Growing up, I rolled my eyes at half the things my parents insisted on. The endless dinner table conversations. The “we’ll wait until it goes on sale” mentality. The way they’d make us figure things out ourselves instead of just telling us the answer.
Fast forward to now, and I’m doing the exact same things with Greta and Emil.
Not everything from that generation needs to come along for the ride—I’m perfectly happy with my online grocery delivery and family group chat, thanks very much. But there are some principles my boomer parents lived by that I’ve quietly started weaving into our household routines. Not because they’re trendy or Instagram-worthy, but because they actually work.
1. Boredom is a feature, not a bug
Remember being told to “go find something to do”? That was peak boomer parenting, and honestly, it drove me nuts as a kid.
But here’s what I’ve noticed: when Emil complains he’s bored on a Saturday morning, and I resist the urge to immediately suggest an activity or hand him a tablet, something interesting happens. He wanders off. Ten minutes later, he’s built a “car wash” out of kitchen sponges and is running his toy trucks through it.
Greta’s the same way. Give her an empty afternoon with no structured plan, and she’ll emerge with an elaborate art project or a “restaurant” complete with a menu she’s written out in careful print.
My parents understood something we’re all rediscovering now: kids don’t need constant entertainment. The unstructured hours are where creativity lives.
I’m not saying I never help them get started or that screen time doesn’t happen in our house. But I’ve stopped treating boredom like an emergency that requires immediate intervention.
2. Everyone contributes to the household
My mom had a saying: “We all live here, so we all take care of here.” Not revolutionary, but man, did she mean it.
Greta makes her bed every morning before school—not perfectly, but she does it. Emil helps unload the dishwasher (the plastic stuff, obviously). On Sunday mornings, Lukas does his Saturday breakfast thing, and then we all pitch in to reset the house for the week ahead.
Are their contributions tiny compared to what I’m doing? Absolutely. Does Greta sometimes need three reminders about her art supplies left on the table? You bet.
But here’s the thing: I’m not trying to get perfectly folded laundry from a six-year-old. I’m teaching both kids that being part of a family means chipping in, not waiting for someone else to do everything.
My boomer parents never framed chores as punishment or something we’d get paid for. It was just… what you did. And weirdly, that normalcy made it less of a battle. There wasn’t negotiation or debate—this was simply how our household functioned.
Now, when Emil “helps” me sort socks (which mostly means making a pile and declaring himself done), he’s learning that his effort matters. That’s worth the extra five minutes it takes me to actually match them later.
3. We eat together whenever humanly possible
My parents were religious about family dinner. No TV. Everyone at the table. Even when my dad worked late, we’d wait.
I’ll be honest—with my work-from-home schedule and Lukas’s unpredictable meetings, we’re not batting 100% here. But we aim for it, and we hit it more often than not.
Something shifts when you’re all sitting together, even if it’s just twenty minutes. Greta tells us about the “shop” she’s planning to open, complete with her elaborate pricing strategy. Emil announces his cars are “very tired” and need to sleep. Lukas and I actually talk about something other than logistics.
Research backs this up, too. Studies have consistently shown that regular family meals are linked to better academic performance, healthier eating habits, and lower rates of substance abuse and depression in children. That’s not just nostalgia talking—there’s real value in gathering around food.
My shortcuts look different than my mom’s (hello, rotisserie chicken and pre-washed greens), but the principle is the same. We show up for each other. We’re present. Phones stay on the counter.
Some nights it’s chaotic. Emil spills something, or Greta’s mid-meltdown about the “wrong” plate. But we’re there, together, and that matters more than perfect table manners or a home-cooked feast.
4. You save up for what you want
“We’ll see” was code in my house for “probably not, but I’m not saying no right this second.” And if I really wanted something? I saved my allowance.
I remember desperately wanting this specific toy when I was maybe eight. My parents didn’t just buy it. They helped me figure out how much I’d need to save, how long it would take, and whether I still wanted it after waiting two months.
Now I’m doing a version of that with Greta. She’s been eyeing a particular art set for weeks. We talked about it. We looked at the price together. She’s putting aside part of her birthday money and doing a few extra helper tasks to earn the rest.
Will she still want it by the time she has enough? Maybe, maybe not. But she’s learning that you don’t just get everything immediately. You make choices. You wait. You decide what actually matters enough to work toward.
My boomer parents grew up in an era where delayed gratification wasn’t optional, it was just reality. And while I’m grateful we have more flexibility now, I think there’s something lost when kids expect instant access to everything.
Teaching this in an Amazon Prime world takes intentionality. But watching Greta carefully count her money and make decisions about what she really wants? That’s worth the effort.
5. Face-to-face friendships come first
My parents’ social life happened in person. Coffee with neighbors. Friends dropping by unannounced. Actual phone calls where you had to stay near the wall because of the cord.
I’m not about to ban technology from our house—I work online, and staying connected with family across the country matters. But I am intentional about prioritizing real-world connection, especially for the kids.
When Greta has a playdate, the tablets stay put away. When we’re at the park, I try to stay off my phone (most of the time—I’m not perfect). We schedule regular time with their cousins, even though it means coordinating calendars and driving across town.
My parents understood something fundamental: relationships require presence. Not just physical proximity, but actual attention.
So yes, Emil has video called his grandparents. And yes, Greta occasionally watches shows with her cousin who lives two states away. But those are supplements, not substitutes, for the kind of connection that happens when you’re building block towers together or figuring out the rules to a made-up game.
The bottom line
I’m raising kids in a completely different world than the one I grew up in. The tools and challenges aren’t the same. But these principles—the ones my boomer parents lived by without even thinking about them—still hold up.
Not because old ways are automatically better, but because some truths about raising kids are pretty timeless. Structure and contribution matter. Connection matters. Learning to wait and work toward things matters.
