@dadoftwingirls it’s about when I start jumping up and down on the tire iron that someone miraculously appears! It’s really kind of sweet, makes me feel warm and fuzzy thoughts for humanity.
On a similar note, it’s important to get your tires rotated. Maybe every spring if you have snowy winters. I had this done recently and it took the mechanics FOUR DAYS because some of the bolts were so rusted by winter snow and ice they were just fused in place! I never could have changed tires in that condition.
Food safety (preparation and refrigeration) is an important one IMO.
Rotating tires falls under car maintenance. Along with checking your tires…your fluids…your lights…etc.
Re: Bed Making
It’s quite an art. There are many styles and accessories that govern how you make a bed. It doesn’t take time out of my morning to make my bed. 5 minutes, perhaps? If I don’t do it in the morning, I’ll do it when I come back. Makes my room look better. I enjoy how the bed feels when I’m finally ready to go to sleep. Made bed, happy room. Clean room, happy life. 
i’m ALL for life skills, but some of these seem extremely situational and personally wouldn’t be my focus–what hand to use in an ethic restaurant? (I had no idea it would be any other than my dominant one). how to navigate the airport? (good to know, but if one hasn’t flown in 20+ years, well, it might be different). how to pump gas? (I lived 45+ years never having to know and figured it out quickly when I needed to…instructions are on the pump!). more power to some of your kids, but there is a giant sector of the adult population that just crosses these bridges as they come.
IMO, one of the most useful life skills that sometimes needs to be expressly taught it when to ask for help. kids need to know how and who to ask before a situation gets out of control–EVERYBODY needs help sometimes and there is no shame it asking for it. they need to know they need to go to the tutoring center if they don’t understand, go to the health center if they really feel sick, how to extract themselves from a situation they are uncomfortable in, or even quite simply-ask the guy in at the pump next to you if you are pumping gas right if you’ve never done it before. 
otherwise–stick a dime in your sock and always wear clean underwear.
the rest will come.
Bed making, one word: duvet.
In thinking back, middle school is where we had shop classes and home-ec (cooking, sewing, etc). I wish the schools still offered that training at that level. Computer courses and others have replaced, at least in our area. Some HSs still have some of these areas; some even chef type training. Now it seems, HS level is almost too late to try to teach some basic skills, unless it has to do with auto. MIL’s generation/German farm family background - the gals were trained on household tasks, so that by the time they finished 8th grade, they could run a household. DDs’ interests and being thrust into knowing how to do things as they needed to. Some things can be learned by observing, while some things ‘you don’t know what you don’t know.’. Now can also watch a U-tube on ‘how to’…
I think it was Shaquille O’Neal who was thinking about going pro after his sophomore year at LSU. His mother told him if he could balance a check book, he could stop college. He decided to continue his education (and got his degree from LSU). He probably also realized he should value education as much as his mother did.
Don’t make beds here. Might feel differently if our beds were downstairs and anyone saw them. I have horrible insomnia and wake more exhausted than I go to bed–dragging myself out of bed is my only priority.
I always said I had 3 goals for my children: work hard, know God, and respect and help the elderly. Next would be making/managing/saving money, asking for help, and being appreciative. I believed they would learn best by role modeling. If I had do-overs, I would also teach some things more explicitly.
Medically needy D is very adept at managing dr. appointments/insurance/prescriptions, etc. Healthy sons–much less so. I drilled financial responsibility into them. Is it a need or a want? Always ask that question. I’m a CPA serving multi-generational families, and the apple doesn’t usually far fall from the tree.
Agree with the list except cars. Today’s kids need to know better (real) phone etiquette and how to snail mail. I am still constantly amazing how many of them can’t address and mail something. There is no public transportation here and that is something I wish all of us knew better.
I tell the hotel maids not to make my bed some time. When I go out, they can do what they want.
Yes the snail mail was learned early for thank you notes.
Etiquette is something appreciated.
Be able to talk with correct English. It is not “me and so and so” it is “So and so and I…” This is happening so much. If my kids do it, I correct them - they know better, but it sometimes done to fit in with youth I believe…some people like H engineer fall back into being ‘folksy’ - he knows better too.
Something valuable is to sense when you may not know something, and then ask someone - either talk through the steps or ask how something is done. Gracious ways to ask for help and also say ‘thank you’.
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Food safety (preparation and refrigeration) is an important one IMO.
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Yes!
I was once helping one of my kid’s friends cook something and when I opened a cabinet there was an open juice bottle in there. The kid didn’t realize that once opened, in the fridge it needs to go!
And, of course, meat-handling, particularly chicken. And don’t use the “raw” marinade that raw meat was in…nor reuse the plate that the uncooked meat sat on (BBQ’ing folks sometimes make that mistake.
And…CHECK THE DATES when you’re buying perishables at the grocery!
@fractalmstr, my kids seem to have a very easy time talking to adults. When S16 met with a department head during yesterday’s college visit I was impressed; I think the dept head was as well.
A few years ago, we bought D a little bookcase from Target and didn’t get around to assembling it right away… she got tired of waiting and came home one day, after school, and put it together herself. I think she was 13 at the time. It’s still there, holding her books, so I guess she did that successfully!
She has never made a full “meal” for others, but she makes food for herself all the time. She has made us all homemade pancakes before, as well as bruschetta and guacamole. Ya know, the important stuff, :). She also makes smoothies a lot. Oh, and she can make basic pasta with basic homemade tomato sauce (which I was surprised that a lot of adults actually can’t do).
One thing I’ve thought of - I am vegan, and have been most of her childhood, so we keep a vegan kitchen at home - but she is not; she is lacto-ovo vegetarian. But she’s never prepared food herself with eggs or dairy… she only eats that stuff out. A part of me (just a small part, though) feels like I should teach her how to cook an egg. Maybe I’ll just ask my mom to teach her that, :). I just feel like it’s a basic cooking skill to have…
As for the others - she’s always been cautious with money, (and we also didn’t necessarily explain anything to her that made her like this - she’s also way more frugal than her parents about this).
She knows how to get herself up in the morning when she has to (i.e., we are not around - a couple times H and I have had to leave the house before she wakes up.)
She can do laundry, she just did some this morning.
And, yes, air travel on her own! She’s never done this, but we’ve flown enough where she shouldn’t have a problem…
Well, this thread has certainly made me feel better about sending her off on her own in another year!
I am with @Marian. I don’t like the feeling when the sheets and comforter are tucked in so I rip them out. Yes, @TempeMom, we have duvets.
My closest friend has charted an extraordinary career. He has written one of the best-selling business books of all time, is a sought after speaker and consultant, but his real career has prevented wars and saved many lives. He has functioned as a social entrepreneur, starting organizations that are designed to and, often do, really help the world. He has made quite a many millions of dollars. He is exactly like my gifted, dyslexic son who succeeds via extreme focus. He never cooked when we were young – he had the same five food items in his kitchen to keep life focused on what was important. I highly doubt he could have repaired a car or made a budget – though, unlike me, he was and is neat. My point is that a lot of the things that people seem to be describing as critical life skills really have to do with their own comfort based upon how they’ve been raised. Some skills may make it easier to live (perhaps at the cost of focus), but many are not critical life skills.
I love the comment on food safety. That I would classify as a critical life skill (at least for those who cook). @GoNoles85, I will think about what we have done wrt money.
Replace the toilet paper when the roll is empty, and refill ice cube trays.
Use a can opener.
Address a letter!
I was in the post office the other day and they now have an enlarged “sample letter” up because too many young people have never learned where the stamp goes, and where the address goes, and where the return address goes.
“CHECK THE DATES when you’re buying perishables at the grocery!”
On the other hand, I know from many years working in the food business that many of the dates on grocery items are just suggestions, and you can eat them well past the due date.
Good handwashing. At meal prep, wash hands in-between. Proper storage and heating of foods. Agree about making sure to use different knife/cutting board for veggies and for meat, or wash in between with hot soapy water.
Kids can build many skills up over the years. Don’t have to be expert at 16, just have the beginning know how, or willingness to learn.
Learn and know how to be a good friend to others - and have a good circle of friends.
Be cautious of ‘first love’ situation. If kids have seen enough/know enough as they get older to know how to choose a good life mate, or if they are happy being single.
Start learning personal finances, and continue so student will have the ability to finish school and pay off any debt. Be able to live below one’s means and be able to save.
Learn not to burn bridges, especially with family who usually have your best interests at heart. Immaturity should be addressed.
Here are my additions to the list:
Use a coin laundry machine (as opposed to the one in your house, because it does have a different procedure)
How to keep a calendar and address book and for girls keep track of/be able to predict one’s cycle
Send a letter or package, including addressing and using the correct number and type of stamps or postage
How to safely light a campfire
Respect others when staying in their home (cleaning up after yourself, respecting boundaries, etc)