Bernadette (not tagging, in case she just wants to quietly live her life) and I were talking about minimalist shoes in my thread, and she hinted at the larger conversation parents have about how minimalist shoes help kids feet develop better.
It reminds me of a lot of things I’ve heard from other parents, the things they’re focusing on and the things they’re letting slide - based on their values, their bandwidth, or their kids personalities.
I’d love to hear what other parents are letting go of, as they seek to avoid the “optimization” of parenting that we’re constantly bombarded with on the Tok and Gram.
A piping hot take! Swim lessons at 2.5: I do see the value in it but I don’t have the gas in the tank for the amount of redirection my specific kid would need at this age. One day!
Wearing appropriate clothing. My daughter has insisted on wearing her bathing suit as clothes for multiple days in a row and it’s just not worth the fight.
Also obviously food stuff, as I have complained about elsewhere. I keep telling myself: I expanded my palate when I was ready. She will in her own time.
He wanted to grow a ponytail and finally did this past school year. Now that it’s summer break we don’t put it up and he doesn’t brush it so it’s just in his face and when we’re outside it’s all hot. He did recently mention wanting to cut his bangs but they’re just almost getting long enough to tuck behind his ears and I don’t want to give him a mullet so I’m “forgetting” that he brought it up. It’ll have to be in a ponytail next week anyway for camp.
As a former swim instructor, this is totally fine! Later will be just fine, and they’ll have more motor control and logic later on too. If you can get their face wet in the bath every now and then, that’s helpful but also fine if not. Let it go!
when my kids were younger I was picky about processed food.
Life became so much easier when they were old enough that I could just let it go (Even in hindsight though, I would still be picky while they were small)
I feel like this is a tricky one when people talk about it because - what is a processed food! Obviously a McDonald’s cheeseburger is a processed food, but does that mean no store bought yogurt? Bread is ok, but only if you bake it yourself and also grind the wheat yourself? 100% everyone should do what they want and then also I see people using very different definitions about what counts as a processed food or not.
Farm to table organic imported seed oil free formula. The Kirkland brand will do
Plastic eating & drinking vessels
Toys that light up and make sounds (though I do restrict the hours they are played with bc we live in an apartment) (and if the batteries die, oh well! Broken forever!)
Dining out
Traveling, outside of trips to see family
TV time in the morning. My brain will not parent before 6am
Thanks! I will say too I’d be more diligent if we had family or friends with pools, we lived somewhere where we were a short distance from a body of water, etc etc.
Brought to you by looking for resources on navigating my 6yo child’s sudden concern that she grow up to be “skinny gorgeous” and a healthy dose of annoyance at being told that what I’m doing is wrong and how to do it better, even if I’m doing everything I’m “supposed” to (because someone will inevitably tell me that I’m actually not supposed to do that, or still not doing it enough).
Here’s a preview of the hot takiest thing I’ve ever read not just about parenting but a whole lot about that too.
yes, I am here for this thread (or will be back when I have more than a minute to spare). I have so many hot takes….
