"Never do anything that you don't want to do for the rest of your life"

Example............. picking up DH's clothes on the floor, Just DON"T start it, or you'll do it forever!

Best advice lately has been "what others think of you is none of your business".

Don't sweat the small stuff.

Don't eat the yellow snow. Tee hee. (sorry).

Thoughts speak louder than words!

Other's will treat you only as badly as you permit them to.

and,

What you do (or don't do) speaks much louder than what you think. It took me awhile to embrace that one.

Do onto others as you would want them to do onto you!!

My Mom taught me "If you don't have something nice to say, say nothing."

Marry my husband.

***
When I was 18 two guys asked me to marry them.

Bill was a highly charged, charismatic high school peer who was an artist like me. I was head over heels infatuated with him and his dynamic personality.

Mark, was two years older than me and a neighbor I had dated since I was 14. He was a stable, mature, responsible guy. I loved and respected him.

When I was 17, Mark and I broke up after he joined the Navy. I started dating Bill. A year or so later Mark reentered my life just at the time Bill asked me to marry him. Mark asked me to marry him as well and I was really at odds which one pick. So I went to my mother.

In a very non-judgmental talk, Mom gave me the pros and cons of both guys. It was clear to me that Mark was the right choice so at age 20 we got married. That was 36 years ago. Mom died five years later and I'm sorry she isn't around to see how good Mark has been to me.

Jodi-

keep your legs crossed and you won't get pregnant

SamKaren
your resident DJ

From a very smart divorce lawyer: Don't sign a pre-nuptial but, do co-mingle your money.

What goes around comes around

"Be good. If you can't be good, be safe." That from my Mom when I was 20. LOL

Another one from her, "This too shall pass."
Clare

From my Dad: Stand up for what you believe.

To consciously get down on their level and speak very quietly to my children when I am angry with something they have done (or not done). Focus on speaking quietly so I do not raise my voice, yell, or just go into a long rant. It works, makes me conscious of what I say as well as how I say it. Very good tip for working with kids in any setting.

Get an education. A degree in a profession that I can do for life to provide not only for myself but for my family. I cannot predict when hard times will hit and I will have to step up to provide. In turn, I made sure each of my kids earned a degree. Even in this downturn, they are managing well enough from frugality for one and working hard for the other two.

From my Mom - If you want a man's paycheck, you have to do a man's job
From My Grandma - Stay out of Discos and Condominiums

Be nice to the people you pass while moving upward on the ladder of success, because you will meet the same ones on your way back down.

In regard to romance, once you have decided, forge ahead and do not look back.

Men, remember that you are not only marrying the daughter, her mother is part of the package too.

If your personna was infused into another person, could you stand him? If not, make changes, and it is you who best knows what to change.

For those who studied philosophy: If I go into the woods and make a statement and my wife can not hear it, am I still wrong?

When I was bi***ing about my life, Mom said "Don't dwell on the bad things, think of the good things in your life". I did that and it got me out of my funk. Very good advice, I am a more positive person because of it.

From my great aunt, "To thine own self be true."

I can think of all kinds of different thing. I remeber though,my first child and how I would jump up at his very first cry.
My friend who is a mother to several children said,,,in the middle of the night don't jump out of bed at the first cry, sometimes they just like to cry out and go back to sleep. If its a 'change my diaper or I'm starving' cry, don't talk. Go in the room, change the diaper and/or feed,, in the dark if possible, swaddle the child, put them on their side and leave quickly and quietly. That simple advice saved my sanity. I got 10 times more sleep and was a happy mom in the am. As they got older and would wake up to play I did break the rules. I rocked and sang them back to sleep but it worked pretty quickly. They still remember the singing. (I'm not sure if thats good or not)

When I was young and used to worry about what people thought of me, my mother would say, "They probably think nothing. Most people are too worried about themselves to think much about you." (I suppose this is just a variant of, "It's not always about you," but I liked the way Mom phrased it.)

The other great piece of advice is to count your blessings. I try to remember to be grateful for my house, for enough food and clothing, for family and friends, for my relationship with God. It's all too easy to take for granted.

"A place for everything, and everything in its place." ~ From Mom.

"To thine own self, be true." ~ From Grandma

"You'll only regret the things you didn't do." ~ From my own life experiences.

Don't do anything that you would be ashamed for your mother and grandmother to find out about.

When in doubt, don't!

When I was young, Mom would wake me up early on a Saturday morning(9 a.m.!!) to do my homework and to help out with chores. When I moaned and groaned about not being able to sleep in every Saturday, Mom would say, "My child! You are going to have to get up every day and work at something for the rest of your life so it is just as well to get used to it now!"

And, of course, "This, too, shall pass".

And from my dad, "Family, Duty, and Honour."

Don't marry him. LOL!

My mom told me if you see company coming in the driveway and your house is a mess, grab and broom and pretend you are in the middle of cleaning. lol

dody

Carpe diem!

Count your blessings not your troubles.

Sorry, dummy me, I had to look up the meaning of Carpe diem. Hope you don't mind if I post it here: (I did edit it down)

Carpe diem is a phrase from a Latin poem by Horace. It is popularly translated as "seize the day". Horace uses the word in the sense of "enjoy, make use of, seize."

Meaning of the phrase:
In Horace, the phrase is part of the longer Carpe diem quam minimum credula postero  "seize the day and place no trust in tomorrow", and the ode says that the future is unknowable.

Compare with the Biblical "eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die", with emphasis on making the most of current opportunities.

dody

So many things. Go with your gut. It's one of your best advisors.

Knowledge is power, learning never ends and integrity is unequalled.

Why worry about things about which you can do nothing? Waste your time and effort on other, more fun stuff!

Sometimes you have to be truthful and/or blunt if you truly want to help someone. The truth might sting a little for a bit, but the truth unsaid, also called a lie, damages forever. And it's a fine line to know when to say it and not say it.

Don't share hobbies with people whose hobby is complaining.

And caroline, your last one is SO true!

Oh, and of course, if you don't learn from your mistakes you'll get plenty more chances.

Oh, I've had plenty! LOL From Mama: "Just act as nice as you look!" (This was when I was going out and was asking her if I looked okay.)

From Daddy: "You're as good as anybody else and you're no better than anybody else." and "If other people can do (whatever) you can, too!"

Don't sweat the small stuff,and it's all small stuff!!

treat others as you want to be treated.
Kathi

Don't be in any hurry to have children.

Life is not a dress rehearsal, nor is it endless. (LIVE your life.)

We ALL have 'potential'. (LIVE your life.)

Almost all the worst sins are those of omission. (LIVE your life.)

It's not what others think of you, but what God thinks of you.

From my Aunt Kate: Don't love anything that can't love you back.

From my DM: Pretty is as pretty does.

And something I read a long time ago and passed on to young girls when I was leading youth groups: If you know you would not want to be married to a man who drinks, or smokes, then don't date boys who drink or smoke; you never know who you might fall in love with, so leave those types out of the equation.

Sue

My dad told me the same as Joan's mother did...
Fretting that I might make a fool of myself at my 1st dance, Dad said "most people are too busy worrying about what they look like to pay mind about you".
And..
On my wedding day my father said "You're making a commitment for life, when times get tough I want you to remember that everybody has dirty laundry and the grass is hardly ever greener across the way".

Lots of good stuff here.

From my Grandpa, "You never learn anything while your mouth is open."

Ron

From my mother...always make sure you can take care of yourself. She meant get an education, acquire skills, etc., so you are never in a position where you have to stay in a relationship or where you will be destitute if anything happens to your husband. Be self sufficient.

"Always hold you head up, don't ever look away"

This was told me by a person who was telling me this in the context of never showing fear, of standing up even when I felt beaten down or fearful.

That lesson taught me over 41 years ago has served me well. In worst case scenarios I hear those words in my head and find my inner strength.

Not given to me but advice to a girl friend from her wise aunt regarding marriage/relationships:
'If you two have a fight don't tell us 'cause you will make up but we'll still hate him

Another one; this from an old cowboy, "Always drink upstream from the herd."

Ron

My Mother always told we girls: "The choices you make today will form your tomorrows."

My Aunt Lily always told we girls: "Always hold your standards high, always behave like a lady and you will do just fine."

Neither a borrower nor a lender be