What’s it like being the father of four boys? It’s hectic. It’s full on having one, let alone four. But it’s good. The data tells us boys tend to have more injuries than girls – why do you think that is? I think boys play rougher. My eight year old, I caught him doing back flips in the backyard. They seem to play rougher – and I think that’s why. We sometimes get accused of trying to wrap kids up in cotton wool to keep them safe. How do you think you can balance keeping kids safe and letting them take risks and learn from their experiences? I think you can’t wrap them too much in cotton wool, because they have to learn from experiences as well. It’s a matter of setting the right parameters around it. Let them try stuff, but be there as well supervising. I think that’s key – when they are trying stuff – like backflips in the backyard - make sure you’re there. What have you learned about keeping your kids safe since you’ve been involved with Safekids? Heaps! Mainly around Brooke. It’s been a while since I’ve had a young baby. I’ve learnt a lot. For example I didn’t know how to put a car seat in properly. I thought I knew how to put a car seat in, just wrap the seatbelt around it. There’s so much more to it. Like knowing where to put the centre clip around baby. I didn’t know any of that. I just thought you put him in and clip it up and it’ll be all good. How do you think you can get these safety messages across to other whānau and friends? I think the best way to get it across is by being real, and showing real life situations. It’s showing people that they’re not the only ones that are going through this. And also, that there are places they can go to find information and support. Sometimes we feel that we’re alone and there’s nowhere to go to. It’s about educating the people and showing them there are places they can go, to get the help that they need. What does a typical day for Dave Letele, aka Brown Buttabean look like? Ah, lots of training, motivating, school runs and training other people. How many people does BBM train on any given day? With the BBM Bootcamps, hundreds directly, and indirectly (through the BBM App). You have a huge heart for your BBM community and helping whānau develop healthy lifestyles. What would you like them to take away from your involvement with Safekids? I want our people to take away the importance of keeping our kids safe and doing things right. I think sometimes we take our kids safety for granted. I see in South Auckland, kids in the back of the car, with no seatbelts, (you know) and unfortunately it’s mostly our people that do it. What’s your number one parenting tip? You were once a kid yourself. How common is common sense? Common sense is the least used sense these days that’s for sure. WHAT’S YOUR NUMBER ONE PARENTING TIP? “You were once a kid yourself.” safekids news | April 2018 ISSUE No 79 5 FOLLOW DAVE ON: Facebook Group Buttabean Motivation BBM (https://www.facebook.com/groups/Buttabean/) Facebook Page Brown Buttabean (https://www.facebook.com/brownbuttabean/) Instagram @Brown_Buttabean Twitter @daveletele Website http://bbm.fit/