I’ve been doing this parent thing for two days short of twelve years. I wish I’d gotten the manual when my oldest was born, but alas, I must not have been in the right place at the right time. My husband and I have been, well, no other way to put it, winging it for the most part.
Along the way, though, we’ve both learned to take and seek help and advice whenever and as often as needed. Recently, Beech Acres Parenting Center, reached out to me and asked me if I needed any help being a better parent. Ummmm. Duh? and YES PLEASE!
Here’s something else I’ve learned. None of us are the perfect parent. We occasionally get it right, and we should give ourselves secret pats on the back of encouragement, but for most days, the water can be somewhat murky and what may work for one child, more than likely won’t work for another.
We’re so very fortunate in Cincinnati to have an organization such as Beech Acres to offer support and help when needed. There are classes on parenting, classes on building a stronger marriage, classes for how to help a child handle divorce, help for grandparents who find themselves as parents — the list goes on. Be sure to check all of the offerings on their website, and follow them on Facebook and Twitter for news and updates.
This was my first direct experience with Beech Acres, and although there were a few hiccups with scheduling us (which I blame on summer vacations and the fact that I didn’t reach out through the standard established channels), my husband and I are so pleased with our one on one parent coaching session.
I won’t go into the details of our session, but will share with you, that the information given to our particular parenting need wasn’t cookie cutter feeling — the advice was relative; we were given concrete action steps to implement; and we were validated for what we are trying to do as parents to two very different children.
My husband and I walked away feeling like we could make positive steps to improve some things that clearly need improvement, and that if we discovered along the way that we couldn’t, or weren’t quite getting it right, it was okay. And not only that it was okay, but that Beech Acres would be there to help nudge us back down a better parenting path.
As we send our kids back to school, now is the perfect time for parents to head to school as well! There’s some great offerings with Beech Acres this fall for you to add some additional skills to your repertoire in the sometimes murky world of parenthood.
Disclaimer: My husband and I attended a free parent coaching session. Opinions shared in this are completely mine. When not blogging for Family Friendly Cincinnati, you can find me on my own blog at Little World After All.
