This Mother’s Day, We Asked 15 Kids How to Be a Good Parent

Mother’s Day comes but once a year and while, yes, it’s a holiday that’s rife with wisdom-infused cards, we thought it would be much more fun to ask our little ones to share their personalized advice for mom ahead of the big day. So, without further ado, here’s your kid-approved guide to being a great parent, courtesy of our sons and daughters. (Spoiler alert: Screen time limits are out and cuddling is in.)

1. “Don’t let dad buy you stupid presents and take a nap if you want to.” — Lillian, 11

 2. “Take more breaks and play Harry Styles and have a dance party.” — Katharine, 7

 3. “Let your kids watch TV, but not so much that their face turns yellow.” — George, 8

 4. “Give us lots and lots of cuddles and kisses and kindness and cuddle with us in a blanket fort and let us pick the movie.” — Shiloh, 6

 5. “Give us $20 and go to Disneyland.” — Luke, 4

 6. “Make banana pancakes for breakfast...and ice cream EVERY day!” — August, 3

 7. “You should be more fun because you are very normal and always wait to do something fun ‘after I finish this’ and ‘after I finish that.’” — CC, 5

 8. “Make it so you can spend all day and night with me and so I don’t need to go to school.” — Thijs, 7

 9. “You should have more fun and play more with your kids!” — Declan, 8

 10. “Loving you and hug me and cook stuff for me… and that’s what I love about a good mommy. And also, mommy helps me and kisses me if I have a boo boo… and sometimes lets me do Hudson!” — Basem, 4

 11. “You always say yes even when you don’t want to say yes, but maybe sometimes even if you feel bad, it’s OK to say no. Don’t feel bad about that, we’ll understand.” — Hazel, 7

 12. “Just do it and get through it!” — Ruby, 9

 13. “Make the kids cook for you so you can relax!” — Lucy, 10

 14. “Moms shouldn’t be like, ‘Get off your screens now!’ They should be like, ‘OK, let’s put down our screens for a bit.’ They could be a little bit nicer about it.” — Isaiah, 8

 15. “You need more massages. That would help.” — Noah, 4