Mothers are doing it ALL wrong!

Mothers are doing it ALL wrong by Sara Keli at Kid Magazine.

You are doing it all wrong. Parenting that is. The elite sport that has become raising kids. Almost anyone can do it but the few who truly succeed, well do they even exist?

Mothers are doing it all wrong

If you formula-feed your baby you are selfish, did you even try? But breastfeed for too long or in a public place then you are obviously just doing it for your own enjoyment.

Pick your baby up to cuddle them when they are crying and they will be spoiled. Leave them to cry and watch the damage you are doing to their growing psyche happen right before your eyes.

Dare to send a treat in their school lunch box? You are shamed by the teacher calling out the unhealthy choices you are making for your child. And allergies are most certainly a sign of something you did or didn’t do while pregnant or how you introduced solids.

The battle lines are drawn. The Tiger Mums vs The Crunchy Mums vs The Helicopter Mums vs The Silky Mums. We are all called to declare our allegiance, to find our tribe and eschew the beliefs of the opposing camps.

Or is this just in the virtual world? Where the voices of the few drown out the murmur of the many, too busy in their day-to-day lives raising their kids to have the energy or care factor to rise up? The media taking advantage of the voices of the trolls to call out the mummy wars, criticising mums for their everyday choices.

The trolls Vs real life

In my experience, that is certainly the case. Trolls, browse through online mums groups looking for a fight to pick, a decision to criticise, downright disgusting bullying. But in real life, my mum friends are nothing but supportive. We may not have time for each other everyday, but when the rubber hits the road, we are there for each other, sharing advice, comfort and maybe a home cooked meal to pop in the freezer or a glass of wine and a compassionate ear.

When Greens Senator. Larissa Waters, breastfed her baby in Senate last week, all I heard in my mummy circles was support. We can all relate to the experience of needing to just get the job done, both the pull of our careers as well as our mothering responsibilities. For each of us, it may not be the need to breastfeed our baby in such a public forum, but it could be calling in sick AGAIN when your child picks up another bug from daycare. Or the struggle of finding a role that supports both our career ambitions and our job as a mum.

Because at the end of the day, you are doing the best job you know how to do. Whatever the choices you make for your children, as long as their welfare is not endangered, they are the right decisions for your family. Call on each other for support. Worry about our own backyards before we criticise the decisions of others. Judge less, encourage more and celebrate the path we each follow in raising the next generation ready to take on the world and make it a better place.

Have you had enough of the criticism Mums receive from the media?

About the Author

Sara Keli is the Editor and Chief Kid of Kid Magazine, a digital magazine and blog for mums who like style, pretty things and looking after themselves and their families. She lives in Sydney with her husband and two daughters and when she isn’t writing, designing or creating she can be found enjoying the sunshine in the backyard or escaping into a good book.

PIN THIS POST FOR LATER: