Remember back before you had kids, and you were always JUDGING other parents for how they handled theirs? Then once you had kids, you wanted to murder anyone who judged YOU?
Welcome to the parent hood, my friend. Redbook magazine asked parents to name the number one thing they WISH other people knew about their kids.
- Sometimes my kids are loud and obnoxious and it’s not because I’m a bad parent.
- Boys are naturally curious and don’t always sit still with their hands in their laps.
- Just because my house is messy doesn’t mean I don’t clean.
- If I had my way I wouldn’t bring my kids to the store with me. But I can’t afford a babysitter.
- Children don’t come out of molds. They are very individual and have their own quirks that don’t always follow ‘the rules’ in the parenting books.
- Raising cats and dogs is not the same as raising a child.
- I value my child’s naptime. We’ll come to your event . . . but if we don’t work it around the nap, my kids won’t be all happy and smiling.
- I understand that you’re getting annoyed. Please have patience while I learn to be a parent and while my kids learn to be people.
- Children are not miniature adults. They won’t react to things the same way a rational adult would.
- Babies cry and toddlers throw fits. They are not good or bad because of that . . . it just makes them a child.
- Please get over simply crying and whining at the grocery store and restaurants. I can’t teach my kids to behave in those places if I never take them there.
What would you add to the list?
Buzz is married to Jennifer and has 2 sons. Zacharie was born in May 2007 and Charles in January 2010. Buzz is a radio guy who enjoys building bridges between old and new media.
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I like #6 b/c for some strange reason people frown upon kennel training your kid and leaving them at home alone even IF you leave lots of fresh water
although some of the other teaching principles do apply 
I liked this post.
“Please get over simply crying and whining at the grocery store and restaurants. I can’t teach my kids to behave in those places if I never take them there.”
I have a child and this still appalls me. Society is not here to suffer the burden of your screaming child. If the child can not behave, remove them from the establishment. Your poor “teaching” is not of my concern. My child knows what appropriate behavior is and that it’s expected when we’re in that environment. Oh yea, he’s 2 1/2.