The Top 5 Things I Said I’d Never Do as a Parent

You know that person judging you in the grocery store as your kid throws a fit? That was me. “I’ll never let my kids act that way,” I confidently thought.

I was an amazing parent and mom extraordinaire! I knew all the right things to say and do. My kids only ate the healthiest of foods, and they never acted up. I never got upset and yelled. Our house was always clean and picked up.

That is, until I had kids of my own.

Be honest. You’ve done it, too! Before I had kids I thought I knew it all, and my list of “I’d never!” was much too long.

Here are the top 5 things I said I’d never do as a parent, but (spoiler alert!)… have actually done.

1. I’ll never let my toddler still use a pacifier. Our two year old daughter was still addicted to her binkie with no end in sight. But you know what? I like sleep! We waited until she was a little older before cutting back just to nap and bedtime. Eventually she was just ready. Binkie stuck around longer then I would have hoped, but we all survived!
2. I’ll never give my kid sweets. The first solid food our daughter tasted was ice cream from Chick-fil-A. No shame.
3. I’ll never let my kids act up in public. Our youngest is strong willed to say the least. Some of the reasons he might be screaming in Target are: I buckled him in. I didn’t buckle him in. I didn’t let him buckle himself in. It’s Tuesday. The sky is blue. The fact is, tantrums are going to happen! We’re all just doing our best.
4. My kids will never sleep in my bed. See #1 above. I still like sleep. With our second kid we were much more relaxed, and our motto was “go with the flow.” Besides, how much longer will they want to snuggle with you like that? Soak it up!
5. I’ll never let my kid watch too much television. I’m not above turning on PBS for a while so I can get things done. I owe a debt of gratitude to Super Why, Thomas the Train and Daniel Tiger.

I regularly laugh over the silly things I said I’d never do when I was a mom. And I’m much slower to judge other moms! My kids are happy and healthy, so I must be doing something right.

What is your “I’d never” parenthood confession?