1. Prioritize: If you want to be a happy parent, you have to prioritize your life. You may be super-parent, but if you aren't, then typically juggling kids, home, and work can be difficult. One of the three tend to get left undone on occasion. So, determine what things are going to be a priority to you, and what things aren't. For example, maybe you can't live without a clean kitchen, but letting the laundry pile up is no big deal. There are going to be times with the lines of those priorities seem blurry. So, firm them up right now so that you can be the kind of parent who knows what is going to matter most to them, and how they are going to accomplish everything, because they know what they won't accomplish. The stress of having too much on your plate often leads to you dropping the ball on everything.

2. Pick your battles: If you want to be a happy parent you have to pick your battles with your kids. This does not mean start a fight a drop it part way through, it means determine what fights you are willing to start, and which you are going to forget about. For example, it might extremely important to you that your child dresses modestly, so when they push, you might have to push back. However, if they want to skimp on eating vegetables, you may not want to waste energy forcing them to stay at the table until their plate is empty. You determine what fights you want, and which are just not worth it.

3. Take breaks: Part of having a good relationship with anyone, including, and especially the parent child relationship is knowing when to have a break. No matter how much you love your children, sometimes you really need to get away and have fun for yourself without anyone needing anything from you. Be a better parent by giving yourself time to be more than a parent. Everyone has to have a personal identity, and as a parent you should take the time to identify yours, and work on it. The more it grows, the better chance you have at being happy inside the role of a parent. So, once a week take a break by getting out without your kids. Each day take some time for yourself, do one thing you enjoy. Anytime you feel overwhelmed or stressed by your parenting responsibilities, take the time to do something for yourself as well as your kids.