You know how they say that marriage is hard work and that you can’t just give up on it after a few bumps in the road? Well, that same theory applies to parenting… it’s also hard work, and possibly even harder than trying to work on a marriage. As a parent, your ultimate goal is to raise happy, healthy kids that will grow up to be decent human beings, right, but even in your strongest efforts to raise your kids the “right way,” you’re going stumble and quickly realize that there is no “right way” to raise your child.

No parent is perfect. It’s taken parents years of trial and error to get raising their child down pact… and even that’s not fool-proof. It wasn’t until recently that these “good parenting” styles and techniques came into play. According to the Toddler’s Den, the evolution of parenting has drastically changed. In the beginnings of time, the idea of good parenting was the basics… it was simply making sure your child was fed, healthy, and had a roof over their head. Today’s standards of good parenting involve things like:

• Good manners
• Respectful
• Responsible
• Groomed well
• Going to school and making good grades

Now, that’s not saying that all of those things aren’t necessary to raise a child because they’re very important… that’s just to show how drastic a makeover parenting has received over the centuries. But although the standards of parenting have evolved, it has certainly evolved for the better. It’s important to now that you’re not going to be the perfect parent but you’re going to be the closest thing to it for your child… but you also need to be prepared for some of the bumps along the way. Take a look at some of the biggest challenges parents face when trying to raise your kids the right way.

Parenting Challenge 1: Finding the Right Balance Between Work and Home Life

This particular challenge is one of the hardest for parents. You’re trying to be there for your child to raise them but you also have to work to contribute to the family’s income. This is also the challenge that comes with tons of guilt for parents too because if you focus on one area, you feel as though you’re neglecting the other area. Well, who says you can’t have the best of both worlds?

One of the biggest regrets that parents have or feel tons of guilt about is being so reliant upon daycare services. They just have this guilt about dropping their kids off at a location while they go to work. But one option that parents seem to forget about is the option to hire a nanny for childcare services, especially if you’re a work-from-home mother that can’t be distracted but prefer your child be at home with you while you’re there.

Parenting Challenge 2: Getting Your Child to Spend More Time Outdoors

We live in a digital world these days and the idea of getting your child to spend more time outdoors is going to seem ridiculous to a young person, today. But you can prevent that from ever happening to your child if you start them out while they’re small, to like the outdoors, they’ll continue to love it as they grow bigger and older. You can build a treehouse with them, go camping, and even start a garden with them.

The biggest thing to know about raising kids in this digital age is to help them embrace the new technologies because it’s going to help them learn but while they’re embracing technology, you also want to help them realize the importance of all things natural as well.

Parenting Challenge 3: Overcoming the Fear of Telling Your Child No

As parents, you never want to be known as the “mean parent” but sometimes you have to wear that hat in order to make sure your child has a safe childhood. Now, being the so-called mean parent doesn’t mean that you’re actually mean to your child, it just means that you have no problem with not giving them what they want all the time.

All parents, of course, want their kids to like them not only as a  parent but also as a person too but if you want your child to respect you as their parent, you have to discipline them. Not doing so is how children become “spoiled,” as some people would say. There’s nothing wrong with wanting your child to like you but they need to first see you as their parent and authority figure so they know the boundaries they have with you and know which lines not to cross.