A guide to parenting... from a single guy who doesn't want kids for another 5-10 years :p

Okay, so had a word with Tony and with mam... told her that she can't control every aspect of our lives and she has to let go at some point.

I don't think she's going to take it well, but I'm sick of the woman trying to prevent us making her mistakes. It's natural to want to protect us from pain, but I have felt pain, lot of it recently, and I honestly believe it has made me a stronger and better person. I don't think anybody should be denied that right.

We're going to make our own mistakes, and we'll learn from them, and we'll try to prevent our kids from making those same mistakes. But at the end of the day, they'll be just as likely to make those mistakes and learn from them. We're stronger than our parents think, and they're afraid of that because it makes them feel we no longer need them. Maybe there will be a day when we don't need them, but if they've raised us right there won't be a day when we don't want them.

Follow your instincts, you do know what is best for yourself, and maybe you do know what's best for your children, but that doesn't mean they're going to listen. And when they don't, be there for them, help them recover for the next big mistake, and that way they will likely always come back to you.

Just a thought.