“Many people with no first-hand experience of being a mother to teens right now think they know better and won't listen or understand.” This quote encapsulates the problem. Those people do not get a say, an opinion or a vote in how parents raise their kids, and we need to stop acting as if their opinions matter. We are the ones who will …
“Many people with no first-hand experience of being a mother to teens right now think they know better and won't listen or understand.” This quote encapsulates the problem. Those people do not get a say, an opinion or a vote in how parents raise their kids, and we need to stop acting as if their opinions matter. We are the ones who will help our kids navigate their mistakes, and we are the ones who will help pick up the pieces afterwards. Therefore, we get the first, last and only decision-making authority. In my house, thank goodness there’s been no issues with cross gender identity so far. But there are other health and medical related issues on which we’ve had deep disagreements with family and friends. For those who were interested in an open minded discussion, we were willing to explain our perspective and listen to theirs. Once. After that they needed to accept that we had “heard them” and that decisions were up to the parents, and the parents alone. For people who didn’t get the hint, or made judge or snide comments, they were quickly shown the door in our relationships. I welcome relationships with people who disagree with me, but once we’ve discussed it, then it’s time to move onto other, less controversial subjects. And if I ever hear someone quote a politician by saying, “It takes a village to raise a child” or “There’s no such thing as other people’s children,” then you can be assured that person will never be given alone time with my kids.
“Many people with no first-hand experience of being a mother to teens right now think they know better and won't listen or understand.” This quote encapsulates the problem. Those people do not get a say, an opinion or a vote in how parents raise their kids, and we need to stop acting as if their opinions matter. We are the ones who will help our kids navigate their mistakes, and we are the ones who will help pick up the pieces afterwards. Therefore, we get the first, last and only decision-making authority. In my house, thank goodness there’s been no issues with cross gender identity so far. But there are other health and medical related issues on which we’ve had deep disagreements with family and friends. For those who were interested in an open minded discussion, we were willing to explain our perspective and listen to theirs. Once. After that they needed to accept that we had “heard them” and that decisions were up to the parents, and the parents alone. For people who didn’t get the hint, or made judge or snide comments, they were quickly shown the door in our relationships. I welcome relationships with people who disagree with me, but once we’ve discussed it, then it’s time to move onto other, less controversial subjects. And if I ever hear someone quote a politician by saying, “It takes a village to raise a child” or “There’s no such thing as other people’s children,” then you can be assured that person will never be given alone time with my kids.