Hi Mansi, this resonated with me - my daughter is now 32 and we are really close. Well done for giving your daughter what you missed and breaking that intergenerational pattern 🙂 Penn x
Thank you so much for reading—and for sharing that, Penn. It means a lot to hear from someone farther along the journey. Sometimes in the daily chaos of parenting, I wonder if these intentional choices really do create lasting bonds. I’m doing my best to offer my daughter what I once longed for, and your response feel like both validation and encouragement. This, to me, is confirmation that breaking these patterns can lead to enduring closeness across decades, not just childhood.
Hi Mansi, in the midst of it, I did not think of the future, only of not repeating the past and of trying to give my daughter what she needed. We had some ups and downs in the messiness of my past and in her forming her sense of herself separate from me. But I was always there for her to come back to, not holding her needs against her. And I was delighted and am so grateful for the bond that grew and continues between us. My daughter remembers her childhood as a happy one and that warms my heart more than I can say! I guess we can’t know the outcome of our intentions, but we can hope … I hope you and your daughter have many years of closeness through life’s ups and downs 🙂 Penn x
Oh to have a happy childhood. Now THAT is a testament to amazing parenting. Thank you for sharing, Penn.
My friends used to joke that I’d probably end up in the dorm when my daughter goes to college because of how attached she was to me—physically—when in preschool.
My husband worried she’d never sleep in her own bed. Those moments seemed to stretch for so long for others when we were in the thick of toddlerhood, but I always treasured them because I knew she would find her own footing from a place of self-confidence and a deep, deep knowledge that she is loved.
She is blossoming into such a wise, empathetic, self-sufficient and confident individual that I marvel sometimes at how my “attachment” parenting hasn’t been detrimental…but given her a strong foundation.
She knows she can come to me for everything, but that she is also strong enough to “be” her own home.
Again, thank you, for sharing your own experiences of offering a different path than the one you inherited and for validating my choices.
Hi Mansi, this resonated with me - my daughter is now 32 and we are really close. Well done for giving your daughter what you missed and breaking that intergenerational pattern 🙂 Penn x
Thank you so much for reading—and for sharing that, Penn. It means a lot to hear from someone farther along the journey. Sometimes in the daily chaos of parenting, I wonder if these intentional choices really do create lasting bonds. I’m doing my best to offer my daughter what I once longed for, and your response feel like both validation and encouragement. This, to me, is confirmation that breaking these patterns can lead to enduring closeness across decades, not just childhood.
Hi Mansi, in the midst of it, I did not think of the future, only of not repeating the past and of trying to give my daughter what she needed. We had some ups and downs in the messiness of my past and in her forming her sense of herself separate from me. But I was always there for her to come back to, not holding her needs against her. And I was delighted and am so grateful for the bond that grew and continues between us. My daughter remembers her childhood as a happy one and that warms my heart more than I can say! I guess we can’t know the outcome of our intentions, but we can hope … I hope you and your daughter have many years of closeness through life’s ups and downs 🙂 Penn x
Oh to have a happy childhood. Now THAT is a testament to amazing parenting. Thank you for sharing, Penn.
My friends used to joke that I’d probably end up in the dorm when my daughter goes to college because of how attached she was to me—physically—when in preschool.
My husband worried she’d never sleep in her own bed. Those moments seemed to stretch for so long for others when we were in the thick of toddlerhood, but I always treasured them because I knew she would find her own footing from a place of self-confidence and a deep, deep knowledge that she is loved.
She is blossoming into such a wise, empathetic, self-sufficient and confident individual that I marvel sometimes at how my “attachment” parenting hasn’t been detrimental…but given her a strong foundation.
She knows she can come to me for everything, but that she is also strong enough to “be” her own home.
Again, thank you, for sharing your own experiences of offering a different path than the one you inherited and for validating my choices.