Socrates said that the unexamined
life is not worth living. However, I am a big proponent of denial (and that ain't no river in Egypt.) Once again, at the prompting of Akemi, I am
having to write about a subject that I’d rather just push under the couch along
with all the dust, Lego’s, hair bands and other detritus that our family of
five loses in that abyss. The subject
is: what do you do as a mom that you
swore that you would never do? In the words of a fellow we probably all know
too well, “Oh maaaan!” (Thank you Swiper).
Where do I begin? It’s somewhat hard to remember, but I do seem
to recall that I had a lot of high and mighty views on parenting. One being that parents should be able to
control their children at all times.
Anyone who has ever seen me with my monkeys at the grocery store can
attest that I do not have control over my children at all times (or hardly
ever). Oh, there's Logan, grabbing a handful of peaches from the
fruit bin and dropping them on the ground to see if they will bounce. Oh, there’s Dane flipping the switch on the
jelly bean dispenser and shrieking with delight as they scatter all over the
store. (And, by the way, why do they
have that at a child’s eye level?) And
then there’s Nicole who is screaming bloody murder because I won’t let her buy
a pair of Dora flip-flops.
I really used to think that it
was probably something a parent was doing wrong when a kid would have a
screaming fit or do the ubiquitous “legless” routine when you’re trying to hold
their hand/guide them somewhere. Let me
tell you, oh righteous kid-less ones, this often has nothing to do with what a
parent is or isn’t doing. Kids,
especially toddlers, are a mercurial bunch and I don’t think anyone truly knows
how to control their ever-changing moods.
Please don’t blame us parents.
It’s a phase that all toddlers go through (I hope).
There is also that thing about
nutrition. I really thought I would be
better about limiting sweets. The
problem is that sweets seem to be a social necessity. No one wants to be that mom who serves
something, (gasp!), nutritious at a birthday party. This is their little one(s) big day and
everyone’s going to do it up big by sending kids into a food coma. Now, I have to say that my kids do eat a lot
of healthy food, but it’s almost like I use that as a justification for
allowing all the junk. In my defense, I
really don’t know how I could keep them away from all that piñata candy, unless
I chained them to their chairs.
I remember being appalled when my
friend wiped her kid’s nose and then brushed it off on her pants. Okay, that’s still gross. But, we all have to do things as mom’s that can
be somewhat disgusting. It’s part of the
job description. If you don’t have the
desire to be intimate with poop, pee, vomit and dirt, then maybe being a mom is
not for you.
I guess the lesson here is: do not judge what you do not know. I hereby apologize to all the parents that I
criticized when I was kid-less. I did
not know.
Okay, back to denial. That Socrates probably didn’t have kids!
Original post to Mad About Multiples. Read about Lisa's easy peasy life with twins plus one at The Curious Georges.
Recent Comments