" wrote:

Sue wrote:
I thought this one and the other links on mothering were good.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6959880/...week/?GT1=6190

What a pessimistic view of motherhood!!

I have no sympathy for women who sign their 9 kids up for 4 different
after school activities each, and then complain that they spend all
their time in the car.

While I agree with this, there is something
to the fact that college applications look at
things like well-roundedness. For some people,
for whom it's important to go to a "good college",
this kind of stuff is "necessary".

When I was a kid I took piano lessons for several years, then switched
to cello. I had after school activities, and I rode the late bus or my
bike home. If I wanted to join something, I was responsible for making
it work - not my mom.

Actually, this is partially true. When I could,
I took the bus to my piano lessons. Of course,
my parents did a lot of driving around, but I
did take the bus when possible.

[...] We are not going to be one of those families who
never has dinner together because the kids are always at practice or
lessons or whatnot. It's a choice, not a requirement.

Love this! Our family policy is that
we SHALL have dinner together.

Another thing that annoys me about that article is the idea that
"society" makes us all behave like Martha Stewart. That's crap. As if
the kids give a damn if their paper plates are color coordinated with
the napkins and cups.

Thank you for saying this. When reading the
article, I was thinking, WHAT??? Colour-coordinated
paper plates??? Heck, get whatever plates and cups
are on sale, get some streamers, DONE. Whatever
other parents want to have done and were calling her
to do..., THEY can do themselves!

It's all a matter of choices and priorities, and I don't feel that the
government needs to change anything to make me a better (future)
parent. In fact, the less the government is involved with my home and
my family, the better.

Yep, it's all about choices. My stepmother-in-law
is a dingbat, but she has a great phrase: Being
Supermom is also about being yourself. I think the
woman who spent 3 hours with her kid before work,
then 3 hours after work was insane. Where's her
husband???

I also hated that the article mentions that the husbands
are basically incompetent. Who are these women
anyway? Are the the ones who get mad because
the husbands got the wrong brand of milk? Or didn't
get colour-coordinated paper plates???

-- Anita --