching the children anything about personal responsibility. I think now a days some parents equate money with character. If you have money you automatically have character. Not the case! Character has to be built from the ground up. And it doesn't doesn't matter what income level you come from, you can still teach good character. Anybody can have a baby, that's the easy part the next eighteen years are when it gets dicey. Again just a thought. Your Good Friend Deborah

Hi Deborah, You said, "But all parents, no matter their backgrounds, want their children to have a better life than they did. And there lies the rub. True, But what parents have to think about...What we want is for them to not have to struggle. Giving them anything they want does not achieve this. Teaching them the "value of a dollar" is what will do that. My son was convinced by his father that he never had anything to worry about. If he didn't finish school that was ok. (because he owned a business that would some day be his....needless to say we are no longer married). I remind my son to look at what his father has. how he struggles and how hard he has to work to get by. Hopefully one day I'll convince him to "go for" a better way of life. Still working on him. My daughter....well, she'll stretch a dollar farther than I can! lol. She asked me yesterday why life has to be sooo confusing....That gave me the opportunity to tell her it does not have to be. And what she should do different than me. "Save and buy, not buy and pay". You know what I mean....credit. At any rate...She will go to a 4 year college...she will have a better life than I do. At 13 she "understands" life is what we make of it. And she "knows" why, when I say NO. Because her future is at stake. That is how we give them more than what we had. By "teaching" them how to have a better life when they grow up. Not by "giving" them more than we had growing up. Just my opinion, Angela

Hi.. ====== But what parents have to think about...What we want is for them to not have to struggle. Giving them anything they want does not achieve this. Teaching them the "value of a dollar" is what will do that. ====== Angela, you are an incredible woman. Your post impressed the heck out of me. You're right. As parents, we need to teach our children values - the value of a dollar, the value of time... the value of self discipline, the value of honesty and integrity, and so on and so on. Parenting is not so much about disciplining as teaching self discipline. : ) Linda