The Mom I Judge the Most

I spent the last two days seriously judging a fellow mom. I know I shouldn’t, but just take a look at the mom I judge…

She gave her toddlers donuts for a snack before nap time. DONUTS.

She also gave them apple juice before bed.

She yelled at her son when he spilled her coffee.

Her three-year-old still poops his pants.

I saw her kids run away from her outside more than once this week. She chased them while stepping on the ends of her pajama pants which she is always wearing at 10 am.

She doesn’t shower every day.

She hid in the pantry eating M&M’s while her two-year-old threw a tantrum.

She lets her kids cry it out… except when she doesn’t. Couldn’t she choose a method and be consistent?

In almost every picture her kids aren’t fully clothed.

I saw her kids spill Cheerios all over the floor and then EAT THEM!

She unashamedly bribes her kids in public with cookies.

At bedtime, she fell asleep on the couch before her kids while they were sitting in front of the TV, eating cheerios off the floor.

Her son would not stop standing up in the cart at the grocery store while her daughter kept trying to open—and probably wanted to drink—the bottle of shampoo they were buying.

Her kids refuse to eat vegetables, and some days she doesn't even try.

She drinks Diet Coke every day.

Her house is usually messy.

The laundry -- can you believe she sometimes doesn't even get to putting it all away and just takes clean clothes from the basket in the mornings?

She keeps saying she is going to start working out or go on a diet, but I haven’t seen any difference in her figure at all.

Her clothes are plain and she needs a haircut.  She must own multiple pairs of those leggings because its all I ever see her wear.

Her family is always late for everything.

She longs for alone time and sometimes wishes she could just have a couple days without her kids. Why does she need alone time? She is a Stay-At-Home Mom. She gets to wear leggings all day and doze on the couch. I mean, seriously, isn’t her whole life a break?

That mom I was judging sounds pretty bad, right?

Oh yeah, that mom is ME.

I used to care what people thought of me and my kids.  Or worried mostly what I thought... you know that "mom guilt" that's always creeping up thanks to the media outpouring of what a "good" mom looks like - My life seemed to be consumed by what other people will think or say or worrying about how I should be doing this or that or what's "best" that I stopped enjoying it as much as I should.

My mantra of the new is: WHO CARES!?

People can judge and criticize each other all the time, all day long.  What works for one family, doesn't always work for another.  No two kids are a like, so no two parenting styles work a like.  Everyone's situation in life is different and there is no sense in comparing apples to oranges.

I may not be perfect, but I am a GOOD mom, and I really do know that.  I'm doing the best I can and providing the best I can. Sometimes I just have to go with my gut and stop worrying what "they" say (ya know, the so-called experts)!  Kids will be kids, and I'm letting them be just that.

So, from now on, others can criticize and analyze my parenting all they want - I even helped them out by writing this list - but I'm choosing to ease up on myself and enjoy these precious times!…because I'm learning all too quickly that it goes by so fast. So. Damn. Fast.