What’s the best parenting advice you’ve ever received?
Advice, tips and tricks started rolling in the minute I announced I was pregnant with my daughter. Everyone from my grandmother to my co-worker’s second cousin once removed to the cashier at the local Target store seemed to have some bit of useful child-rearing information they simply had to share.
When I was seven months pregnant my friends from work threw me a huge baby shower complete with games, scrapbooking stations and live entertainment. As part of the shower festivities each guest was instructed to jot down her favorite piece of parenting advice. The shower hostess then collected the pearls of wisdom and carefully placed them in pre-designed scrapbook pages. Right before the shower ended I was presented with a beautiful scrapbook filled with words of parenting wisdom.
Some of it came in quite handy post labor. Other parts, not so much.
Receiving parenting advice from others (even complete strangers) is part of the package deal when you’re pregnant… and often even after you’ve given birth. The fact of the matter is there’s no shortage of people willing to provide little gems of parenting advice to anyone about to have their world rocked by little people.
Fortunately, it’s up to you to decide whether or not to follow the well-meaning advice others force feed… I mean… loving share… with you.
I have a few personal gems I could pass along, but none of them are as funny as the ones featured below. The following hilarious parenting advice was sent to me a while back. I think these anecdotes by famous dads were featured in an Esquire magazine piece. They are funny, touching, and can be appreciated by parents regardless of whether you have one kid or 18:
“My mother used to say to me when I was a kid: ‘I’d throw myself in front of a truck for you.’ Over and over again. I didn’t know what the hell she was talking about. ‘What do you mean, you want to throw… you’ll die.’ I say that to my kids now.”— Gene Simmons, Rock Star
“If you want your kids to listen to you, don’t yell at them. Whisper. Make them lean in. My kids taught me that.” — Mario Batali, Chef
“When guys come over to date my daughter, I’m going to tell them, ‘I want you to go out and have a very good time. If you abuse her in any way, I’m going to kill your mother and father, cut your back open, pull out your spine, and leave you in a wheelchair so you can think about what you did for the rest of your life. Now, go out and have a good time!’ “ — Conrad Dobler, Former NFL Offensive Lineman
What’s the best parenting advice you’ve ever received?
Related Articles:
Do You Discipline Your Child in Public?
Has Becoming a Parent Made You a Better Person?