Yes, sadly that was my philosophy. But let's be honest, plenty of non-parents judge moms and dads up and down and have all sorts of opinions on what they should and should not do with their kids. And it's not really out of any sort of maliciousness or know-it-all mentality -- it's just that you simply have no clue what it's like to raise a child until you're actually in the midst of doing so.

Nowadays, I can't help but chuckle a little at all of the things moms do that I used to find so outrageous or appalling -- but now I do all of them too. Or if I don't, I fully realize that every mother has to parent her kid in a way that works for her and her child, regardless of what anyone else thinks.

That being said, here are eight things I shamelessly judged other moms for before I had a child.

1. Co-sleeping. OMG. If I so much as heard about a mom taking a child into her bed, I had all sorts of "what the hell is the matter with her?" thoughts running through my brain. I figured she was lazy and wanted to coddle the heck out of her kiddos. And now I want to go back in time and slap myself every time my 8-year-old climbs into my bed in the middle of the night.

2. Using a pacifier. Gah. As far as I was concerned, any mom who felt the need to shut up her kid probably shouldn't have had one in the first place. (For the record, my son had his paci until he was 3. The end.)

3. Hanging on to baby weight. As horrible as this is to admit, my skinny 26-year-old self couldn't understand why some moms "let themselves go" after having children and then used the classic, "My body isn't the same after a baby" excuse. Uhhh ... let's just say the cottage cheese on my ass and a little belly pooch that refuses to go away no matter what kind of diet or exercise I do are karma coming back to bite me. (I deserve it.)

4. Letting kids watch TV/play video games. As if! My kid was SO gonna be screen-free, because I was way more creative than all of those moms who had to use the TV and/or Nintendo as a crutch. Wait! That reminds me, I need to go charge my son's iPad so he can have it after school ...

5. Feeding kids junk food. Every time I saw a mom go through the drive-thru, I rolled my eyes in disgust and couldn't believe she was filling her child with such garbage. Yeahhhhh. Let's just say I had high hopes for organic, balanced meals -- until I had a kid who has an issue with textures and an extra strength gag reflex. Grilled cheese is a food group in itself, right?

6. Working. Yes ... yes, I judged working moms. There. I said it. And yes, I'm ashamed of it, not only because I'm part of the working mom crew now, but because I understand that I helped fuel the mommy wars and I wasn't even a mom. I couldn't understand why every mom wouldn't want to stay at home -- until I stayed at home and realized I was going to need to go back to work at some point. (I'm an asshole. I know.)

7. Being party poopers. I swore up and down that having a child was not going to have any effect on my social life. I was going to hire babysitters left and right to maintain my status as a cool, fun chick -- and any mom who didn't was just way too wrapped up in her kids. Considering my kid only has a babysitter a few times a year at best, it's safe to say I fell right into my own trap here.

8. Not having complete control. Every single time I saw a mom whose kids were getting a little out of line, being too loud, being annoying, etc., I simply could not understand why she didn't have control of them and why she wasn't demanding that they behave like little angels. Um, do I really have to explain this one? Sheesh. I had no clue.

What sorts of things did you judge moms for before you had kids? (Don't even try and act like you didn't judge at all.)

Holiday Lights: Have You Cut Back to Save Energy?

Share this Story

You May Also Like

From Our Partners

Related

Trending

Newsletter

Get the latest from CafeMom in your inbox