Time to Confess

Let me start by saying MJ is deep in the “threeanger” phase.

He is independent when he wants to be, totally needy other times, throwing tantrums at the drop of a hat and being all around challenging at times.  So one afternoon after three major tantrums in the last three days, I needed to get him out of Barnes and Noble peacefully. Keep in mind, I’m well into my second pregnancy and picking him up and hauling him out kicking and screaming, isn’t really an option these days.

Timers weren’t working, negotiating wasn’t working…So I did what anyone in my position would do, I bribed him with a scone the size of his head from the bakery. At 4pm….which basically means my 3 year old ate a scone for dinner. It had blueberries in it – that counts for something right?

I’m not super proud of it, but he calmly walked out the door holding my hand and his scone in the other.  As we happily drove home, I got to thinking…would other moms have done the same thing? Do these little indiscretions happen to everyone? Can we all laugh about them together and not judge or care about the “Mommy Wars” and be united in the fact that parenting can be hard and hilarious at the same time?  So I asked some of my friends and the other mom bloggers for their confessions.  Let’s face it, parenting is not for the faint of heart and sometimes we do things we aren’t proud of, but help us get through the day.

Day to Day Survival Confessions

“ I’ve “accidentally” forgotten that my boys were grounded from video games just so they could play and leave me alone.”

“I’ve thrown a towel over a bedtime accident because I just didn’t feel like changing the sheets at 2am.”

“I’ve gone so long without giving my kids a bath that I forget when they’d last had one. Swimming counts in the summer, right?”

“My guest room is basically a clean laundry holding area. ”

“A few weeks ago we pulled out of the church parking lot with four kids in the minivan. We have five kids. (We turned around obviously.)”

“I hate playing. I force myself to play with my daughter, but I don’t enjoy it, and I’m not very good at it.”

“I have told my kids “it’s too early for cookies”, then promptly ate one in secret.”

“ I’ve not only thrown away artwork from my child (I keep some of the nicer ones; I’m not a total monster!) but I bury it in the garbage so my son doesn’t see it and get upset.”

“My car is a dumpster. Literally. A dumpster. Don’t ever ask me for a ride or you may end up with gummies stuck to your butt.”

“I don’t rinse off my daughter’s toys/etc. when they fall on (most) floors – even in public… related: The other day I let our dog lick inside my baby’s mouth.”

“I sometimes let my son go to school in dresses. Because he wants too, and who cares really.”

Bedtime and Sleep Confessions

“I set the timer for my boys to do a 20 minute clean up and then secretly add in more time.”

“I’ve set my son’s “ok to wake” clock back in time just so we can get a little more sleep on the weekends.”

“Once at a New Year’s Eve party, we set all the clocks forward so our kids thought they had stayed up until midnight. We then put them to bed and rang in the (real) New Year child free.”

“Both of my boys stay up late every night (my 2 year old until 9 and my 4 year old until around 10). Partly because they are late night kiddos, but mostly because we both work full time and putting them to bed any earlier means we don’t get to spend enough time with them. I make up for it by letting them sleep until the very last moment they can before having to get up for school (and get them dressed while they are still sleeping)!”

Food Confessions

“I once gave my son popsicles for breakfast every day for a month because I convinced myself “greek yogurt” popsicles were healthy and because he refused to eat anything else and I was afraid he would go to school hungry.”

“When we visit family, we put the kids in bed with a movie playing while the chef at the bed and breakfast serves us yummy desserts. Which we definitely don’t share.”

“I ran out of cream and used breast milk in a chicken pot pie recipe. And fed it to company we had over for dinner. And only told them after.”

“My toddler LOVES going grocery shopping because I promise her (and always follow through even if I have to beat up someone to get it) the car cart and a free cookie from the bakery. Heck, there were days this summer that we went to the grocery store 3 days in the week to bask in the AC and have “fun” on the ride on car.”

“I promise my kids cookies if they listen to their dance or swim teacher. Every class.”

“My husband packed dry cat food as a snack and when the babysitter said she’d shared them with her daughter, I lied and said, “Oh, I got them as a baby shower gift!” I later confessed and everyone was fine.”

“On the way to a Dr appointment (where they always asked my kids what kinds of food they ate and my kids always ratted me out) I let my kids get a snack at the store. Of course they begged for Pop Tarts, so I told them they could have one on the way and another on the way home if they didn’t tell the Dr I let them eat pop tarts. HA!”

“Except for foods (honey before a year etc) that the doctor said my toddler shouldn’t have, I let her eat anything she wants really at any point in the day except for drinks (only water and breast milk). She has definitely had cookies for dinner and ice cream for dinner. But she’s eating right?!”

Okay mama’s, it’s time to confess! Tell us the dirty little secrets of parenting and the things you do to get through a tough moment!