Back when I found his first video, I was looking for teen parents who could talk about the experience for our award winning web series, 9ine, and I was immediately impressed with the way this young father spoke of the importance of parenting. But I was also curious to ask him about more than just what it was to have a baby son.

I contacted Riley and asked him what the past few years of his life have been like. He’s finished high school, he works two jobs, and he is still present for every step of his son’s life. He made this video in response, and it’s just in time for father’s day.

This video talks about teen parenting, and leaves us with the message that it’s not the end of the world if you have a child when you’re young, it just means your world got bigger, more complicated, and filled with moments both exhausting and wonderful.

Happy Father’s Day to all teen dads out there. Remember, your child needs you in their life. And thank you, Riley. Keep up the great work.

An exerpt:

“Divorce Is Hard for Everyone
It might sound simple, but it’s not easy for a husband and wife to decide to end a marriage. Often they spend a long time trying to solve problems before deciding to divorce. But sometimes they just can’t fix the problems and decide that a divorce is the best solution. Change is a natural part of life, but when it happens to your family, it is sometimes really hard to deal with.

Sometimes both parents want to divorce, and sometimes one wants to and the other one doesn’t. Usually, both parents are disappointed that their marriage can’t last, even if one wants a divorce — and to live apart — more than the other.”

That’s pretty important for kids, who are used to being the center of the universe, to remember. And it’s important for parents to remember that to a kid, the announcement of a divorce can feel like your parents are trying to ruin your life.

We recommend this website as a great resource, and if your family is dealing with a divorce right now, read the rest of this guide and pass it on to anyone you feel it would help.

As my son approached his first birthday, he was very active. It felt as though the day after he learned to walk, he started to run. He was always getting into things and pushing limits. A lot of his behaviors were typical for kids his age, but when he started going to preschool, we realized that he was much more active than other kids his age. He was so energetic, in fact, we were asked to find a new school for him because his teachers just could not keep up with him.
His dad and I started to wonder if we were terrible parents and causing him to act this way. We read parenting books and attended classes. We talked to other parents. Most parents did not have children who behaved this way. But we began to meet parents who did, and we knew they were not bad parents either. In fact, they too were looking for help.
We first found help through the state sponsored Child Find Program. They meet with you and your child to help assess different areas of your child’s development and provide intervention services if needed, all at no cost. My son was found to have a social developmental delay and was able to attend a full day preschool program with wonderful teachers who understood kids like him and made him feel welcome. It was the first time he felt comfortable away from me and I was so happy to know that there were people who cared, and who were genuinely happy to see him every day.
Last year he was diagnosed with severe AD/HD and a possible mood or autism spectrum disorder. He is still much more active than his peers, but he continues to receive free special education services through his school to help him cope with being back in a regular school. If it had not been for the early intervention he received, he would very likely have a much more difficult time in school than he is having now.
If you suspect that your child acts differently than other children their age, even though they may not look different, your child may be suffering from a developmental delay that can be aided by free public services. The earlier interventions are provided for many of these children, the better their outcome in school and life can be.

Child Find is a free program available throughout the United States. For information on the program, please visit http://www.childfindidea.org/
For help finding your local Child Find office, you can visit any public elementary school or library for information.

Real American Family talked to Kelly Brown, a school-based Licensed Professional Counselor, to get advice on how parents can tell their children they are divorcing.

Real American Family: How important is it to plan and think through how to have this conversation with your child?

Kelly Brown: You have to remember that telling your child you are getting separated or divorced is only one in a series of events and changes that will have a long-lasting impact on your child’s life. For example, the child may start living in two households, then one or both of their parents may start dating and may remarry, and so on. You want to cooperate as much as possible with your ex-spouse from the very beginning so that your child will have the best chances of adjusting and being happy in the long term. Think of your child’s needs first and try to put your anger toward your spouse aside.

Real American Family: What should the parents do before the meeting?

Kelly Brown: The parents should talk about what they plan on saying and not saying to their child when they first break the news. They should make plans for both of them to be present when having this conversation with their child, if possible. Plan on explaining, in general terms, why this is happening. You should also tell your child what will be changing, for example, if a parent is moving out and if the child will be going back and forth from one house to the other. You may need to repeat some of this information later since your child may not take it all in. Give your child a chance to ask questions.

Real American Family: Are there any key messages that parents should provide to their child when breaking the news about the divorce?

Kelly Brown: Children, especially young children, need to feel safe and that their basic needs will be met. Statements such as, “We will always be your mom and dad” and “We will always love you” are very important to a child in this situation and should be repeated over several days and weeks. They should also be told that it’s not their fault that their parents are divorcing.

Real American Family: Are there certain things that parents should not do or say?

Kelly Brown: The most important thing is that both parents stay calm and not start pointing fingers or placing blame. You want to show your child that both of you will be working together as parents. This will help reassure your child so he or she feels less anxious.

Real American Family: Are there any books that you recommend for parents?

Kelly Brown: Yes, there is a great book that I recommend for all of my clients in this situation. It is “Cooperative Parenting and Divorce: A Parent Guide to Effective Co-Parenting.” It includes helpful tips and exercises to put your child first while going through this difficult situation. You can look for it at your public library.

Real American Family: Can you recommend any good books for young children?

Kelly Brown: My favorite book that I use with elementary age children is “Dinosaurs Divorce: A Guide for Changing Families.” It can help kids talk about their own thoughts and feelings related to divorce.

Real American Family: Thank you so much!

Kelly Brown: You’re very welcome.

Kelly Brown, M.A., is a school-based licensed professional counselor in North Carolina. She provides individual therapy to students in grades K through 12 and their parents.

Through all of this, if you have one or more kids and you are trying to navigate through a sad, frustrating process, it can be easy to forget that you need to be strong enough for the whole family. On this episode, we address getting a divorce. We aren’t adding “the right way” to the end of that, because what’s right for every family will be different. But we hope that, with a healthy dose of humor, and a lot of links to resources, we can help you tackle a few of the aspects of your divorce.

Don’t forget to do your taxes at MyFreeTaxes.com

It doesn’t have to be, though.

One Economy Corporation (the organization that runs this site) has many programs in communities and online, and one of the sites we run is MyFreeTaxes.com. In order to raise awareness for the site, and raise awareness about filing taxes, we give you a very special episode.

Check back with our site throughout tax season for more tax related posters, and if you make less than $57,000, use MyFreeTaxes.com to file. Enjoy the video!

This episode of Real American Family was possibly the hardest to write so far for all of us. Mental illnesses aren’t funny at all, and when our children are hurting in any way, our instinct is to fix it. With mental illness we have to come to terms with not being able to fix it. But we also need to know that we can help our children live with a mental illness, and we can become a stronger family because of it.

We pushed some boundaries in this episode. We made ourselves a little bit nervous. We also made ourselves laugh, and did our best to include information that we thought would be helpful to parents; and if there is anything I have learned in my life it is that I have to laugh at the toughest stuff, because that’s one way to show it that I can be even tougher.

If you or a member of your family is living with a mental illness, please, don’t be ashamed or feel lost. Use the tools on www.thebeehive.org to find help. Talk to each other. Talk to professionals. Talk to other people in the same situation. This episode alone won’t change your life, but I hope that it can help you in some way, even if that way is just a smile or a laugh.