Read or listen to The Mountain is You by Brianna Wiest.


17, 21



Repeat after me: “I am beautiful I am loved I am safe I am free. I don’t need to be like them I just need to be like me.”


7, 8, 9, 13, 16



YouTube Randy Pauch The Last Lecture. Watch together.


14



Actions have consequences- so does inaction. Avoiding a problem or decision is not an effective solution.


18



Default to "nice guy." Meaning it should require something significant for you NOT to be nice. Give people the benefit of the doubt. Cut them (and yourself) some slack. Life is hard. We're all in this together.


12



Never make a decision from a place of hopelessness.


14, 16, 21



There is a cost and a duty to everything we own. Rachel Maddow


16



Set up a 529 plan. Virginia has a great plan if you don't want to do too much research https://www.savingforcollege.com/


birth-age 3



We all want to be liked. But consider what you’re willing to *not* be liked for: If things like kindness and loyalty and being genuinely yourself *cost* you friends, is that a bad thing? Were they really friends then? Try not to do or say anything simply out of a desire to be liked.


11, 13, 16, 21



Anything you wear on purpose is fashion.


14, 19, 21



Come and go in peace.


12, 15, 21



Let decency be like a religion to you. Practice it …but don’t preach it.


14



“But what is grief if not love preserving?” - Unknown


18



Always know where the main water shut-off is in your house.


18



Theme this year: Self Control (Repeat every year until age 99)


6



Look into "OK Go" videos.


7-14



Go for walks together as a family before or after dinner. Sometimes we go for distance, sometimes we call them "safaris" and look for as many living creatures as we can find.


4



Brennan Manning lectures and books.


19



Institute a “leave by” time instead of a curfew. That way they won’t panic / speed if something out of their control happens to make them late. “Leave Riley’s house by 10pm.”


13



Stay fit. Try to increase fitness every year in some way: Strength, flexibility, endurance, or a specific sport or practice. Never take your body for granted.


14, 20



Home is where people love you.


21



Institute a “Wall of Fame” for accomplishments and victories, big and small. AND a “Wall of Shame” for minor infractions such as not changing the toilet paper roll, etc. We have to be willing to put ourselves on the wall of shame too - and that’s the lesson: We all make mistakes but we own up to them, fix them if possible and learn from them always. Also good fun. Start our with actual paper version but transition to a shared iCloud album to post wall of shame pics once they are old enough for phones. Maybe even continue through adulthood if they “shame” themselves!


5-15, 18, 21



Try house music for focus. Spotify “uplifting trance” playlists. Better than Adderall by a mile.


12, 13, 16



Do feel like you’re where you’re supposed to be?


19, 21



Frustrated with school or work? It bothers you because you care or you hurt. That’s human.


14



Keep stuff on hand for guests. Be ready to be a good host / hostess at any moment.


16-21



1

My biggest regret is wasting my energy on people who didn’t think much of me. You can’t make someone love you. It’s a mystery what brings people together. You didn’t do anything wrong, you just need to let go and spend your light on people who bask in it.


17



The next world is perfect and permanent. This world is neither, so save yourself the stress of trying to make things perfect (house, job, body, relationships, bank account, etc.) Embrace the impermanence by cherishing the good times. Know that the bad times won’t last. Remember that you are loved very much, and that God will shower you with the grace you need to handle whatever this imperfect life throws at you.


21



Explain what “On my honor” means.


8