Rate Yourself As a Parent On a Scale of 1 to 10

What do you think you are? A, 5? An, 8? Really, you think you're a 10? Well look at you there, Parent Of The Year! Me, I probably started as a 4. Well, if we're being honest, I probably started as a... 2... No, a 3. Final answer.

I didn't know how to love my son when he was born. He was just, well, a baby. I was really excited for him to be born. And then... being a father just took up so much TIME! But as he developed a way of just staring straight through me, I fell in love with him. And then when he started to giggle, it was over. But I've talked to other dads and moms who had to wait much longer until they felt a bond with their child. I think it's a totally normal thing, as long as you get to a point where you are able to provide a loving and nurturing environment for your kid to grow up in. Cover the basics and the rest will grow. If you build it they will come. Being a parent is hard. Being a parent to a teenager can sometimes feel impossible. If you're at your wit's end and don't know what to do about the trouble your teen is going through, give Wingate Wilderness Therapy a call at 1-800-560-1599.

OK But Do You Have A Teenager?

As a matter of fact, I do. So now how would I rate myself? Some days I feel like I'm doing alright, let's say a 7 (who am I kidding?). Other days, not so much. A 1. What's less than a 1 but higher than a zero?

Being the parent of a teenager can sometimes feel like a thankless task. This kid that I fell in love with all those years ago is now becoming... someone else. He doesn't seem to care what I think about anything. I used to be cool, now I'm anything but. He's absolutely vicious to his mother, who is the sweetest person you've ever met. Sometimes I actually wonder if aliens really did replace my son with some other jerk. I'm not kidding.

OK, all these numbers are fun, but really, I have only 2 more numbers for parents. The first one is this: you can't quantify your skill as a parent. It changes every day and there are so many factors that go into what makes you a good parent. Parenting is a collaboration between the other parent and the child as well. Figuring out a way to coexist is what makes it work. OK, and since you insist on continuing to rate yourself, the second thing is this:

What one simple thing can you do today to go from a 3 to a 4? Or from a 6 to a 7?

I don't have the answer, but you do, if you really think about it. What is something simple that is missing? How are you spending your time that you could do something different to make something better? What are you not asking about? What are you not showing up for? Every parent has something like that.

So do what it takes to become a better parent, 1 step at a time.