Things I've done that I said I would never do.

I was thinking today as I ripped open a box of fruit snacks in the middle of Wal-Mart about all the things I scoffed at parents for doing that I now do, mostly for ease and a little bit for my sanity.

Then: I thought opening things in the store before paying for them was rude and a little weird. Now: Whatever reasonable thing keeps May from throwing herself out of the cart and or screaming at the top of her lungs will be done.

Then:Let my kid sit in the big part of the shopping cart, with no straps.
Now: May starts in the front with the straps on then the straps come off and then she moves into the big part. Reason: the same as above.

Then: Buy things for my kid just so they will stop whining for it.
Now: Bad habit I need to break, I think my problem mostly is I love to buy things for her. She gets so excited over stuff and I love it. My goal is to go back to the then.

Then: Just letting my kid throw a fit in a public area without doing something about it.
Now: Really? What can you do? Spank them so they cry harder? I just ignore it, exactly like the parents I scoffed at before.

Then: Let my kid walk around with a dirty face.
Now: I swear May has traveling shmutz on her face, it really is impossible to keep clean all the time let alone most of the time. I've given up.

Then: Allow my kids to eat in the car.
Now: May probably eats (and when I say eats I mean what actually makes it to her stomach not what I offer her and she throws on the floor) the most in the car, mostly because she is strapped in and can't go anywhere, plus a bowl of Cheerios is a great form of entertainment.

Then: Let the front room be overrun with toys.
Now: The whole house is overrun with toys, I'm not sure why I thought the front room would be special.

Then: Let my kid be a picky eater.
Now: The way I see it now the choice is not let your kid live off the one thing he'll eat or make your kid live off of the many things it's let your kid have the one thing they will eat or let your kid starve herself to death. I do try to give her different things but in the end she always gets that yogurt.

Then: Put my kids in a "leash" backpack.
Now: We just bought one of these. May does not like riding in her stroller and she does not like holding Mommy's hand. Also, she is not a child that pays attention to where she is, she gets a little spacey, like running into walls spacey. We are going to places such as Disneyland and Sea World and frankly I'd rather feel like a fool with her in a "harness" backpack (sounds better that way) then have her run off and be lost forever.

Then: My kids would not be allowed to watch TV everyday.
Now: May watches Mickey Mouse Clubhouse every morning while I shower and I usually put on a movie around 6 or 6:30 so I can cook dinner. It's either that or her throwing an absolute fit on the kitchen floor and dinner taking twice as long to cook.