What is a perfect mom? June Cleaver? Well, I’ve already established that I’m not her! Is it a mom that practices AP? Well, I’m not really her either. I’m also not the mom that joins the PTA (note my post about not being a people person), overschedules all sorts of super cool activities and sports, or the mom who praises every single mediocre accomplishment.
I do:
- Praise them when they do well
- Let my toddler cry for a few minutes if he refuses to go to sleep
- If the toddler is having a temper tantrum I let him ride it out until he collects himself
- Allow and even encourage my twelve-year-old to listen to Ozzy Osbourne and Megadeth
- Vaccinate on schedule
- Suck up my annoyance with Elmo and let the toddler watch because he loves that obnoxious red puppet so
- Sometimes leave toys in the living room overnight
- Let my twelve-year-old bring his Kindle everywhere
- Still have my 22½ month old rear-facing
- Keep my kids in boosters until they are 4’9 whether they worry about being teased or not
- Judge people who blatantly install or use car seats incorrectly, or worse, not at all
- Swear a little more than I should sometimes and I really need to watch it
- As of two days ago, I still breastfed my 22½ month old without worrying about scarring him for life
I don’t:
- Like co-sleeping so I don’t do it
- I didn’t let my first son watch Barney and I don’t let the toddler watch it either
- Let them get away with murder
- Limit TV as much as I could
- Use vinegar and unicorn saliva to clean every little thing and do still have a few toxic chemicals in the house
- Mop the floor as often as I should
- Sign up my kids for activities as much as I should
- Worry about the Mommy Wars
But you know what? Despite my flaws and imperfections, my kids are pretty freaking awesome! My twelve-year-old is sweet, caring and funny and the toddler, while being a bit of a maniac, is so sweet and personable when he isn’t scaling the furniture or throwing his toys. So I may not be a perfect mom but I have been a successful one!
