describe your parenting style?

[sisteeesmama]

Anyone want to lay out their parenting style?
I would love to see how others describe their personal philosophies and ideals if anyone wants to share!
If the thread takes off I will share mine, too

[micah_mae_]

Instinctual? That's what I usually say if someone asks.

[Encinalien]

I guess our parenting style is primitive, almost animalistic in a good way. It's all about providing the optimal growing conditions for our little toddler, consistent comfortable temperature in the house, healthy meals at regular hours with frequent fresh healthy snacks. Excersize inside when the weather's bad and trips to the park or walking instead of driving for physical activity, but with a focus on peacefulness and calmness, active, yet calm. I say animal because I often feel like a mother dog with a puppy. I'm with him all the time. It's physical, like he climbs on me and sits on me a hovers around me. He just hangs out and I teach him stuff, kind of like a mother dog.
Personal philosophy? I want to keep giving him as much as he can carry away with him.

[Cascadian]

Um....postmodern? A mix of attachment parenting, continuum concept, dashes of conservatism, with an overall liberal slant...

Heh...

[Thalia the Muse]

I guess I'd say "adaptable." We do what seems to work for our kid and our family!

[funkymamajoy]

I describe myself as my kids' mom. I just try to parent them according to their needs.

[LuxPerpetua]

I have no idea what word or phrase would describe it, actually. We are fully AP and have been since birth (or before, really). We believe that AP is about meeting a child's needs, not a checklist. We do not believe in either rewards or punishments and practice gentle discipline. We are also Waldorf-inspired but definitely not purists, nor do we aspire to be so. We homeschool from a Waldorf perspective, so things like rhythms, family traditions, nature, and making things are a HUGE part of our lives. We try to live comfortably but minimally. We try to buy hand-made or second-hand when possible. We believe that play is the magical work of childhood but that children should also be assimilated into the family work of household tasks when they show interest. Likewise, parents are to be models for children to know how to "be human." We are fully practicing Christians, so our faith is interwoven throughout our lives--from praying as a family, to the stories we read, to the holidays we celebrate, to giving to charity, etc. We believe in living life 3-dimensionally, so no TV for us. We strive to fill our lives with a quilt of experiences. Our ideal is to be a reflection of Christ both within our family and toward those we meet.

[KristaDJ]

Instinctual, that sums it up for us

[sewchris2642]

I listened to what each child needed. I never really thought that my parenting had a style. We made decisions that we thought were good at the time. Some of them turned out to be perfect; others, not so much. And some we made simply because they worked for us and were neutral to the kids.

[MadiMamacita]

Go-With-The-Flow.
I guess that could also be called instinctual, child-led, adaptable, need-meeting..
i take very seriously the idea of "take what works for you and leave the rest"

[major_mama11]

Laid-back

[Litcrit]

Passive Parenting.

We're lazy. The kid learns to take initiative. She asks for more clothes if she's cold. She eats when she's hungry (as we also do) - when we sit for lunch she usually wants to eat with us. If not, she can eat later. She invents games and asks us to play - we join. She wants to read a book - we do. It started with breastfeeding on demand and sort of spread into everything.

[Holiztic]

Here are some of our influences:

Attachment Parenting
Waldorf Lifestyle/Home
Continuum Concept
Weston A Price/Traditional Foods
Ayurveda and other forms of natural healing
Non-consumerism/minimalism
Blend of conservative lifestyle with liberal political/religious leaning
Homeschoooling

[LilyGrace]

I'm......I don't know. I'd have to say full of routine, focused on independence/gradual responsibility, natural/logical consequences, and very laid back. Can that all go together? I'm trying to raise an adult.

I try to make sure the family runs smooth no matter what else is going on. It is very nice to know that wherever we are in the world, the same rules apply, the same routines happen. I try to make it the one constant thing in our lives. I know right now that with The Kid (10) two states away, he doesn't have to be told what to to. I know that when he is with family for a few hours here and there, he takes initiative and does what needs to be done before he goes off to play. It's a very nice feeling.

I'm a lazy parent. I teach The Kid to do minor tasks and let them belong to him. I take a lot of inspiration from The Gilbreths (just adapted for 1, not 12!). We only have 4 rules in our home: be safe, respectful, moral, and legal. It's an easy checklist to go through before a decision is made. I don't care about the small things or have to have everything go past me to give my ok. It's just not important. Kid wants to go play outside in 40 degree weather? Fine. He knows where his jacket is. Wants to roll up in the living room carpet and pretend he's a burrito? Whatever. He knows how to roll it back out when he's done.

[cappuccinosmom]

Mixed.

I don't know that there's a term for our style.

In discipline, we are authoritative (not authoritarian) but there's a good bit of grace-based-discipline in there.

In lifestyle, we are right in the middle-of-the road, not extreme on either the natural or the mainstream end.

In parenting habits, I lean towards ap with extended breastfeeding, cosleeping, babywearing, etc. But there is also gentle sleep training, they have their own beds, etc.

[Litcrit]

Originally Posted by LilyGrace

I'm a lazy parent. I teach The Kid to do minor tasks and let them belong to him. I take a lot of inspiration from The Gilbreths (just adapted for 1, not 12!). We only have 4 rules in our home: be safe, respectful, moral, and legal. It's an easy checklist to go through before a decision is made. I don't care about the small things or have to have everything go past me to give my ok. It's just not important. Kid wants to go play outside in 40 degree weather? Fine. He knows where his jacket is. Wants to roll up in the living room carpet and pretend he's a burrito? Whatever. He knows how to roll it back out when he's done.

Love it!

[Llyra]

Originally Posted by LilyGrace

I'm......I don't know. I'd have to say full of routine, focused on independence/gradual responsibility, natural/logical consequences, and very laid back. Can that all go together? I'm trying to raise an adult.

I try to make sure the family runs smooth no matter what else is going on. It is very nice to know that wherever we are in the world, the same rules apply, the same routines happen. I try to make it the one constant thing in our lives. I know right now that with The Kid (10) two states away, he doesn't have to be told what to to. I know that when he is with family for a few hours here and there, he takes initiative and does what needs to be done before he goes off to play. It's a very nice feeling.

I'm a lazy parent. I teach The Kid to do minor tasks and let them belong to him. I take a lot of inspiration from The Gilbreths (just adapted for 1, not 12!). We only have 4 rules in our home: be safe, respectful, moral, and legal. It's an easy checklist to go through before a decision is made. I don't care about the small things or have to have everything go past me to give my ok. It's just not important. Kid wants to go play outside in 40 degree weather? Fine. He knows where his jacket is. Wants to roll up in the living room carpet and pretend he's a burrito? Whatever. He knows how to roll it back out when he's done.

This sounds a lot like me, only I have three. We're structured, with a lot of routine. Lots of freedom but also more responsibilities than many kids their age. Not particularly child-centered. Authoritative, I think, and definitely comfortable with more tradition hierarchies in the family, and with firmer boundaries between parent and child. My babies were APed, DD1 very much so, and the twins as much as I could with multiples, but we moved away from the "natural" styles as they get older, I guess, into more of a middle-of-the road approach.

[Drummer's Wife]

Originally Posted by Litcrit

Passive Parenting.

We're lazy. The kid learns to take initiative. She asks for more clothes if she's cold. She eats when she's hungry (as we also do) - when we sit for lunch she usually wants to eat with us. If not, she can eat later. She invents games and asks us to play - we join. She wants to read a book - we do. It started with breastfeeding on demand and sort of spread into everything.

This sounds like me (but with four kids )

[MamaEli]

Very middle of the road...not 100% anything. I try to give my kids lots of experiences to learn from--travel, museums, parks, etc. We love them and give lots of hugs and kisses, lots of one on one time with each. Storybooks. All physical and emotional needs are provided for. We are very involved in our church, and we try to be like Christ in our home. We also want them to be involved in their cultural background, so there is a lot of talk about that. We have rules, we have routine, we do discipine our children in many different ways. We think it's important for them to realize that the house DOES NOT revolve around them, that we are a team together but mom and dad are in charge. So, I don't know if this has a name, if anything, traditional child raising.

[holyhelianthus]

I use "Life-led". To me it means we have welcomed our children into our lives and life in general and are here to help them navigate life until they are ready to do so on their own. Essentially we feel we are teaching them to be independent (not islands but independent) from the get go.