Category Archives: Judgement Days
Is Feedback a Gift?
A friend likes to think that “feedback is a gift. You may not like how it is wrapped up, but it is always a gift.” I’m not sure I agree. I think some feedback can be a gift offering insight for the recipient. But… more often than not, I think feedback is more a reflection [...]
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Don’t let others define you
A few years ago we went camping with some other families. I let my children run around in nature and climb trees, even if they seemed a little high and potentially dangerous. I trusted they had the common sense not to climb higher than their comfort level and if they took a fall I [...]
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To medicate or not to medicate
Your kid is disruptive and showing signs of ADD. The school recommended you medicate, and after thoughtful consideration you did so. Your friend’s son is disruptive but she chooses not to medicate. You see the child “suffer” and think she made the wrong choice. She sees that your child has dropped weight and seems drugged [...]
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When Carpool Stinks Like a Cesspool
I’ll admit, the inside of my SUV is kinda gross not the cleanest. Even though the days of furry Cheerios and sippy cups of rotten milk are gone, I do have a bit of a mess going on inside. But it’s more of a dog hair, scattered baseball cards, assorted crumbs from whatever meal was [...]
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Blame the genes, not the Parenting
“Can’t you control your child?” For any of us who have been on the receiving end of those words, or worse, that disdainful glare, the answer is a shameful, “not always”. We can try. We can limit their diet, micromanage our discipline and time out until we are blue in the face, but as anyone [...]
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Beware of Sharing Parenting Advice
Supermodel Gisele Bündchen recently caught flack for extolling breast feeding a little too enthusiastically, stating that she thinks breastfeeding should be mandatory for the first six months of the child’s life. She was quoted in the September issue of Harper’s Bazaar UK as saying “Some people think they don’t have to breastfeed, and I think [...]
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Martyr Moms
It’s interesting how mothers label each other SELFISH or LAZY. “She loves to drop the kids with a babysitter, so she can exercise and shop,” one gossips. “We never use babysitters,” says another in a holier than thou tone. The implication is clear: spending time away from your kids makes you selfish, lazy or worse, [...]
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Even Charlotte feels Judged
In the new Sex in the City movie, Charlotte and Miranda struggle with mommy guilt and judgment. Miranda for picking work over her child’s milestones and Charlotte for feeling overwhelmed, frustrated and imperfect, even with full time help (think Mary Poppins, sans the bra). Over lunch, when Charlotte’s child starts to cry inconsolably, Miranda tries [...]
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Why we care what Other People think of our Parenting Choices?
“Girls think other people’s opinions are a good way to judge their abilities,” Mindset author Carol Dweck mentioned in a speech last night. Through her extensive research on fostering success, Dweck found that girls, and as a result women, give far more weight to other people’s opinions than their male peers. I found this interesting [...]
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Labeling kids