Never Would I Ever...

Did Y'all ever play that drinking game, "never have I ever". Whatever the person says they "never" did, if you did it you'd have to drink? Yes? No? I know Amanda has played it because I've played it with her. Motherhood can be a bit like this drinking game. You get pregnant, and you immediately start imagining how you're going to be like when you're a parent. "My kid will never watch TV while I cook." Then the next thing you know, you're the mom taking a swig of your adult beverage because your kid totally watches TV while you cook. [raises hand] been there, done that, bought the T-Shirt.

Never Would I Ever... Until I did...

Linking up with Christine, Brittany, and Ashley for Mama Tells All



I was totally "that" mom. The mom that swore to all of her friends and family the things her children would NEVER do; or the things I would never do as a mom.
Yeeeaaaahhhh.... all of that pretty much flew out the window as soon as I was home from the hospital.

Feb 2014 / see? They're fine.

"My kids will never have a pacifier". They did take a pacifier. Zander stopped using his at 13 months, and Ainsley stopped using hers at 19 months. (so, a week ago!) haha. Let's face it. Sometimes babies just want to suck on something. You know they're not hungry. You know they're really ok. Sometimes sucking on that pacifier is the only thing to calm them down because 1) they haven't figured out their fingers work just as well, 2) you're bottle feeding and they can't keep a bottle in their mouth ALL day long, or 3) you're breastfeeding and you really don't want the baby comfort sucking on your boob ALL day long! (Uh *raises hand*, right here on that one, y'all!)

"Watch T.V. before they were two". Wrong again. Especially with Ainsley. Zander saw his first cartoon at 18 months. Thanks, Uncle Mike for babysitting. haha. But seriously, I was a real bitch about this one for no reason at all. Sure, you don't want to let your kids watch too much t.v., but there are just some moments when you need to finish the dishes or run the mop or whatever, and you just can't do it when the kids are dying for your attention. Ainsley got to watch t.v. at a real young age. I wasn't about to hide her from the cartoons if Zander got to watch them. PBS Kids actually has some really educational shows now-a-days, y'all. I admit to getting sucked into Super Why! when the kids have left the room. Guilty.

"I'll never let my kids go to bed with a bottle". Seriously though, y'all... moms have to sleep right? When both of my kids got to the age where they were waking for milk and they could hold a bottle - you better believe I changed their diapers, gave them a bottle and went right back to bed. Zander had it way more than Ainsley. He even went into toddlerhood with sippy cups in bed. Some kids require more to get to sleep. It just happens. And guess what? He's been to the dentist four times now for cleanings (twice last year and twice this year) and not once did the dentist say he had a problem with his teeth from "bottle rot". He's fine. Ainsley is fine. Trust your guts, moms.

     And just a few things I do that some moms don't agree with all the time:
I'm not a helicopter mom. I don't hover over the kids. I let them play how they want to play. If this means they fall, so be it. **In relation to this, Ainsley totally fell about 6 ft while we were at the playground this past weekend. She didn't even cry... because...

I don't make a fuss over falls and scrapes. Sure, I make sure the kids are OK, but if nothing is broken and they're physically OK I make sure they see that they're OK on my face. If I were to freak out over every little thing, then if something as small as tripping over a rug were to happen the kids would make a big deal about it. Parenting is all about acting, y'all.

I parent my own way. I do what feels right. Did I go into parenting thinking I'd be doing this differently? Absolutely. Do I regret changing my mind about what I thought I'd do? Not at all. Raising my kids the way Josh and I want to is the best decision we could've ever made.

linking up with Anne for Wednesday Wishes as well

I wish new parents all the courage and strength to just go with their gut. Don't do something when it comes to parenting if it doesn't feel right to you. I wish for all of the moms reading this week's Mama Tells All prompt gives them some sort of relief that what they're doing is OK if they're having doubts about it.