What Do You Teach Your Children?

Besides manners and handling money, one of the most important things we taught our children was skills that they have used over and over again as they live their own lives.

I taught them to do laundry and clean the house. They did this for many years when they were in high school and I worked. Both of my sons can cook also. One is a great baker which he learned in school.

Hubby taught them many things that they still use to maintain their cars. They do their own brakes and have replaced rotors. They change their own oil and replace other parts as they are needed. They are now in their forties and have learned how to do other automotive repairs as needed.

Whenever Hubby was doing any kind of maintenance or repairs in the house he had them help even if it was just watching although he had them fetch a lot.

They know how to paint and they have helped put up wallpaper. They know how to prepare a wall for painting by filling the holes, cracks, or rough areas with putty and sanding when it is dry. They know how to put up wainscoting.

They helped whenever Hubby was building anything. When Hubby put in a huge patio they helped. If he was building something out of wood they helped. Just a couple of years ago, Hubby helped one son add a huge pantry to their kitchen area.
 
They helped put in real hard wood floors in our large dining room and living room of one of our homes.

Whenever Hubby was fixing a plumbing issue, they helped and learned. They helped put in new wax seals around a toilet in one of our bathrooms. 


They watched him do electrical like putting in new lights.


They learned how to mow a lawn, put in landscaping and weed. They learned how to seal a driveway. They learned how to snow blow the driveway. One son worked a summer job putting in landscaping. It was hard dirty work but he learned how to do it. The other son took a job with a local alarm system installer and learned the trade. Those skills have helped them today.

They were taught how to take care of our inground pool whether it was cleaning it, chlorinating it, or closing it for the winter.

They can or still do these things today. These skills have saved them a fortune in money over the years that they have been married.  


Do you want your children to grow up and have to hire someone to do everything? Plumbers, electricians, construction people, landscaping and lawn mowing people, painters, driveway people, etc. are all very expensive to hire.


Hubby’s father did not teach him how to do all of these things. He learned by research and that was back before the internet. Now the internet makes it easier because almost everything you want to do has a video on YouTube. 


So teach your children how to do these things so that they can save their money for other important things. It is one of the best things you can do for them as they are growing up.