1.24.2015

Judge Free Parenting

In other posts, in other status updates,
I have voiced my opinion of people
who judge other parents.
There are so many avenues in which we choose to bully as adults.

Breastfeeding, bottle feeding, vaccinations, diapering, discipline, coddling, co-sleeping...
So many reasons to judge, so little time.
I am guilty of it, you are guilty of it.
And if you are sitting there thinking,
"I've never done it."
Wrong.
You have.

"Oh boy, if that was my kid I'd..."
"These days kids..."
"I can tell you one way to get that kid to behave."
Fill in your own blanks.

Recently I was talking to a friend of mine
who just became a mom and mentioned the stares and rude comments 
she gets when she bottle feeds her baby.
Yes, it is breast milk in that bottle.
Even if it wasn't, whose business is it but hers and her partners?
We are so quick to judge, give a dirty look and even say things that 
are so incredibly hurtful. 
Some parents are witty enough to come back with a smart comment.
But there are others, like myself, who are stopped in their tracks
 always think of the best things to say way after the fact. 

Lately it seems like other parents have been taking a stance against this bullying.
You don't have to agree but you do have to be nice.
Didn't Thumper from baby once say,
"If you don't have anything nice to say, then don't say anything at all."

(photo from Disney Wikia)

about a mom who said she feels the need to explain to people why she can't breastfeed.
Even the lactation consultants at the hospital when her baby was born were pushing her to try.
It exhausted her. She was sick of explaining herself.
She felt the need to give her whole story just to make people shut up about it.
Her reality was that she was a breast cancer survivor.
If she had enough breast tissue left to be able to produce any milk at all
that was a very scary reality for her as it meant there would be a chance her breast cancer could return.
Yikes.

Another great add I saw by Similac was this video they made
about the "Sisterhood of Motherhood".
It is so true. 
To each his/her own,
but when it comes down to it we are all parents just trying to do the right thing.
Let's bring it back to the Word, always. 
What does the Bible say?

"Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; 
make the most of every opportunity.
Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt,
so that you may know how to answer to everyone."
Colossians 4:5-6

"Do not grumble against one another, brothers"
James 5:9a

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