What I want my kids to know before they leave home.

I have three beautiful toddlers and I trust them. I know they will eventually be good people, well I really hope anyway. I am worried though. How do I teach them everything they will need to know before they leave me?

I am not really talking about them having a good character, although I do expect this. I expect them to be trustworthy, respectful and hard workers. I would love them to have ambition and want to open their minds to the world and all the wonderful different things in it.

But this is not what I am talking about. I am going to write a list of things that I would actually like to teach them. My plan is to add to this list over time and hopefully get some suggestions from everyone out there in the world. Let's see how we go.

So I want them to be able to;

1; Wash their clothes so the clothes don't change colours or shrink.

2; Iron so they don't burn anything.

3; Sew a button on and redo a hem.

4; Keep a house clean enough that it does not attract vermin.

5; Be skilled enough in the kitchen that they don't have to eat out or eat the same thing every night.

6; Know how to work the dishwasher.

7; Be smart enough to respect used by dates and rules about hygiene. 

8; Know how to keep their room tidy enough to not repel the opposite sex.

9; Know which basic tools are used for which jobs and use them for handy-maning around the          

           house.

10; Know what to do in an emergency; where is the fuse box and how do you change a fuse.

          where do you turn off the water

          where do I turn off the gas

          what do I do in a fire

11; Know how to do basic car stuff; change a tire

          fill the oil

          fill the water

12; Parallel park with skill. (I pride myself that I am one of the best parallel parkers I know, Just saying)

13; Know how to save money and be responsible for a credit card

14; Understand that although it might be boring, paper work and understanding accounts etc is 

            important, have a place for them. 

15; Be able to small talk with someone your don't know for ten minutes. (something I am not good at,

            something to work on).

16; Be able to dance well enough that you don't fall over or have people laugh at you. (again something 

            I probably need to work on.) 

17; Know how to be safe on the internet.

18; Know how to protect themselves from strangers and respect themselves enough to not put up with     

           mean people.

19; Know how to use a bus even when you usually don't.

20; Know how to read a map and know which way north is without a compass.

21; Know basic physical skills; throw and catch a ball, skip a rope, ride a bike, and play a team sport.

22; Know that a healthy lifestyle is the way to go even if you sometimes fall off the wagon.

23; Know basic first aid and CPR.

24; Know what to do if you or someone you know gets sick, especially if you are alone. 

25; Have enough experience with newborn babies to know you don't want one until you are at least 25. 

So that is where I am at; 25 things I will try to teach my kids, along with all the other stuff about them being nice etc etc. Is there anything that I have forgotten? Please help.

What else, what else, what else.