Things I Never Thought I'd Say as a Mother

Today I had to have a serious discussion with R because she's taken to running around with just her undies on. So, with hubby's help -- he was home for lunch -- we told her there would be serious consequences if she came out of her room with just her undies on. I fear we may never see her again. As she walked up the stairs, hubby qualified it by saying, "unless it's an emergency." Uh oh. Now her idea of an emergency is so different from ours. She thinks Barbie needing a new hair clip is an emergency. Looking for a snack is an emergency. I bet we're gonna be revisiting this topic again soon.

It got me to thinking about things I never thought I'd say as a mother. I think to some degree we all think and maybe even say as kids that we'll be different from our own mothers. I remember thinking that I would never say, "Because I said so." Apparently I can convey that short, simple sentence with just a look. My kids know when I'm gonna say it and they better not challenge me on it either.

I'm thinking the above example is fairly common. Do you remember thinking that way as a child?

When S, our oldest, had just learned to read, she was so excited. She still loves to read. K was the same way. When they were between 8 and 10 I remember a number of times going into their rooms after they were supposed to be asleep and finding them reading under the covers with a flashlight. (Like we moms can't see the flashlight under the covers.) :-)

I never thought I'd have to say, "Stop reading and go to sleep!" There are other moms I know of who have had this same thing happen to them.

I never thought I'd have to say, "put down the electronics and interact with the people around you." It seems so neat to be able to text message with your friend in another state, or play a game on your cell phone, or listen to whatever music you choose on your mp3 player...

Back in the day, 8-tracks were all the rage and fast-forwarding or rewinding was an imprecise science and so it was better to listen to the whole thing rather than have to push buttons going forward and backward until you finally arrived at the song you really wanted to hear.

I never thought I'd have to call my children on their cell phone because they can't hear me calling them because the ear buds from the aforementioned mp3 player are firmly, and permanently it seems, planted in their ears. We live in a less than 1,000 square foot house, even the hard of hearing should be able to hear me calling them in this house!

So while I cherish the advantages of technology, and recognize its benefits, especially in the medical field... there are times when I long for the simplicity of that 8-track.

What did you think you'd never say to your kids?