A Latte of Advice

I use to read parenting books and magazines. When Mason was little, I would read all sorts of things trying to make mental notes to remember when he was older. Then he did get older - I hate that he keeps doing that. For about a year after Mary Jane was born, when Charlotte & Mason were 2 and 4, I was in survival mode. I was exhausted, and I realized that reading beauty tips for moms and ways to make healthy snacks from scratch just made me want to cry. I was lucky to get a shower and 3 hours of uninterrupted sleep.

I cancelled my subscription to Parents Magazine because I couldn't take the guilt. I read about all of the things I wasn't doing to be a good mother, and it made me feel terrible. Somehow, we all survived, and even thrived. Now that they are (yikes) 4, 6, and 8, I'm entering a new stage in parenting. Rob & I are raising a little boy who is so much like us that sometimes we have a hard time communicating with one another. I'm learning that I can't and shouldn't try to control so much of my children's lives. Some of the advice is actually helping us have a calmer, happier home.

There is still guilt. While I am trying to "celebrate calm" with "love and logic" (2 current preferred parenting methods around here, I still run into moments when I have no idea what to do. I told Mason that he is my guinea pig for parenting. He told me that I didn't learn anything about raising girls who like American Girl Dolls from him. We have our moments. My advice is not to listen to too much advice. I've found that escaping to Starbucks really helps as well.