Ask your emotions “why” three times.


14, 16, 21



It’s fine, great, to be thrifty. But please don’t be cheap. Hard-earned money should neither be squandered or hoarded. Enjoy your success! But save more than you’re comfortable with. It’s like my running coach used to say: Keep going until you feel like you’re gonna poop your pants, then push yourself to do another mile. Point is, it should hurt a little.


16, 21



Do the work. No short-cuts.


14



“The beginning parts are always the scariest.” -Jackson Daily (kid reporter on Today Show.)


10, 12, 16



Guard your health and fitness as if it were your most valuable possession. (It is.)


14, 17, 21



The $@!#% never ends. Dealing with the $@!#% IS your job. If you think you’ll ever reach a “post-$@!#%” stage in your life, you’re wrong.


14, 19



“Tell me the story of your day.” (Works better than “how was your day?”


5, 6, 10



Brennan Manning lectures and books.


19



For parties, collect cell phones and put them in a basket. "Parent calls only. Enjoy the people here! They're pretty awesome!"


12



Sometimes I think the best way to take care of them is to teach them to take care of others: Littler kids, sick or disabled, those who’ve been left out.


5-7, 1Infant-12



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


18



It’s your civic duty to vote (including midterms!) Be an informed voter.


16, 18



Adjust your expectations but never lower your standards.


12, 15, 18, 21



Visit Aunt Janet in Morehead City for Seafood Festival in October


2-99



Sometimes the job will require you to do menial tasks. Do them enthusiastically because nothing is “beneath you.” If the good Lord can wash people’s feet, you can make coffee at the office. Get over yourself.


16, 21



Birds of a feather flock together


14



Newborn babies don’t know their tummy hurst because they have to pass gas. They don’t know how to fall asleep when they’re tired. We have to provide all that context and help them learn about themselves. And we have to be patient with them. It’s hard work being a baby!


0, 1, 2



Go to Montgomery County Fair


5-14



Typically, brains aren’t mature until about age 25. ADHD brains take longer


17, 21



Consensual sex requires no persuasion, convincing or begging.


14, 17



In the words of Bear Grylls... '”Survival can be summed up in three words - never give up. That's the heart of it really. Just keep trying.”


14, 17, 21



Give him a copy of The Secret Lives of Great Composers by Elizabeth Lunday.


14



Don’t worry about finding your person. Focus on finding your people.


15, 21



Book recommendation: “Star Fish” by Lisa Fipps.


11



Addiction is when you can’t get through the day without something. It’s not that you need to feel high, it’s that you can’t live without what gets you high. Humans are all wired to be at risk for addiction


13, 15, 18, 20



Spend time with people you admire. Real-life acquaintances, biographies and documentaries, and fictional characters in novels, plays and movies.


13, 15, 18, 21



On grief: CS Lewis said somewhere that it isn’t just that his friend died, it’s that the part of him that only his friend could bring out would never be brought out again.


17, 21



Go easy on the cologne, perfume, scented lotions, etc. People shouldn't be able to smell your perfume a mile away, only up close. Also, it's generally not appropriate for work.


17



Have them sort change, and eventually to count it. It teaches them to gather things that are alike, it's an introduction to money and it occupies them for 15 minutes! Just make sure they're old enough to be past the point of putting coins in their mouth.


3-5



Ask yourself "What kind of man do I want to be?"


14-21