GOMI

I know, some of you will never read a thing I write again because GOMI has been described as a hate site or a bully site. They’ve been no friend to some of the people who I consider to be friends and colleagues (oh god do bloggers have colleagues? That’s weird). This morning I was directed to something at GOMI and they have it completely right there.

Apparently a mom blogger had her child in the emergency room for stitches and decided to instagram the moment where her husband held the child down for the doctors. She also talked about him flirting with the nurses, him being the child, which made me want to retch.

Last night was probably the hardest day of being a parent for me to date. Little sailor took a nasty spill in the kitchen and needed 5 stitches on his forehead. All the other parents out there who have spent lots of time in doctors offices and hospitals, I salute you. Sailor was a champ and was flirting with every nurse there. The kid is relentless and amazing. Starting 2014 off with house floods and ER trips, piece of cake. It can only get better :) Instagram

Can we talk about the fact that toddler children don’t flirt? Is there any mother of a little girl who would ever say that their toddler daughter was “flirting with” adult men? Why is it okay for mothers to say that little boys are going on dates or flirting? Nevermind that it’s okay, why am I the only person who seems to recoil from these women in horror? Make me feel less alone please.

The sexy baby thing isn’t really the problem. Obviously this lady and I see parenting a little differently but GOMI points out something that all of us mom bloggers should pay attention to. Why do we Instagram our children in vulnerable moments? I know why we take pictures. I know why we pick up our phones. I don’t necessarily know why we feel a need to share them with strangers. Do we need validation that we are good or even just competent parents? When our blogs are wildly popular (which does come with an expiration date) do we get addicted to accolades or do we just believe our own hype and think that every bump and scrape is breaking news?

How much is too much? And why is mom blogging about kids and not about moms?

I’ve been guilty of overexposing my children and our lives. We all have. So I’m not going to go out and say that this Instagram photo couldn’t have been mine in another setting but I’m wondering how mindful all of us are about our children and their right to a private life?

Also, what’s the point?