I was having a conversation the other day with a friend of mine and we were discussing if children need you more or less as they grow up. Personally I think it is a difficult one to answer. Children need your time when they are pre-school. They like you to play with them, take them wherever you go, they rely on you for entertainment on some level. You are their parent, carer, entertainer, teacher, meal provider, chauffeur, social secretary.

When your children go to school you see them less but they still need you emotionally. They need your time to do homework with them, take them places – you are their ‘taxi driver’ but spend more time with their friends and less time with you. The teenager years replicate this but they have more homework. Then you become their guide, their counsellor, coach too.

No matter what stage of life they are they will need you for stability, guidance and possibly money! For me the jury is out on if they need you more or less. I think they need us more emotionally as they get older but don’t want us around so much. They need and rely on us despite what age they are.

What do you think?