Apparently there’s a “right” & “wrong” way to parent & I’m mocking the whole she-bang.
Remember Momma with love, Harrison.
Apparently there’s a “right” & “wrong” way to parent & I’m mocking the whole she-bang.
Remember Momma with love, Harrison.
Secondary Infertility & What It Means. Some really incredible, brave mommas helped me write this post.
This day sucked in an incredibly awesome way.
Why Having Non-Mom Friends Is So Important. Basically thanking my lucky stars for her.
Can Daycare Be Called School? Or is that just as obnoxious as I thought it was when I was 20?
Date night ideas, which may or may not end in the marital relations.
Last week it was suggested that I am an abusive & neglectful mother for letting my child play alone in our secure backyard, only feet away while I empty a dishwasher.
“So I unload the top of the dishwasher, then peek out to check. Unload the bottom dishwasher & peek out to check. Wipe down the counters & brew a cup of coffee & head outside for another 30 minutes.” ~from my Babble.com post
The comments poured in, different opinions & questions & then first neglect, then abuse. oh, the rage. It was strong. Not because someone disagreed with my parenting choices or felt they were wrong – I highly expect that for every decision I make regarding my child. I formula fed & suffered postpartum depression & don’t spank my child so if you think I still have a thin skin regarding parenting choices, try again.
My rage came from blatantly flippant use of the words “abuse” & “neglect.”
Definition of child abuse (per dictionary):
mistreatment of child: severe mistreatment of a child by a parent, guardian, or other adult responsible for his or her welfare, e.g. physical violence, neglect, sexual assault, or emotional crueltyDefinition of child neglect (childhelp.org):
Failure to provide for a child’s physical needs. This includes lack of supervision, inappropriate housing or shelter, inadequate provision of food and water, inappropriate clothing for season or weather, abandonment, denial of medical care and inadequate hygiene.
My child playing 10 feet away where I can hear & see him easily is not severe mistreatment. Him learning independent play in a secure environment where I am seconds away is not careless disregard.
It makes me wonder if those that throw those harsh words around so easily have ever seen true neglect & abuse first-hand. If they’ve ever lived with a nine-year-old boy that only weighs 40 lbs because his mother bought drugs instead of food. If they’ve ever had to carry a hyperventilating six-year-old out of a store because a piece of glitter landed on her hand & she had a flashback to years of child pornography. If they’ve ever sat with social workers for hours as part of a home study & heard a little boy say he was given to the devil. Because I have & those are memories that marked my heart forever to where the word “abuse” is as strong as a racial slur or the R-word.
Child abuse & neglect are powerful words, real words that are real in our society. They are the children that are starved & beaten & locked in closets, torn apart at the hands of people they know, molested & left for days. Every ten seconds, a report of child abuse is made. More than five children die every day as a result of abuse. Child abuse is serious & it is a serious allegation.
I beg you to be mindful of the words used to describe another parent’s actions. Are they truly abusing their child, causing danger to the child’s overall well-being? Or is it a simple heated discussion where you feel you are right, by golly?
Let’s talk about parenting. Let’s share ideas & concerns & hopes & fears. Feel free to disagree with me respectfully & accept that I may defend my stance. But let’s have this parenting discourse responsibly.
If you do see child abuse & neglect happening, please call the National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.
An open letter to the mommas of toddlers.
The 10 cartoons you would love to take out in a back alley if you had the chance, as voted by you!
I took on picky eaters & the ever-faithful argument of Nature vs. Nurture. What say you, my friends? Nature or nurture?
That time I spent a summer in the North Carolina mountains.
I’m an ungrateful bitch because paying a copay to be told to “double allergy medicine” irritated me. You know, after I called & spoke to the advice nurse & asked if we should come in & she said “ABSOLUTELY.”
I still haven’t been able to walk up to other moms & just say “hi.”
I’ve written a bit more & you can check it out here, but these were the highlights & a way to catch more of what we’ve been up to & how I’m raising my wild beast toddler.
We screwed up Harry’s bedtime.
Pictures of our first week of spring.
I feel like all I do is pick up other people’s shit, but I think that’s just being a mom.

I worked hard this week. Last week … [Read More...]
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