Currently reading “A Man Called Ove” and he’s a cantankerous old prick who knows how to do everything except be nice to people.  At least, that’s what I’ve read so far, and he always grumbles about what yhe world is coming to because of what people can’t do. I am going to be Ove when I’m old, older – complaining about everyone and everything but hopefully still able to do my own stuff. I also want my boys to be able to do their own stuff, so that’s partly why I let them do their own stuff now, including getting up to and into shenanigans, also partly because I’m lazy but it’s helpful that I’m not helicoptering…
Things that my kids can do include but are not limited to:
* hammering – still working on the drilling
* limited lawn mowing
* problem-solving behaviours
* problem-creating behaviours
* hardening each other up for the real world, read – fighting
* get radical air on their bikes sans training wheels
* limited contextual use of swears

Okay, they don’t appear too useful on paper, but I’m proud that they can do shit as well as forage without parental supervision. I suppose the next step will be to start them on electrical apprenticeships before they burn the house down or singe all the hair from their bodies with socket experiments. In that vein, Husband and I feel like it’s pretty safe for them (specifically nearly 9yo) to watch The Martian so they can start sciencing the shit out of things a bit more. And if they can grow their own potatoes afterwards, it’s one more thing I can add to the list.