Preparing Kids (And Ourselves!) For Summer Independence

From day camps to sleep-away camps, playdates with new friends to sleepovers with grandparents, summer vacation can be a great time for your child to hone their independence skills. But it can be scary, too. Sometimes a health issue, disability or allergy can make our kids seem especially vulnerable. Sometimes we’re just not sure they’re ready to take that next significant step in self-sufficiency. So how do we balance guarding them from harm with encouraging their growth?

In this special episode of The Mom Hour, we’ll talk about the tools you can use to help everyone feel ready for summer plans and the big adjustments that come along with the season. Meagan and Sarah share stories about times our kids seemed especially vulnerable, how those fears or nerves showed up in our kids (and us!), what we did to feel calm and confident, and how we plan for major milestones with kids who are content to stay tucked under our wings – or the ones we’d like to keep there longer than they want to stay.

LINKS MENTIONED:

• For more resources about bee stings, check out our sponsor 
• BeeAware Allergy
• Sarah has found the books The Gift of Failure by Jessica Lahey and How to Raise an Adult by Julie Lythcott-Haims very motivating to encourage kids to get outside their comfort zones. 
• Sarah heard Martha Beck talking about brain science on Glennon Doyle’s podcast We Can Do Hard Things
• Read our Contributor Joanne’s blog post, “This Is Too Hard!”: How I’m Showing My Kids The Importance Of Doing Hard Things

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