Let's see you do it.....

 I have run across many women who have strong opinions about how people raise their children.
 Breastfeed until 1 year, cloth diapers only, no cartoons, co-sleeping until age 14 (lol), no spanking, no raising your voice, name brand clothing, no sugar, no staying up late.....the list goes on and on and on.
 Let's say it all together shall we? LETS SEE YOU DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 I find people are fast to speak when it comes to HOW to raise children. Most of these times, the parents are extremely young, their children have all left the roost, have one child, OR NO CHILDREN AT ALL. Yea, it's easy to spout off what you THINK should be done. The truth is....it's NOT always easy. Your opinions change....almost daily, on how you want to raise your children.
 Breastfeeding....I've never met a woman that just didn't WANT to breastfeed (although I don't ASK every mother I have met, so I can't say for sure). Some women CAN'T breastfeed. I nursed Laura and Katie exclusively. Neither of them ever had a bottle....and I was proud of myself. William came along and I knew things had that chance of being different. Most of you know, I had a breast augmentation not that long ago. I knew this would change how my body produced milk. I hoped for the best, but prepared myself (or so I thought) for the worst. NOT breastfeeding was not an option to me. That's just what you are supposed to do right? Wrong....you are supposed to do what you CAN, what is best for you and baby, and what makes you happy at the end of the day. I learned this from William. Anyways, I was only able to nurse William for 3 months and that killed me. People not knowing the reason took it upon themselves to assume I just didn't WANT to. Shame on you for assuming. ;)
 Cloth diapers. Seriously? Let's get real. Unless you are a stay at home to ONE baby, I think it's near impossible to find time to rinse out that poopy cloth, and wash a load of diapers daily. Even then, I don't think moms with one baby can spare the time usually. LIFE IS BUSY!
 No cartoons.....again.....get real. There are times when you NEED to get things done. Washing laundry, dishes, mopping, sweeping, vacuuming, dusting, picking up toys, cleaning bathrooms, disinfecting EVERYTHING, washing bottles, folding laundry, putting away laundry, scrubbing bathrooms.....do I need to go on? Life is not 100% about children. We need to live in a clean home....and as much as I have wished for it.....the house still won't clean itself. Sometimes children won't cooperate and play happily by themselves with a toy....or 100 toys. Sometimes a cartoon is my saving grace. It grabs their attention for the amount of time I need to complete these tasks. Lets move on already, they aren't being damaged by watching 30 minutes of mickey mouse clubhouse or Dora!
 Co-sleeping. Nope. Not doing it. My bed is for my husband and I. Not for my children. This is a rule in my house and it will never budge. Most things in my life are about my children. My bed feels like its the only thing my husband and I have to ourselves!!! So moms that judge.....get over it. My babies were all perfectly fine in their comfy bassinets when they were newborns. Get this....they even slept BETTER when we moved them into their own rooms. You do whats best in your home and let me do whats best in mine :)
 All the other things kind of mold into one. Obviously being physically and verbally abusive to children (or anyone) is NEVER ok. EVER. Swatting once for your child to get the hint is not abusive in my opinion. Again....do whats best in your home and I will do whats best in mine.
 The yelling makes me laugh. I want to see the mom with the 8 month old content only baby that is throwing out judgements to come on over. Put my shoes on why don't ya :) 11 year old needs to do math and is complaining every inch of the way, dinner needs to be started yet isnt defrosted all the way, 9 month old is crawling over to the dogs water dish as fast as lightning, 5 year old wants you to "make up" homework for her to do, 3 year old is having a temper tantrum over not being able to find the right book, the bottles need to be washed, the dog is barking over NOTHING and your husband is not home yet. All the kids have questions and concerns and needs. Not every day is run smoothly. Not every mom is perfect. I am far from perfect and I know that. Do I yell at times? Yep! When everything happens at once (which seems like a trend here) its hard to ALWAYS hold it together. I'm a mother and trying to teach my children patience, but I sometimes need a reminder for myself. Don't you?
 Name brand clothing? Nope, not in this house. For any of us. Whats the point? I have 4 kids.....they all need good quality clothing....we all do. Name brands are a literal waste of money, and my kids will look just as cute in their target knock offs :)
 SO....we are all different families. Have different opinions. Let's just do each other a favor and not judge how we choose to raise OUR CHILDREN. If I decide to co-sleep with my baby or not, it has no effect on you. If I yell "everyone quiet!" to my kids after a stressful day.....no effect on you. Or really them. Maybe it's good for them to see their mom say that. I'm serious.
 Let's just do what we think is best for our families, and cheer each other on along the way. Whether we agree on these topics or not :)