Moms, enough.

I had the chance to observe and talk to several college students today. I knew nothing about them, but was able to conclude several things about their childhood just by watching them. All names have been changed to protect those with inferior parents.

When I met Jason, it was clear that he was breastfed way past the socially appropriate and acceptable length of time...whatever that may be. He had such a fascination with boobs, it was quite uncomfortable. And the way he would not leave his mother's side...ugh. Cut the cord already, would you?

Ben was obviously a bottle-fed baby. He had awful teeth, and the way he chugged from his water bottle...total bottle mouth. Pretty sure he still sleeps with his Playtex Nurser.

I'm sure Amy co-slept with her parents, actually IN their bed. Can you image? This must be the reason she chooses to commute to and from school, so that she can still co-sleep. We all know that once they're in your bed, you can't get them out!

Brenda was a crib baby, I just know it. She's totally detached, and I think she still cries herself to sleep and sucks on her 6 pacifiers that her mother used to toss in her crib as a baby.

And finally Josh. Poor Josh...still strapped to his mother's hip in a sling at the age of 18. How will he ever learn to walk?

Goodness, didn't their parents know they were doing everything so so wrong??
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Absurd, right? No, these aren't real people. And there is no way one would be able to make such conclusions by looking at a child, teen, adult. So why do we, as parents, do this to each other? Why are we not capable of supporting each other, sharing information and experiences without an agenda? WHY is parenting a competition? The end goal is the same: raise healthy, happy, confident, compassionate children who hopefully turn into healthy, happy, confident, compassionate adults. We're all just getting there a little differently. Some paths are chosen out of necessity, some by accident. At the end of the day, does it really matter how or why we get there? Parents need support. We need to know that someone else is probably going through the same exact challenges, or that someone has been there and can offer advice, or a different perspective. Let's start a conversation, not a debate.

And to TIME Magazine and their famous, or infamous, cover asking "Are You Mom Enough?"...

 

Am I mom enough for parenting "experts"? Probably not. While thousands of parenting books have been written on how to raise the perfect child, none have been written precisely for or about MY children. And I'm not striving for perfect, because it doesn't exist.

Am I mom enough for other moms? I'm not trying to be.

Am I mom enough for my children? I think (hope) so. But I'll let them be the judge.