Some Highly Opinionated Mommy Thoughts

{below post not going into Mason's journal}

I subscribe to most of the Attachment Parenting's eight principles:

1. Preparation for Pregnancy, Birth and Parenting
2. Feed with Love and Respect
3. Respond with Sensitivity
4. Use Nurturing Touch
5. Ensure Safe Sleep, Physically and Emotionally
6. Provide Consistent Loving Care
7. Practice Positive Discipline
8. Strive for Balance in Personal and Family Life

I have the Dr. Sear's Baby Bible Book and get current e-mail updates on tips notes and suggestions for parenting too (so there!).

• Despite some challenges at the beginning of my pregnancy, I was probably the happiest I've been in my life (well up until M's birth) as a preggers; had a healthy labor and delivery and bonded well with M even in the hospital
• I nurse on demand and for his comfort; he's also starting off with only organic foods
• M is very sensitive so I respond in-kind, being attentive to his mood changes and needs
• I babywear, especially when Mason's being clingy (ie. around teething time)
• We co-slept until he was 6 months (I only stopped because neither one of us was getting much sleep and I wasn't a very good mommy in that extraordinarily exhausted state)
• While I can't be with him all the time, I made sure to find a nanny who loves on M as if he were a family member of her own. She respects and follows my quasi-AP parenting style

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BUT there are some things I strongly dislike about some hardcore Attachment Parents. I especially hate when an AP mom is judgemental and condescending towards others if you don't follow all principles...or if you mention the word/terms: schedule, disposable diapers, or discipline. I've had AP moms look at me like I'm the devil.

A month ago I was just about flamed when I asked someone how they started their child on eating solids. Now grant it I started M on cereal at 4.5 months and he loved it, but when he reached 5 months he was "just not that into it" so I delayed until 6 months to try again following his readiness cues. My question to saidmom revolved around the feeding schedule and when it'd be a good time to introduce solids. And there was that AP dirty word, "schedule."

Get over it! The last AP principle is "Balance in personal and family life." I'm a single mother who works full-time AND travels for business so I often have to leave M with his nanny. M dictates his routine, and I've asked his nanny to follow his lead but he needs cues from us too because he's just a baby and doesn't always necessarily know why he's hungry/hurt/needing attention. So a flexible schedule/routine is a way to give him consistency and help with nurturing and providing security. I'll even go further with this suggesting that AP parents who don't encourage some sort of routine may be missing the point on the whole AP parenting thing in general. I'm not talking about a rigid schedule, watching the clock, or marking off a checklist, but I am talking about things like encouraging a child's bedtime by consistently starting a nighttime routine to encourage bedtime sleep (for us it's a long process of bath, special mommy and Mason bonding time, calm playtime, nursing, nursing, nursing, rocking and book, and down in the crib).

My question is- so when do AP parents do tasks like bathe their children (my son certainly doesn't give me cues that he's ready for bathtime, I initiate that activity)?

I'm definitely a quasi-Attachment Parenting parent; there can be different levels. And there's nothing wrong with that because a parent should recognize that not every child fits into a particular mold. My goal is to nurture and encourage the best health and development for my child in a loving and secure environment.

OK. Rant over.