What kind of parent is Gemini?
The Gemini parent is forever young.
Pop quiz: What’s on a Gemini parent’s Christmas shopping list? A PlayStation, a new iPad, a home karaoke machine and a calligraphy set. Oh, and a bunch of stuff for their kids, too. The Gemini parent is an eternal youth (at heart, anyhow), and often the most “with it” of all the parents. Your kids’ entire friend group stops by after school to hang out with YOU. No surprise, since you’re always ready to talk about the latest fascinating findings, whether it’s hot celebrity gossip, your latest fashion hauls or the best site for music downloads.
What is a Gemini mom or dad like?
Strengths and gifts
Modern-minded Gems are information sponges, drawn to the most cutting-edge ideas and innovations. You have a million hobbies and interests, making you quite the interesting parent. Your taste in clothing can be runway-fresh, too. Who needs the mall? Your teenager will shop in your closet. Hey, it’s your fault for being impossibly cool.
Curiosity is the Gemini parent’s playground. Why is the sky blue? Why is grass green? While other parents would brush off these questions with a distracted “because they are, dear,” you’re on Wikipedia, answering with facts, teaching your four-year-old terms like “chlorophyll” and “photosynthesis.” Gemini is an intellectual air sign ruled by verbal, rational Mercury. You call the body parts by their textbook names, and the sooner you can dispel those myths about storks and Santa Claus, the better.
Gemini rules early childhood, so “why?” is your sign’s favorite question. As a result, you honor your children’s desire to learn, especially through play and discovery. Their education will be of prime importance to you. By the time they’re born, you’ll have researched all the different methodologies, from Rudolph Steiner to Montessori, and the best educational toys for healthy socialization.
Are Gemini good parents?
Challenges and issues
The Gemini parent may struggle to create routines.
Children need consistency, but for ever-changing Gemini, too much routine is torture. Since much of your life is staged in the short attention span theater, you have a hard time following through with all of the hobbies, activities and projects that you start. In your thirst for variety, you may unwittingly destabilize your kids. (High profile example: Gemini Angelina Jolie is a fascinating parent…but will her kids become weary citizens of the world?) Some of this can be eased by hiring a good babysitter—especially an earth or a water sign—and caretakers who enjoy doing mundane tasks that you hate.
Monitoring your speech is also uber-important for Gemini parents. Since you’re constantly changing your mind, you can accidentally talk out of both sides of your mouth, which can be confusing to your kids. They don’t understand why you were campaigning for animal rights all winter, then go on a grass-fed beef binge in the spring. The whole “do as I say, not as I do” thing doesn’t pass children’s finely-honed B.S. detectors. It can also breed rebellious teenagers who act out in an effort to test where you stand. Consciously pick a few key values and stick with them—both in your word and deed.
Traits of a Gemini mom or dad
The Gemini parent can be too cool for their kid’s school.
You share eyeliner with your kids, take them to concerts and occasionally fill in as a vocalist in their bands. And OMG, can you believe that somebody just texted you that? Gemini is the sign of the Twins, so it’s natural for you to seek your “other half,” turning your child into a kindred spirit. This can be a setup for future difficulties, though. Since you’re not one to censor yourself, your children may know all your traumatic secrets quite young—especially since you leave the info well within their sight.
Gemini is ruled by Mercury, the communication planet, and you naturally love to chatter, share and gossip. You’re genuinely intrigued by the schoolyard dramas and interpersonal dynamics your kids are experiencing. But you could be doing more harm than good by getting involved in the daily dramatics of your children’s lives, or entangling them in yours, as has been the case for numerous high-profile Gemini parents like Johnny Depp and Kanye West.
While it might seem fun to be BFFs with your kids, they don’t need a peer—they need a parent. Not everyone can handle being exposed to mature subjects at an early age, and it’s not fair to take their childhood away. The flip side of being the dopest parent on the block? You have to remind yourself to stay age-appropriate, especially while the kids are watching.