Changing the World Starts At Home

     If you had to summarize the mission of us as warrior parents what does it boil down to? We all want to raise good kids. It’s as simple as that, but 'good' is such a relative term during childhood. Being a 'good' baby involves sleeping through the night and burping easily after every feeding. These behaviors don't necessarily translate to being a 'good' child or teen. Burping no longer is enough to constitute good behavior the older we get because expectations change. The expectations of us as parent's and society's in general fluctuate as our child matures throughout childhood. The transition moves beyond taking care of self, to considering others and contributing to the effort as a whole. As a child grows they're expected to become a good citizen.

     Now when we consider citizenship proudly repping the red, white, and blue during July, having a flag out front, or exercising your power to vote may come to mind. While those are extremely awesome and patriotic that does not cover the wealth of character it takes to truly be a good citizen. Citizenship goes far beyond laws, obedience, and patriotism. Being a good citizen is made up of a million tiny, thoughtful actions. Good citizens stand out for making where ever they go a better place. They stand up against bullies, they're welcoming neighbors, they thank our service men and women, they honor their heritage of freedom, they cooperate with others, and they serve with a smile. They genuinely want to make the world around them a better place. Imagine if that was the focus of more and more people today. Warrior parents you have the power to make the future that much better by raising strong warriors!

     Bottom line we know that teaching your Little Warrior a concept as complex and selfless as good citizenship is no small task. Especially when you're caught up in the day to day of parenting with a never ending to do list. We know it's hard to predict what the next 20 minutes of parenting will be like, let alone what kind of adult your little one will grow to be in the next 20 years. No worries Warrior parents! We take changing the world and helping raise your warrior very seriously. So we've been working on these principles during our Warrior virtue chats and we have a simple action plan to get you going at home.

     To be a good citizen you have to be responsible, respectful, and resourceful. While the article below goes into greater detail on these 3 powerful R's of citizenship we know all of these traits come from within the home. So how can we incorporate this in our day to day?

     Every child, no matter the age, should be taught to be a good 'citizen of the household'. After all this is their home, and their family. They should take pride in that and want to continually improve it. The easiest way to involve your child in being a contributing member of the family is to have them take on chores. It truly is win win. Sometime's having the extra little hand frees up time you would have spent doing it all yourself. Plus an atmosphere of helping hands and service is a great early step towards creating responsible citizens. Remember those 3 R's of citizenship... here is how these characteristics tie into chores and help us shape good future citizens of our amazing country

Responsible:

 When we as parent's always swoop in and fix everything wrong in a child's world or do everything for them we are robbing them of the important drive of responsibility. When a child doesn't pick up their toys, they consequently get broken. We can either re-buy their suddenly declared favorite toy or allow life to teach our growing warrior a very important lesson. You are responsible for not only yourself, but also your belongings. That puts value in the good things we have. As your warrior starts to value the hard work required to maintain and keep good things in our life they are on the path to becoming a more responsible citizen.

Respectful:

As a child matures and sees everything it takes to care for their home or have a cooked meal it helps them appreciate all they have. Once they begin to recognize all you do and all they have, a deeper appreciation and respect for what they've been given begins to grow. They won't grow up feeling as entitled or like the world must treat them a certain way. And as they appreciate you more and more, as they become less spoiled, their respect for you and also others will grow. This leads to that kind of open-hearted, neighborly respect and collaboration that marks great citizenship.

Resourceful: 
Everyone is different when it comes to chores, allowances and such. Growing up we had to do some work without pay. That's just how it was. Not everything you do earns you something monetary and that is a fact of life. You have to put work into every single relationship you have. That isn't always pleasant, but that unpaid labor does have worth. That truly is a great lesson many younger generations are missing. So when it comes to chores, if some household work is done without pay, you would be amazed at how resourceful children become when it comes to earning some extra pocket cash. Let them do some work for free Warrior parents! It builds character and a drive that so many now a days are missing.

Who knew that raising strong warriors and great citizens also meant 

your house is a little cleaner?! Talk about a win! 

Don't forget parenting warriors: We believe in you.

Now go set some goals and crush it!!!

Raising Good Citizens

#RaiseAWarrior