Children learn valuable life-lessons from those who raise them, but nothing compares to the lessons learned from having a teacher as a parent.

Phrases such as “sharing is caring” and “problem solve” continue to haunt my everyday actions (I have heard these fun little reminders following the patient elongated calling of my name far too often, and still hear them at the age of 19).

Having a teacher of your very own makes you the first to know the answer to the great elementary school mystery, “Do teachers have a first name?” and provides you with more books than a library (the answer in case you were wondering is yes teachers do in fact have a first name and no it is not “Mrs. Smith”).

But the greatest gift of all is that having a teacher as a parent means being blessed with the extra special love and support from one of our many everyday superheroes (teachers that is but also you mom, I think I can speak for everyone when I say you are a superhero).

1. Sanitizing is a daily routine.

Work habits are often brought home and especially this one. Everything, and I mean everything, is sanitized at least ten times a day just like in your parents' classroom. The tables, the chairs, the counters, your hands. Especially during the winter when everything under god's green earth is prone to getting the flu.

2. It wasn’t until middle school you began to realize that not every adult has the summer and weekends off like your parent(s) do.

And you were devastated because you realized that some people have to work weekends/summers and that could potentially end up being you

3. School was never really out for the summer.

At the beginning and end (and sometimes in the middle) of every summer, you ended up right back in your parents classroom after thinking school was out for the summer, helping carry boxes of books that could fill a large mansion, and rearranging desks and chairs.

4. You had to go to school no matter how sick you were.

That one time you came down with the bubonic plague and your mom still made you go to school. All right, that is a bit of an exaggeration, but nevertheless, no matter how sick you were (or how sick you pretended to be) nothing, and I mean nothing, was "sick" enough to let you stay home from school. "Just go to the school nurse and if you are sick she will send you home."

5. Pencils were included in every stocking stuffer, Easter basket, and birthday present.

Truth be told, I may joke around about how 'teacheresque' getting pencils included in every present is, but at the end of the day I am secretly happy because GOOD pencils are always useful. (As my mother always says, Ticonderoga pencils are the Cadillac of pencils.)

6. School supply shopping doesn’t just include shopping for you and your siblings but also 150 of your mom or dad's students.

And this is probably what fueled your school supply addiction.

7. You could never get away with the “I don’t have any homework” excuse.

This excuse may work with any other parent except for yours but because your parent is a teacher they know better than "I don't have any homework on a Wednesday night."

8. Your teacher-parent never yelled, but they would lecture you as if they were lecturing one of their students (which is even worse).

Many people would talk about how when they messed up as a child, their parent would scream like there was no tomorrow. I counted my lucky stars every day I never had a parent like this...however I did have a parent who calmly and patiently lectured us, the "teacher voice" we called it, which could possibly be even worse.

9. You were always tricked into grading papers.

I say that so I can hide the fact that grading papers was easily my favorite past time as a kid (pathetic I know). Sitting down on the couch with a stack of papers, a pack of stickers, and the wind in my hair = nothing better.

10. Grammar.

Having a teacher as a parent can easily be compared to having a walking, talking spell check following you around correcting your grammar with every sentence you speak. But on the flip side, you knew you had (and still have) the best proofreader out there.

11. Every occasion required a book.

We may not have had the internet, and the only way we could watch TV was through VCR, but we had books. Lots and lots of books that we brought to baseball games, the beach, soccer games, car rides, and even trips to the amusement park. I am eternally grateful for being exposed to literature at a young age because not only did I read some really great books, but my love of reading has stayed with me to this day.

12. But not to fear, if you didn’t have a book you were forced to read every sign you ever encountered.

Nature walks meant reading every little sign about bears you came across, which made you the expert on native bears living in Vermont. A trip to the zoo meant reading every educational tidbit that came along with looking at the animals. Did you know bears can run up to 40 miles per hour?

13. You still can’t go anywhere with your parents without someone stopping and shrieking “oh my gosh, are you Mrs. DeMatteis’ daughter? I used to have her as a teacher!”

After the awkward encounter is over you think back and it is actually pretty cool how many people have been impacted in a positive way by your mom or dad's teaching.

14. But with that, going to work with your parent and entering their classroom makes you feel like a celebrity.

Nothing is better than walking into a classroom of 25 squealing children so excited simply because you are there

15. You truly understand the importance of education.

I'm sure plenty of people understand the importance of education, but being raised by a teacher shows you how dedicated to their students teachers really are, and how lucky you are to have them.

16. You know having a teacher as a parent is the greatest blessing.

Every day I wake up knowing I am so very blessed to have one of our nation's educators as a parent. To have the love and support from someone who is so knowledgeable and kind is something I will never be able to repay as long as I live.