"I'll Never...."

Isn't it funny how when we're young and idealistic we look at other people in disgust and think, "Oh, I'll NEVER do that!" Here are some things I thought I'd NEVER do....

I'll never let my kid be a picky eater.... Corgan just ate three bites of sour cream for dinner. That's all he wanted. Wouldn't eat my homemade enchiladas, no. He wanted sour cream. So I gave it to him. Sigh.

I'll never let my kid scream in Wal-mart... Oh, please. Kids, screaming and Walmart go hand in hand. The other night I was pushing my cart through the aisles as Corgan screamed and cried, chunking his hearing aids at passers by and I just hummed a little tune in my head.

I'll never let my kid eat candy.... Oh, come on. He's so CUTE when he asks for "dee nee". How can you say no to that? Especially as I myself am shoving candy kisses in my mouth faster than you can say, "How DID I gain those last ten pounds?" And besides, he's saying please.

I'll never be a "frumpy" stay at home mom.... HA!!! The main staples in my wardrobe are t-shirts, workout pants and sneakers. With the hair in a pony tail (no more of that, though!) and makeup? Are you kidding? Who the heck has time?

I'll never let my kid drink soda... I'm a bad mother. I know. His teeth will rot out, I'm sure of it.

I'll never let my kid sleep with me... Ugh. Finally got rid of that little bed bug. After A YEAR AND A HALF.

I'll never bore people with talk about "how cute" my kid is.... As if I could resist. I mean, he's soooo cute! Like the other day, well, never mind.

I'll never make McDonald's/Wendy's/Burger King a main staple in my kid's diet... As if.

I think part of growing up and maturing is learning that "never" is something you should never say. Don't judge someone's parenting skills because you think you'd "NEVER" let your kid get away with that. I've learned that every child is different. Every child goes through different stages and phases. Each child has a unique personality with his or her own idiosyncrasies. You just have to pick your battles. If Corgan only wants sour cream for dinner, well then, he'll be hungry in an hour and then he'll eat. But I decided I want to make dinner time family time, not screaming death match time. And actually, as we speak he is eating a fistful of banana bread (thanks, Danielle!). That's healthy, right? Bananas, nuts, grains. It's all good!