8 Signs That You’re Definitely a Lawnmower Parent

You're getting ready in the morning and you rush over when your child says, "Can you put my shoes on for me, I'm tired?" Classic lawnmower parenting is ensuring your child never has to struggle, even at home. If you're doing all of your kids' chores for them, picking things up that they drop, or giving in when they ask you to get their coat from the closet, you're enabling them to the max — and they might even be manipulating you because they know they can.

At a parent-teacher conference, you're much more likely to blame their teachers for not teaching your child correctly or thoroughly, rather than turning to your child and evaluating whether they're doing everything they can to succeed in school.

Raise your hand if you're calling the school to ask they be put in an Honours class rather than regular because it'll "boost their confidence," or you're assuring their karate instructor that yes, they actually do deserve their next belt despite not meeting the requirements for it. Although you're not "mowing down" potential struggles and adversities for your kids in these cases, for the sake of boosting their self-esteem and confidence, you could actually be setting them up for failures in situations they're ill-equipped for.

Maybe you think your child is too shy to order what they want in a restaurant, so you say, "He'll have the grilled cheese." Or perhaps you're one to call their soccer coach to ask them why they're not playing much or what they need to do to be a first string player on the team. In both cases, you're the one handling their business for them, when they could be learning how to tackle these scenarios themselves — especially if they're teens getting ready to go off to college in a few years.

Whether it's your child's nightly homework or a big project that's due, you rush to help them even when you have no idea what they're actually doing. Instead of telling your child to check their textbooks, do some research, and refer to their class notes, you'd rather help them out — aka mostly do it for them — to make sure their work is "perfect."