Healthy Parenting Handbook with Katie Kimball

Today’s teen tidbit is number five, and it gets right to the heart of what’s actually happening in your teen’s brain right now!
Somewhere around ages 11 or 12, kids move from a black and white way of thinking into a world full of gray, nuance, and questions, which is why “because I said so” suddenly stops working. (And honestly, that’s a good thing.) 
In this quick episode, we’ll talk about why teens are wired to push boundaries again, how that’s developmentally healthy, and how we as parents can level up by keeping strong boundaries while inviting conversation, choice, and understanding. I’ll also share why cooking has become one of my favorite safe places to practice all of this, from knowing when it’s okay to bend the rules to understanding when rules exist for a really good reason. 
Let’s dive in. 
Get the parenting video series now at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/teenvids or check out Teens Cook Real Food at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/teenscook

Resources We Mention for Boundaries for Teens
Teens Cook Real Food course
Free 3-part video series on parenting teens intentionally
Teen Tidbit 1 on ownership
Teen Tidbit 2 on agency
Teen Tidbit 3 on overcoming perfectionism
Teen Tidbit 4 on passing on family values
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

In this Teen Tidbit, I share how the kitchen is one of the most powerful places to pass on family values through working side by side toward a common goal. Cooking together naturally opens up conversation and creates opportunities to model what matters most, whether that is serving others, being good stewards of our resources, or choosing real food as part of daily life. 
I talk about how asking teens to cook foods they may not personally enjoy teaches empathy and service, how flexible cooking skills help reduce food waste and stretch a grocery budget, and how making simple meals from whole ingredients builds healthier habits without being overwhelming. 
When teens learn to cook, adapt recipes, and use what they already have, they gain far more than a meal, they absorb the values that shape your family culture and carry them into adulthood.
Get the parenting video series now at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/teenvids or check out Teens Cook Real Food at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/teenscook

Resources We Mention for Passing on Family Values in the Kitchen
Teens Cook Real Food course
Free 3-part video series on parenting teens intentionally
Teen Tidbit 1 on ownership
Teen Tidbit 2 on agency
Teen Tidbit 3 on overcoming perfectionism
Ways to avoid food wasteCream of vegetable soup framework
Chicken stock

Here are some of my favorite baby steps for eating more real food.
Subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss any episodes this week! Apple, Spotify, other options
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

As a continually recovering perfectionist myself, I share why that drive to do everything just right can actually hold kids back from starting, trying, and growing. We’ve all heard “progress over perfection,” but I wanted to explore what that really looks like in everyday life, especially for teenagers who can freeze up when things don’t feel exact or guaranteed.
The kitchen, in my opinion, is one of the best places to practice letting go of perfection. When I filmed Teens Cook Real Food with eight real teens who were mostly beginners, we captured the messy, real-life moments: broken eggs, small cuts, burned food, and lots of learning along the way. I intentionally pushed them to measure like TV chefs, eyeball seasonings, and move faster than felt comfortable, all to help loosen that grip of perfectionism. 
Cooking shows us that food doesn’t need to be flawless to be delicious, and that it’s actually pretty hard to completely mess things up.
When kids can aim for “yummy” instead of “five-star restaurant quality,” they gain confidence, experience, and momentum. If you have a teen whose perfectionist tendencies keep them from trying new things or putting themselves out there, cooking can be a powerful and practical way to help them grow.
Get the parenting video series now at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/teenvids or check out Teens Cook Real Food at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/teenscook
Resources We Mention for Overcoming Perfectionism in the Kitchen
Teens Cook Real Food course
Free 3-part video series on parenting teens intentionally
Teen Tidbit 1 on ownership
Teen Tidbit 2 on agency
Subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss any episodes this week! Apple, Spotify, other options
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

In this Teen Tidbit, I dive into why agency is such a powerful (and often overlooked) developmental need for teenagers. Agency is really the combination of having choices and having the skills to act on those choices, which together give teens real options in life. 
I’ve intentionally woven this into the Teens Cook Real Food course, sometimes in ways that feel a little chaotic, like cooking multiple versions of the same recipe at once to show how flexible cooking really is. 
Even when it feels messy or overwhelming at first, teens are more than capable of cutting through the chaos, following a recipe, and making something delicious. 
More importantly, all those options feed what they crave developmentally: independence and ownership. My encouragement is to look for ways at home to give your teens more agency by pairing choices with real skills, because that combination is what helps them grow into confident, capable adults.
Get in on the free parenting series on parenting teens here: https://raisinghealthyfamilies.com/teenvids
Check out the Teens Cook Real Food eCourse here!

Resources We Mention for Teen Agency
Teens Cook Real Food course
Free 3-part video series on parenting teens intentionally
Teen Tidbit 1 on ownership
What’s it like to be diagnosed with a food allergy as a kid?
Subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss any episodes this week! Apple, Spotify, other options
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

Get in on the free parenting series on parenting teens here: https://raisinghealthyfamilies.com/teenvids
In this Teen Tidbit episode, I share why passing on ownership of health, time, and responsibility to our teens matters so much, especially through teaching real-life skills like cooking. After hearing from a beta test mom whose 13-year-old confidently made pancakes on his own, I explain that ownership has two parts: practical skills (which are easier to teach) and psychological ownership (which takes time and intentional parenting). 
The earlier we involve teens and give them real responsibility, the better prepared they are for adulthood, which is exactly what inspired the Teens Cook Real Food course and the free video series this week!
Check out the Teens Cook Real Food eCourse here!

Resources We Mention for Teaching Teens Ownership
Teens Cook Real Food course
Free 3-part video series on parenting teens intentionally
My episode on Tiny Tidbits 
Identify triggers and treat eczema naturally
Subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss any episodes this week! Apple, Spotify, other options
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!