What not to say

I published a post on the subject of "what never to say to your childless friends," when I first started this blog.  Well, I feel vindicated! MSN posted on this subject too and I wasn't far off from what they thought.  So to all my child-free friends, weather by choice or other, I vow to try and avoid these subjects at all costs.  You are valuable to me.

Holy Cow Moment ?:  We are all chasing off our friends by being in the "mommy club" and forgetting what it was like to be on the outside.  Don't forget you don't know if someone is childless by choice or because of medical reasons.  You don't know how significant the choice is either. So as a mom (or dad) vow to remember that if we want to keep all our friends, we will think before we go off into "mommy" mode.

I try and remember what it was like when I did not have children and a few things that a friend did or said that made me realize that she might not be as good of a friend as I had thought.  It hurt deeply and made me feel as if I were a complete moron or that there was something wrong with me.

So to all of my "Families of 1 or 2", and I don't agree that dogs can't be your kids so throw them in also, if i ever hurt you please tell me because I love you dearly. but sometimes I might forget.

Click to see:
MSN's top 10 things not to say if you value your friends without kids
I think the number one thing that hurt the worst was the below.  Granted I will admit I did not fully understand some things, I can now say that, but no I am not from another planet and I was not as clueless as my friend and or friends assumed me to be by their statement.  Now that I have been on both sides of the fence I can speak freely.   

2. "You'll understand when you're a mom."

Sure, motherhood can change your perspective on many subjects, from discipline to healthy eating. But childless women don't come from another universe, says Laura Carroll, childfree blogger and author of Families of Two. "It's a myth that the childless don't know anything about parenting," she says. "They were once children themselves, they may have nieces and nephews or they may work with kids." Instead of subtly putting her down, show genuine interest and curiosity about your friend's opinions on parenting topics, says Carroll. She may surprise you with a fresh and effective approach.

Blog it, Tweet it, Write it, Whatever

Holy Cow Moment #:  Do you have the tattered old thing your mom filled out for you as a child, well some of people do.  Some mom’s never did do that fundamental book of firsts, the baby book. Baby books seem to be a thing of the past.  Our child now lives online.  Her photo is out there the day she is born along with the only weight she will never be embarrassed by, her height and any other tidbits mom and dad want to share.  The poor kid has an electronic footprint before she can even smile. 

What even happened to the baby book, birth announcements?  What if you are the embarrassing parent that doesn’t know it yet and you are ruining your Childs chance at becoming president.  Now her first step is electronically shared with the world, her first word, her random ear infection, if her BM’s are normal and if they are not you can ask for advice.  Frankly if you could publish the news from all different sources you would have your baby book through twitter, blogs, Facebook and whatever else.

My child will know how to type her name before writing it, or so it seems most days.  I am still writing her baby book and I still sent out birth announcements (in the Mail – with a stamp) but so many traditions are changing and things are becoming instant.  I still can’t believe I have to wait two weeks for my Childs portraits to be printed.  Weren’t we doing one hour photo’s over ten years ago? Come on photo place, this isn’t rocket science – anymore.

Every generation is different from the next but I think our kids have it the weirdest.  So much information at the tip of your fingers, what do you suppose they will do with it?

The evolution of mass mailings ...

Holy cow moment: As I received my mass txt birth announcement from a friend I couldn't help but think about what my children will grow up with. Up until the early 90's it was chain mail or mass letters with-wait for it- stamps. Slowly email sprouted into homes, taking chain mail and mass emails from USPS, really it just made these annoying mailings more prevalent and irritating, although they were easier to delete. Next came the intro to social networking, myspace, Facebook etc...now we can send out little gems of info like "I got a coke zero" or "I stepped onto the grass today". Next came the affordability to send mass text messages and Twitter... Suddenly you can't choose what your going to read.

I still don't think a mass anything takes place of telling close friends and family good or bad news. Also just because you think your emotional diarrhea was important in your head doesn't mean the remainder of the world wanted to be your therapist-that's why you have friends and no, social networks with "friends" doesn't mean that all 600 people who you "friended" are your near and dear, sorry if that's harsh.

Our children are going to grow up either thinking everyone cares about everything or that their parents generation was retarded. Either way us poor parents, aunts, uncles don't stand a chance at looking at all normal in validating the current social network craze. Good news though-we have officially figured out how to avoid ever having to talk to THOSE people who can't shut up, now you can read about their aging cat that no longer can control his bladder.

Is it bad my almost eight month old can use an iPod? Holy cow what is the world coming to?

This post makes me feel old...