What has raising seven children taught you?

Well. For me, I learned that you stop trying to manage behaviors and instead build relationships into parenting. When you come into parenting when you're a young parent, at first, you tend to be very fixated on your kids to do certain things that you want them to do. And even in the best case scenario that works out, all you're really getting is behavioral compliance. That doesn't mean that they will continue on that when you're not watching. They grow up and they're out living on their own. At worst, what it means is if you're focused on their behaviors, there's going to be a clash, there's going to be a power struggle. But instead, what I learned is to stop focusing on behaviors, kind of monitor the behaviors as an indicator, an expression where your child is outwardly. But mostly just focus on the connection, building trust, being that safe person that your child will want to come to and take direction from. And when you build that rapport, the good behaviors almost automatically flow from that, having to specifically ask for it. In other words, the effective way of parenting actually, ironically, takes less than the ineffective way of parenting.