Things Moms should never do

I must admit, I think moms should be held to a higher standard than anyone else in the world.  Actually, I think parents in general should be held to a higher standard than others, but I hold moms in a category all their own. Mothers are the only beings on the planet who have a special, sacred connection with their children from the moment they are conceived. 

I felt my daughters' fluttery movements within my womb when I was just barely into the second trimester of pregnancy. By 17 or 18 weeks, I delighted in their antics, kicking and rolling and punching their days away. Later in the pregnancies, others could feel, or even see, their lively movements, but for those first few months, the joy was mine alone.  I would carve my own heart out with a dull blade before I ever did anything that might cause them a moment's distress.

Yet, I look around our world, and I see so many mothers utterly neglecting, harming and sacrificing their children in pursuit of their own desires. And I'm not just talking about the bold, headline-making atrocities- I see women everyday who are wounding their children bit by bit, in small, but significant ways.

Moms should never use their children as weapons to hurt the father. Moms should never make a child choose one parent over the other. Moms should take care of their children, teach them to take care of themselves, nourish them properly, and never allow them to poison their minds with inappropriate media.  Moms should never make promises they can't keep, and moms should be there, always.  

Moms should be there when their children are sick, and moms should make their children their number ONE priority. Moms should seek help when their kids need it- in school, in health, in delays, and emotionally. Moms should never blame their kids for issues that arise- they are children.  

I think moms should consider their positions in everything they do, and I think they should always present an image they would be comfortable with their kids knowing about. Moms should have adult needs and adult fun, but make it healthy and appropriate. Have an intimate need? Satisfy it in a respectful, healthy manner, not by sleeping with anything that buys you dinner.  Want a fun night out with friends? Go to a club, have a few drinks, be silly with the girls and then drive home safely with a designated driver. Don't get wasted with meth-head friends, take slutty pictures to post on the internet, drive home with a beer in your hand, and then take even more pictures of such behavior to share with the world. Want to pamper yourself? Buy a little something or indulge at the spa. Don't run up your credit cards constantly buying yourself clothes, jewelry and gadgets, while your kids wear shoes that are ripping at the seams.

I firmly believe that mother is a verb, not a noun. It is not a title bestowed upon everyone with the ability to reproduce. Being a mother is something you DO every single day, not something you just simply ARE. I wish more people, more mothers, knew that.