https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Thu, 16 Apr 2026 15:37:34 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-99122 Thu, 22 Mar 2012 12:21:00 +0000 BananaPancakes 99122@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yes. My father died in a car accident when I was 5 and my mother was a single mom for a long time. We lived paycheck to paycheck for years. I would never wish that on anyone's children. </p> <p>That said, I wish I could give my kids some of the things that I had growing up. We lived on a farm so that we raised the majority of our own meat and vegetables. Since my mom worked so much, my older sister and I learned to take care of a household (and farm) really young. I pride myself in how independent and self sufficient I was so young. I'm hoping we can instill as much of this mentality as we can, but it'll be more difficult since we have more. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-99094 Thu, 22 Mar 2012 12:04:12 +0000 volksgirl64 99094@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think so. We plan to have 3 max vs. my family's 5 kids and both of us will work full time so we'll be able to provide more, pay for college and take vacations and things. BUT, the flipside is that my mom only worked PT so she was available more. DH is a teacher so at least summers will be good for them.<br /> I can already tell you that we own a better house than I grew up in so we're off to a good start. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-99093 Thu, 22 Mar 2012 12:03:37 +0000 tequiero21 99093@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>i'm with you. i think my parents gave us a good life. but i'll be mostly a stay at home mom, so i'll be there for my kids to help them with their homework and such that my parents weren't able to do with me. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-99088 Thu, 22 Mar 2012 12:00:07 +0000 Baby Boy Mom 99088@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Probably not. My parents gave me a really great childhood! They were a lot more established in their careers when they had kids than DH and I are. But at least at this point I'm able to spend a lot more time with LO as a SAHM than my mom was able to spend with me. Hopefully in the end it will even out. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-99078 Thu, 22 Mar 2012 11:52:50 +0000 MaisyMay 99078@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yes. My parents had their own business and it was definitely the priority. They did their best with my sister and I, but it was hard. We'll be able to focus more on our kids and spending time together on weekends, evenings, etc.</p> <p>Hubs was fortunate to have a stay at home mom growing up, and when his dad lost his job his mom went back to work, so there was always one parent around. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-99060 Thu, 22 Mar 2012 11:31:11 +0000 Mrs. Pen 99060@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It is really hard to gauge. I had a great upbringing. I have five siblings and two parents who love each other immensely. We weren't rich by any means and sadly that meant I couldn't do as much, like I really wanted to take dance, volleyball and tennis but my parents couldn't afford to put us all in sports/extra curricular activities - so that was hard. Having a bigger family too meant little space/privacy in our small-ish house. That is something I'm hoping to provide for my family.<br /> But other than those small nearly-meaningless things, I have no complaints about my childhood. My parents were and still are fantastic.</p> <p>I think the biggest differences I hope to make is that we can take a yearly family vacation, because we never could afford to when I was a kid.</p> <p>I also hope to be able to provide our son with a great education. I was homeschooled but wanted the option of something else since I learn better in a classroom environment. I want to be able to afford a nice school, like Montessori, if I decide not to homeschool my LO.</p> <p>Otherwise, my parents are my role models. I hope to create the same happy, loving and secure environment that my parents made for me.</p> <p>I think it will be comparable. Since I'm not planning on having six kids like my parents, I may be able to provide my LO some things that my parents couldn't. But I would never say that just because we may have more money, we will be raising our LO better. I think money has little to do with it. It obviously plays a part, but my favorite childhood memories have nothing to do with the amount of money we had. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89891 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:19:29 +0000 mrsjazz 89891@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We will be able to offer our LO a better life if our financial situation continues to be the same. We were both raised by single moms and although they were both great--there was something missing for both of us not having our dads around. So, we'll have a two-parent household. Even though we both work full-time, my DH is off in the summers, so he will be home with our child for two months. We're a middle-income family and we'll be able to take our LO on vacations. And we don't plan on having more than two (I'm one of 4), so I think that will help in regards to attention given to our children. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89887 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:18:12 +0000 Boogs 89887@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I hope so! We are both college educated, so I feel that it gives us the ability to keep higher paying jobs. We are also good about saving and not having debt. Not having money stress will hopefully help LO be happy growing up. DH and I also have a MUCH healthier relationship than my parents, so LO will also hopefully grow up in a very happy home with two very involved parents if things continue like they are now. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89882 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:14:26 +0000 regberadaisy 89882@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yes. In the sense that I will be able to spend more time with my kids than my parents did. Take them on more vacations.<br /> But I think in terms of the quality of life it will be equal because I think they did a great job raising me! Instilling certain values, etc </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89878 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:12:57 +0000 BSB 89878@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We hope we will. At the moment, we will. I guess I'll have to see what curve balls life will throw at us. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89688 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:42:27 +0000 heffalump 89688@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Hopefully it will be pretty close. My mom stayed home with me like I do with lo, and my dad owns his own business so he was also around a lot because he set his own hours. So he would come to have lunch with me at school, was always at my recitals, etc and my husband is also a very hands on dad. </p> <p>The big difference is that we don't make as much money so we wont be able to do all of the vacations that I had growing up. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89670 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:37:38 +0000 Andrea 89670@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Not 100% sure if it will be better but I think it will be equivalent or better, no worse. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89639 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:28:45 +0000 Mrs. Pickle 89639@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm not really sure. I know my mom struggled financially for a while. My dad didn't, or at least I couldn't tell, but he worked a lot. I do hope that we'll be able to travel more than I did with my parents. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89611 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:22:04 +0000 ecogirl 89611@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It's so difficult to compare the two. I grew up with wonderful loving parents but we had a very modest blue collar life. They didn't always get to spend as much time with us as they or we wanted to because they were working. </p> <p>I am in a very favorable financial situation and I don't work so those are the biggest differences. So while I guess I can give them more I still feel like I got a lot as a kid. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89570 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:08:13 +0000 Rubies 89570@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I had a good upbringing. I appreciate their strictness now but at the time, I didn't understand why they wouldn't let me do the things my friends were allowed to do. I can probably offer my kids more time than my parents gave me but other than that, I think their opportunities will be the same as mine. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89569 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:08:12 +0000 Witz 89569@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Financially speaking, I hope so... but most likely not. I was raised in a rural area and my parents made pretty good money for where we lived. We didn't live a charmed life, but we never really wanted for anything. They paid for my college and paid for all of my living expenses until I graduated from graduate school. Unfortunately, we live in a higher cost area (and probably always will), and sometimes it seems like we'll never be able to take those great family vacations that I remember from my childhood, and the thought of putting 2-3 kids through college seems impossible at this point. </p> <p>But, my parents divorced when I was 9 and we went through some very rough times, emotionally... I learned so much from that about what *not* to do as a parent, so I am determined to provide a better environment during their middle/high school years than my siblings and I had to endure. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89565 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:04:07 +0000 autumnlove 89565@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I hope so too! My mom was a SAHM until I was in the 3rd grade. After that, she went back to school for her MBA and has been working ever since! I hope I can give my kids the kind of attention I received growing up. She would always find time to do things with us and do her coursework, look perfect, cook healthy meals..I hope I can do the same! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89547 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 18:55:17 +0000 mediagirl 89547@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Nope. My parents gave us a fantastic life. We traveled to different countries and many states, we had everything we needed and lived in a great area. They struggled at times but we never knew. We are going to offer our lo everything we can but it still won't be as great as what I had growing up. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89544 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 18:54:10 +0000 chopsuey 89544@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We had a great upbringing.. I think the two greatest differences are time and money. My mom and dad both had to work. I get to stay home with my LOs. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89537 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 18:51:03 +0000 banana 89537@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I hope so! And we plan on it. But there are some things that even if you try 100% to be a perfect parent, you'll look back and think "Oh, I could've done that better." One thing that I won't be able to give to my kids that my parents gave to me was attention. My mom was a SAHM and she was always home when we finished school. Made us sandwiches and helped us with school projects. My dad had a very flexible job so we did a lot of traveling together as a family. Unfortunately my DH and I both have corporate 9-6 jobs with a few weeks of vacation a year. I'm trying to switch to part-time work so that I can give my kids the same level of attention and time that my parents gave us. Sigh. So hard to give up a certain lifestyle though. :( </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/will-you-be-able-to-offer-your-kids-a-better-life-than-your-parents-were-able-to-offer-you#post-89527 Thu, 08 Mar 2012 18:46:54 +0000 mrbee 89527@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>The biggest difference is that we're able to spend a lot more time with our kids than our parents were able to spend with us. But beyond that, I think our parents did a great job of offering us a great life! So I'm not actually sure how it nets out.</p> <p>How about you? Will you be able to offer your kids a better life than your parents were able to offer you? </p>