The Best Place to Raise Kids Goes To…

The other day, my daughter called me while I was having lunch at work.

She is all grown up now and lives overseas. We were chatting about her new life, her work and the people around her. In the back of my mind, I was hoping there wouldn’t be any unwanted surprises or bad news!

As we talked about the different people she has met and how differently people think around the world, shaped by the environments they grew up in, she suddenly said:

“Mum, you’ve picked the best place to raise kids.”

I smiled and kept listening.

She told me how grateful she was to have grown up in New Zealand and how easily she can adapt to new environments, different foods and cultures because of the environment she grew up in.

Then she said:

“Wherever I want to go, there is someone there that I know!”

Growing up in New Zealand, being surrounded by people from different cultures and backgrounds feels normal. Our children grow up making friends with people from all over the world, learning about different cultures and seeing differences as simply part of everyday life.

Perhaps we don’t fully appreciate that until we step outside this beautiful country.

I wasn’t born in New Zealand. I came from a big city, and when I first moved here, it took me a while to get used to the slower pace of life. But after many years, this became my home.

And more importantly, it became the place where I raised my children.

Like many parents, I have often wondered whether I made the right choices. Did I choose the right daycare? Did I give my children enough opportunities? Was I doing enough?

I have always worked full-time, and I still do. I used to feel guilty about it, wondering whether I should have spent more time with my children. But perhaps I was wrong!

Parenting is not easy. Especially when you are raising young children, there are so many decisions to make, and often you simply don’t know what the right answer is. You do your best with what you know and hope you are getting it right.

So hearing my daughter say those words meant more to me than she probably realised.

For me, it was a small moment of reassurance.

Perhaps I didn’t make such bad decisions after all.

Of course, I didn’t do everything perfectly. No parent does. But as I drove home that day, I felt proud. Proud that my children call New Zealand home and that they now appreciate the values, culture, people and opportunities we have here.

There will always be moments when we question our decisions as parents. But looking back, it is often the little things that become part of our children’s story — the cuddles, conversations, bedtime stories and simply being there.

One Thing We Can Be Sure About

Parenting comes with so many questions. I don’t think we ever completely stop wondering whether we made the right decisions for our children.

For me, that phone call from my daughter was a small but unexpected moment of reassurance.

I may not have done everything perfectly, and I’m sure there are plenty of things I would do differently if I had the chance. But hearing her say, “Mum, you’ve picked the best place to raise kids,” made me feel pretty good.

So perhaps, while there are many things we may never be completely sure about when it comes to parenting, there is one thing we can feel confident about:

We’ve picked a wonderful place to raise our kids.

How cool is that?