When it comes to parenting, I am aware that there are two extremes that are both very unhelpful for children. You can be the helicopter parent who tries to do everything for the kid and hover around, ready to assist whenever there’s the slightest issue… or you can be a parent that’s so hands off as to be either uncaring or authoritarian. I’ve tried hard to strike a balance that encourages kids to grow while still being available to teach, encourage, and nurture.

Part of this approach, especially as of late, is learning the value in letting a kid struggle with a problem. Man, it’s hard as a dad not to instantly jump in and fix what they’re doing wrong or tell them the instant solution. But they’re not going to really learn having me do everything for them. So I’ll tell them the steps to making breakfast and then…