Share your parenting words of wisdom with Fairy Non Bio - £300 voucher to be won NOW CLOSED

[JustineBMumsnet]

Parenting - it's one hell of a journey and most of us have the sick-stained clothes, under-eye bags and laughter lines to show for it. But if you were going to distil down your experiences to one essential must-know fact, what would it be? Fairy Non Bio would like you to share your words of parenting wisdom for anyone embarking on this journey.

So, what are the essential things that you feel every parent needs to know? Maybe it's to enjoy the all-too fleeting moments of parenting joy, or know that you can never take too many photos. Perhaps you've had a moment of clarity when it comes to dealing with tantrums (toddler or teenage) or there are things you'd do very differently if you could have the time all over again.

Share your essential words of wisdom below to be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 Love2Shop voucher.

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

Happy parents = happy children

Get out and about as much as you can. Children seem to be calmer when they've had fresh air and a run around.
It's also good for the parents.

Do things that you enjoy doing. This is your life too and you don't have to sacrifice yourself totally.

Trust your own instincts when they are poorly, don't let doctors tell you otherwise. It can mean the difference between life and death

Oh gosh, you get so much "advice" as a new parent, and I remember my very vocal, very opinionated sister in law opening a conversation whilst I was pregnant with "Now let me give you this piece of parenting advice...." my heart dropped and I waited for her words of wisdom

Her advice?

"Ignore everyone else and go with your instincts. No one knows your baby better than you."

It was the best piece of advice ever. I often used it to ignore her further advice once DS had arrived!

My son has special needs and her insistence that I would know him best and know his needs better than anyone else was so so powerful to me battling to get his ASD diagnosed. It saw me through years of being his advocate, battling for the help he needed.

It will all come out in the wash.

Sometimes, good enough is good enough.

"Do as I say and not as I do"!

When your child has been naughty don't ask them why over and over as it stresses them out they can never normally verbalise what they did it for and in the end it teaches them to lie which they learn to do anyway but if you keep on at them they get really good at it (know my brother was brilliant fibber)
We all make mistakes so just sign it off as a bad day and start afresh

As soon as they put that baby in your arms your whole world changes instantly - life is better with little people around. But it's a steep learning curve and will be the most challenging thing you ever do - with no guide or instruction manual. Trust yourself - this job will make you bigger, braver and stronger and generally more brilliant than you've ever been!

Carry wipes in your bag forevermore - and always make sure they are fed & watered. Hungry children = grumpy children.

I love the wild imagination my almost 4 year old has. So when he asks me about dragons or some other mythical creature or scenario, instead of telling him they are not real, I like to indulge his imagination cause after all, they are not kids for long.

Some brilliant memories I have from my childhood were the amazing (but totally unreal) stories my Uncle used to tell me. The fairies that lived in the flower bed in my garden and a stone he gave me that he said was a dragons tooth are just a couple I remember.

It is okay to hold your baby! You will not be fashioning any rods for your back by picking him up all the time. Actially, the more you pick him up, the more contented, secure and independent he will feel longer term!

Yes it's hard work. But it's also the best thing ever. Other parents frightened my dp with horror stories when I was pregnant, and forgot to mention how wonderful some aspects of it would be...

When they're little, 3 things matter - sleeping, eating, and cuddles

Plan and make time for you and your other half to do things you enjoy with each other, apart from bringing up your kids of course! Your kids want you to be happy ish folk too

Baby wipes solve most problems.

Haha I see I'm not alone with this piece of parenting wisdom!!

I'm a big fan of planning ahead to avoid the stress from them (and then you), like having the drinks ready before they ask, handing them an opened yogurt, and if you can't plan ahead...cheat!

Learn the power of 'and' rather than 'but' - if you praise your children and add a but, you take away the encouragement

Listen to advice, nod and smile and then do what you bloody well like!

They won't remember the money spent. Just who was there and the laughter.

let them be children and grow slowly. Do not push them too quickly

Keep a diary - the sleep deprivation just wipes out memories!

Pick your battles, somethings are just not worth fighting over! If they want an extra biscuit and it means the school run goes smoothly just give in!

The reality of life is, although it may not seem like it at the time, your children will not suffer if you cannot afford to buy them everything they want (or even if you can afford it, choose not to). What they will remember more are the memories you have created by spending time with them and the confidence they develop when they know they are loved unreservedly.

When they are small, it is important to get enough sleep. So, when they have a morning/afternoon nap, you have one too. Don't use the time to catch up on jobs, they can be done later !!!!!

Never look a gift horse in the mouth.......take every bit of help that is offered!

My all time tip is to sleep when baby sleeps and don't worry about housework. Rope family in to help with those things.