A lot..!! Words fail to describe what all they have done. And I am proud sharing all those memorable childhood days and memories here..!!

They were more of friends than parents.
Till this day, I am Eighteen now, I was raised with a security that I can share anything and everything with my father..!! This gives you a platform to discuss and deliberate things without any illogical bias. You get to speak about your mistakes, success and future plans with the person whom you can trust the best on this earth and the person who know you best.
I was inculcated the habit of reading books, due to which I stand where I am. I proudly say, early in my childhood, my mother took me to bookstalls more often than she went out for groceries.
The ability to think for myself, rational and logical. I was never forced upon to follow a particular religion or a particular tradition. They never infringed their beliefs on me.
My decision making was respected and infact my parents always propelled me to take my own decisions and taught to bear the consequences without blaming someone else. My decisions were supported as long as they were rational and logical.
My parents always encouraged me to go all out and play and explore. Luckily, we are the last generation that learn to play in streets. Unfortunately, that trend has lost it's way in the 21st Century where children were busy in playing video games and watching Cartoons.
Spent time with me, though my father has to attend his busy schedules.
And, perhaps the best decision was to not have a Television in my house. And, even today, my house doesn't have one. This is one of the reason why I was raised up in ideas and ideology and books rather than films, cartoons and serials. While, it is true that you may lose out something, if you don't have the television, they guaranteed that I don't miss my morning Newspaper and Sunday Magazines to patch up for the lost connectivity with the world.
We are a middle class family, and I could not understand the push and pulls at my early age. So, I would always regret for not having a car or something along that lines. But, it was on my 12th Birthday that I somehow ended up reading the diary of my Mother. I was too disturbed to understand how difficult it is to run a house. It was only then I came into terms with the 'proud' reality. Share your experiences as well. How your parents raised you?

I was raised by two opposites.My Dad(God bless his soul i miss him so much ) was not what you will call the typical Nigerian.Alot of people did not understand and alot of people used to call him a marxist.Very intellectual and logical.My mum on the other hand typical Ijebu woman.Drama,emotional,enterprising,loving, are some of the adjectives i can use for the woman.

I can say that though not as cerebral as my Dad i can say am 70% him and 30% my mum.My dad was very democratic and his words right from when i was a toddler was E jeki Omo mi soro e ma ohun mo lenu(let my child speak dont silence her).We had loads of relatives(mostly my mum's) and they were of the opinion Kids are meant to be seen not heard,Daddy was having none of it.In that aspect the man suceeded in giving every single one of us a sense of self worth.He made us realise that yes money is Nice but you are getting an education not just to earn money but to broaden your mind.His mantra was Think Think.and as you can imagine he was not what you will call a good muslim .Just joking but most of our alfas used to avoid him cos he could ask questions on what was Islam and what was Arab culture.Lol .He used to say his own girls sole aim in life is not to marry and if any yeye guy maltreats you your room is vacant(mummy used to say God forbid and give him dirty looks )

Mum on the other hand taught us the spirit of enterprise.I had been helping in my mum supermarket from like 12.She taught us if you want nice things you work for it(Daddy too but he was not really into Things as opposed to acquiring knowledge).Thank God for Mummy if not we for be the pikins with all the textbooks but crappy clothes .Mum also taught us to know God more and i guess wanting to know God more made me convert.If not for mummy too i would have done Phd before getting married .All in all i think they both did a cracking job and the differences in views made me who i am today.

Pray every morning together as a family, no excuses with dad. He was the prayer warrior. Very open, non judgemental and true relationship with parents and siblings. Jealousy and sibling rivalry absolutely unacceptable. We also must love and help each other no matter how we feel about each other at the moment.

Not sparing to punish me when i do wrong. It was the only way i quit a bad deed for good,by remembering the reward that follows if am caught in flagrante delicto.

My dad was my friend and built my self esteem. My mom was strict and guided me in the act of home keeping. Left to my dad, I wouldnt have known how to boil an egg but my mom would not have any of such. Today I thank and appreciate her more than I did as a child. I love my parents!