3 Important Things to Think About as a Parent*

Parenting is hard. That’s the first thing that always comes to mind when I’m asked about it. Hard but rewarding. For me, one of the hardest parts is thinking about the “what ifs“, I swear my life feels like a constant health and safety analysis. Before I had Little Miss and it was only just me I used to do things without thinking of consequences, and I definitely had a wild patch in my early 20s. Becoming a mother, and a single mother at that encouraged me to start considering the future and be careful with my money. Of course I’m still a little reckless, we do holiday a lot and I don’t really save but we’re making amazing memories, that counts for something?

Today’s post is a little hard hitting, I’m going to be talking about 3 important things I’ve had to think about, in case the worst happens. I always feel a little light headed and incredibly adult, but part of my job as a mother is to ensure a comfortable future for my daughter, this is just as important as ensure I keep her safe and healthy, and help her grow into a wonderful person.

Online Safety
One of the horrible subjects you don’t want to think about, but you have no choice as a parent these days is online safety. At the moment LM has no access to the Internet. I’m careful about sharing surnames, where we live and what we’re doing, I’ve got 16+ years of Internet experience under my belt (and heck, yes I’ve done crazy things like meet people offline, even before the days of Facetime.) I know it won’t be long until LM asks for a mobile phone, some kids in her year already have them, or at least a tablet with the Internet on. She’ll want to watch YouTube and with the recent exposure of some big YouTube names grooming young fans it’s worrying. It’s an important conversation to have with your child when they start using the net. And it’s not just grooming, there is cyber bullying and inappropriate content out there to think about. The best thing to do as the parent is research and have open and frank discussions with your child.

Paying for Higher Education/Setting Up in Adult Hood
I really hate the idea of my Little Miss growing up, but these past 6 years have flown by. It doesn’t seem like 5 minutes since she was a new baby needing me to do everything for her then this summer she learned to ride a bike and tie her shoe laces! It blows my mind how independent she’s becoming and soon she won’t even be needing me. It’s definitely a bitter pill to swallow. It’s made me think about how I can provide for her future into adulthood. When I turned 21 my parents had a policy that matured giving me some money to set up home and I also used it to go to New York twice (very responsible) but it helped make my transition into adulthood bearable. I’m definitely hoping to do something similar for LM so when she turns 18 or 21 she has a little cash flow to help her get started.

Insurance
Finally, it’s important for everyone, not just parents, to think about insurance. Buying and paying for insurance is vital to ensure you’re covered in case anything goes wrong. Insurance executive Kim Wilhelm said it’s not just insurance, it’s peace of mind and as I parent, I personally couldn’t agree more. You can insure pretty much every aspect of your life and becoming a parent is what really opened my eyes to this. Before having Little Miss I never took our insurance. Not for my house and it’s contents, not for my life and not even when I went on holiday. Now I see insurance as a good investment, the first I got was life, then home and even my cat is insured.  This article from award-winning broker Reassured Ltd explains in detail the importance of having life insurance protection. However until recently one thing I didn’t insure, but now realise how much of a mistake it was, is Little Miss.

It’s horrible to think about especially when getting my own life insurance was a no brainer, but it’s important to consider for a second the worst case scenario with a child. I want to know that if LM got since I could take time off work to care for her without worrying about money. It’s sad that everything in life revolves around money but it’s important to be practical.

See, parenting is hard, and not just in the no sleep while trying to teach your kid all the skills they need to survive in the world and ensuring they’re happy as well as being emotionally stimulated. It’s a lot to juggle, a lot to think about but it’s worth it. Raising Little Miss has been the best part of my life, even the hard stuff.