Listen to albums. Two of my favorites came out the very same month: Cowboy Carter by Beyoncé and The Tortured Poets Department by Taylor Swift.


12



Send thank you acknowledgemnt for gifts received


1-21



Watch the local news together.


12



In professional setting: Limit one exclamation point per email, if any. Definitely no emoticons.


19



It’s very difficult to pull off sarcasm in written form. It does not translate.


15



“There is no such thing as a “bad kid” - just angry, hurt, tired, scared, confused, impulsive ones expressing their feelings


7, 12



Read Big Magic by Liz Gilbert. Re-read every 5-10 years.


19, 21



Book “Rainbow Relatives” is a great resource to be able to kindly, accurately and sensitively answer their questions about LGBTQ families.


6



Third party candidates destroyed decades worth of progress we would have made on the environment. Without that bozo Ralph Nader we would have gotten Gore. Your vote matters. My philosophy is vote with your heart in the primaries but with your head in the election. No candidate is perfect. No party is perfect.


17, 18



open your own business


20



Some relationships (or jobs) are f*cked, and cannot be unf*cked. Release them and move on.


21



Consent is more than the literal


13, 14, 15, 16, 21



If a girl is drunk she cannot consent. Don’t even think about hooking up when your partner is intoxicated. It’s immoral and illegal. No excuses. No exceptions. . Break this law and you will be (rightfully) charged with rape and you will get sent to prison.


15



Book: “victory. Stand!” By Tommie Smith


14



Listen to the radio stations they listen to. Know their favorite songs and artists.


12



“I can be changed by what happens to me. But I refuse to be reduced by it.” - Maya Angelou


12, 15, 21



Never say anything behind someone's back that you wouldn't say to their face.


11, 14, 18



At the hospital? Always confirm your name and date of birth and why you’re there.


16



take advantage of the bike trail. Bike places as a family.


11



I read this quote in a blog when my oldest was little: "You will never be more needed or more loved than you are right now. You will long for the days when your kids were little." So true. These years are exhausting, but hang in there. You are their sun and moon.


2



Check out teen life coach Coaching with Will.


13



Sometimes there’s nothing else to do with the pain except to use it to build a new life.


13. 17, 19, 21



Paradoxical Commandments by Kent Keith.


19



“If you can’t figure something out, figure out how to figure it out.” - Paul Graham


18



Soothe a newborn: Swaddle , shushing noise, swing, side/stomach position, suck on a binkie. Read The Happiest Baby on the Block by Dr. Harvey Karp (or watch the video.) It' a life-saver.


Infant



“Life is good when you are happy, but much better when others are happy because of you.” -Pope Francis Endeavor to make people happy by the work you do, by the way you treat them, by your contributions to the world. But don’t ever try to make someone happy by changing yourself.


13, 17



In 2024 there’s a medical test to screen for cancer that involves collecting one’s poo and sending it off to the lab. They just called me to tell me they canceled my test due to a clerical error on the order. I was so mad. The thought of doing that poo test again was freaking me out. Why didn’t the flunky who handles the specimens call before they pitched it? Then it dawned on me: it’s someone’s *job* to process poo specimens. Probably hundreds a day. It’s okay they didn’t stop to call and straighten out my test.perspective!!


17, 21



To my boys: Personally I believe the boy / man should pay when out on a date. Always be prepared to pay - but sometimes a girl / woman wants to pay or split the check. Don’t push back on that. Make sure she knows it would be your pleasure to pay because you want to show her a good time and spoil her, but that you understand that paying a check doesn’t put her in your debt. Instead, your motto should be “If you’re comfortable, I’m comfortable.” And that goes for a lot of categories including sex/ physical contact. And to my girls: Always be prepared to pay, offer to pay often. It’s a sad fact that some men feel they’re owed something if they spring for dinner. On a date you are never obligated to do or say anything you don’t want to. Never.


16, 21



Affection is to be shared, never taken.


14



Make "place value cups" as a rainy day activity and way to teach big numbers. (google, youtube or pinterest)


6-7