True words spoken, by me, many times. You know the time when you are single and young and you know more than the parents around you? Yes, I know exactly how I would be as a parent. I would be patient and I definitely wouldn’t be caught dead in a public place with a screaming child. Don’t parents know how to keep their kids calm and quiet? Yes, I was the 20 something judging you in the corner table of the restaurant while you kid threw food all over the floor.
Then came the books, all the books. When I was pregnant I read a good load of books. I was sure to have this parent thing under 100% control now. I knew everything I needed to know to do everything right and perfect! If you would have asked me, at that time, I knew it all.
I have to admit that my first child was pretty perfect. She was calm and sweet and barely cried. She slept through the night at 3-months (12 hours at a time) and has always slept through the night. It was the three of us and while my husband was at work, we ruled the world. Life was perfect and I had it going on.
Then something happened. My child got older and this sassy little princess started to test me. No worries though I had all my experience of parent judgment in my 20’s and even more experience reading about it. Bring it on little sass monster, bring it on! But wait…none of this sh$@ works. What, wait…the books lied, they all lied! Why is my perfect little princess yelling and crying at me in the grocery store over a can of olives I took out of her hand and put back on the shelf. Wait! Give it back, NO that didn’t work either…OMG everyone is looking at me wth! Who are you little devil and what have you done with my sweet child! This is the time I grab her from the cart and run out crying and sobbing…”why oh why!”
