How I think you should raise your child(ren)

I’ve noticed that there has been quite a bit of controversy lately over how a person should or should not raise their child(ren).  I’m not sure if that’s the way it’s always been and I’m just noticing it now because I have children or if it is a newer topic. But either way, here is how I feel you should raise your children:

ANY WAY YOU DAMN WELL PLEASE.

As long as your child(ren) are well and safe, who is someone else to say that your way is wrong?

I grew up with a very strong willed and narrow minded mother, which was both a blessing and a curse. She was decisive and always got what she wanted and needed. But the curse came out when it came for her children (my parent have 8) to form an opinion of their own, because that wasn’t allowed. We were raised in more of an old fashioned way. We were brought up with strong Christian rules and that was just the way it was. My mother stayed at home with us children; she also was a home birth midwife who 100% stood behind breastfeeding. She was anti vaccination, anti sugar, anti caffeine, anti pants, anti bathing suits, anti public schools, (catching my drift?) which led to raising some very narrow minded children.

I was the worst. I went along with her beliefs blindly because that was the way I was brought up. I didn’t have children of my own yet, of course. So when my older sister became a mom in high school, I thought it was the end of the world for her. When my next sister drank caffeine while pregnant, had her baby IN A HOSPITAL with an epidural and then later on decided to use formula, oh my gosh, I couldn’t even wrap my head around that.

But then this crazy thing happened, I GOT PREGNANT. And guess what? I drank caffeine during my pregnancy. It was actually “prescribed” to me by my midwife to help with my migraines. I moved out of state at 37 weeks pregnant, so I didn’t get to have my midwife. Not only did I have my son in a HOSPITAL, 18 hours into my 31+ hour labor, I opted for an EPIDURAL (whaaaaaaa?!)!

I have PCOS and endometriosis, which lead to my milk never coming in. So guess who also had to use formula? That’s right, this Mombie. When it came time to vaccinate, I opted out of all of them. Except for the Vitamin K shot, they wouldn’t circumcise him unless he had it. (My parents didn’t circumcise my brothers. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it, so I left the decision up to my husband. He’s circumcised so he decided to get our son circumcised as well.) Well, when my son was about 4 months whooping cough was in the area, so after doing my research, I decided to get him the DTAP. When he was 15 months, I decided to get him the MMR because Measles was popping up in the area. Later when my daughter was born, I opted to get her the same vaccines. Now I know that everyone has their own opinions on vaccines and to this day, I am pretty sure that I am the only one of my siblings who has gotten their child(ren) vaccinated so far (I Have 4 siblings, boy and girl, who do not have children yet). And you know what? That’s okay. Because I did what I thought was best for my children and they’re doing what they feel is best for theirs!

Some mombies breastfeed because it’s easier, some might because it’s healthier or maybe because someone told them to. Other mombies use formula because their milk never came in or maybe because it’s easier. Some parents never give their children sugar because they feel that it is unhealthy for them. Some parents see nothing wrong with it in moderation.Some parents vaccinate. Some do not. Some parents dress their children gender specific, others might let their children decide for themselves. Some parents let their children watch TV and play on the internet. Some may allow them only a certain amount of time with electronics or none at all. Some parents might let their babies/ chidren cry it out. Others could think of it as counterproductive to a child’s upbringing and never let their child(ren) cry. Some parents choose to co-sleep while other parents let their child sleep in their own room. Some parents choose to feed their children homemade meals and others feel that fast food, eating out or meals from a box are totally okay.

But the cool thing about all of that is, ITS OKAY TO MAKE THE CHOICE FOR YOUSELF and for YOUR children. 

Do your research and make educated decisions. Make sure your child isn’t being harmed. Make sure your child is healthy and then RAISE THEM AS YOU PLEASE. That’s why they’re your children! If we were all meant to raise our children the same, we would be called “robots” instead of “humans”.

So Mombies (and Dadsters), raise your children how you see fit. But please please PLEASE raise them to be respectable adults capable of making good decisions and bring them up to be a responsible addition to society!

Just do your best and let them go. The rest is up to them!