When you’re in an airplane and those oxygen masks come down, you have to first put on your own mask, before you put the mask on your child. Such a simple and practical point that flows onto parenting in general, but oh – how I need to be reminded so often!

We, as parents need to make sure that we’re doing okay first, before we can help our kids. As parents, the issue of how we socialize our kids is often thought about – but what about us? To grow and flourish as people, parents need friendship and community too.

Friends lift us up and make us more than what we can be. When times are tough, friends remind us that we are treasured; they tell us that our lives are important for their lives.

Although communities may not always be friendly, I think friendship and community are closely related. It is within a community that we find friends. It is within communities and friendships that we share our daily lives. We share those things that make us sing and we share those moments that make us cry. We share the mundane everyday and we share the extraordinary events. In learning that we are a gift for our friends and communities, and that they are also gifts to us; we become more human.

I am thrilled to announce that I am a Fisher-Price Play Ambassador because Fisher-Price understands the importance of parenting communities. Fisher-Price understands that parents run through the whole gamut of dramatic emotions from grief to joy, sometimes within the tiny space of a few seconds! Fisher-Price understands that parents need friends and communities to grow and flourish; so that they can help their children grow and flourish.

I’m partnering with Fisher-Price to share openly about parenting. Over the next few months, I’ll also be hosting some fun Fisher-Price giveaways, just for Lessons Learnt Journal readers, so keep watching this space.

Let’s start some conversations. What or who has helped you grow and flourish?

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The post Parents Need Friends & Communities by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.