Speaking from experience

Ok, so this is going to be a different post than I normally write, but bear with me. Being a parent is one of the most wonderful and most difficult things I have ever experienced in my life. Before having kids, I never understood the excitement over the tiniest of accomplishments or the emotional lows of wondering if you'll simply make it through being a parent for the rest of your life. Today as Parker threw the mother of all fits as we were going quickly (trust me, I NEVER linger with the kids) through a store, a couple of thoughts went simultaneously through my mind. The first was "Supernanny, where are you when I need you?" and the other was "I can't believe I ever used to think poorly of people when I would see their kids acting this way". And I guess that's really my point of writing this. The next time you see a parent (dads aren't immune, either, although they do have an infuriating way of being more effective *scary* than moms are) struggling with a child, don't assume that they aren't as horrified as you are at the behavior of their kid. Don't assume that the child is undisciplined, and don't imagine how you would handle the situation differently. For all you know, that mom is going to cry her eyes out on the way home out of frustration and desperation, feeling helpless and overwhelmed, but knowing that she has no choice but to persevere because her child (whether he knows it or not) is counting on her to do just that. Chances are pretty good that she's not trying to garner the attention and evil eye of every adult within a 1/2 mile radius. She's probably just trying to run an errand, or buy groceries, or look for a birthday present for someone, and now she's going to have to figure out when she can find the time to come back because right now she's got to go home and deal with her child. Whew....didn't just reading that sentence wear you out?!?! So the moral of the story is next time you're somewhere and you see or hear a kid acting up, remember what it was like for you or imagine how you will feel when it IS you, and give a little grace. I know I will.