10 Rookie Parenting Mistakes I Still Make

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I've been a mom for over 8 years now.  During that time, I've made a lot of mistakes.  One would think that 8 years and 4 kids later, I would have learned from my mistakes and would be a little smarter, but...

I have two words for you...Mom Brain. *insert spooky background noise here*

Here are 10 rookie parenting mistakes that I still make.  Repeatedly.


1. Vacuuming the dining room floor while the toddler is still eating in his high chair.  Even if, by some miracle, he doesn't throw half of his food on the floor while laughing hysterically, it will rain mushed up food when I take him out of the high chair.

2. Forgetting to pack diapers in the diaper bag.  I have done this with each one of my kids.  One memorable time was when I forgot to take any diapers to church and Anna had not one, but two very messy diapers while we were there.  The first time it happened, I begged a too-small diaper from my sister-in-law, but the second time, I was too embarrassed to ask again.  Thankfully church was almost over so I borrowed a rag from my mom with which to line Anna's carseat and took my oozing, smelly child home.  FYI, after that incident, I left a stack of diapers in the church nursery.

3. Forgetting to pack an extra outfit in the diaper bag.  All four of my kids have, at some point or another (multiple times), gone home from an event wrapped in a blanket or wearing their much bigger cousin's outfit.  You know, because my sister always remembers to bring extra outfits for her kids.  Showoff.

4. Planning errands during naptime.  Last year, I took the kids to the county fair during naptime, sugared them up with mini donuts, and then took them grocery shopping before heading home.  Yes, I am that dumb, and I don't think the grocery store employees were ever happier to see us leave.

5. Trying to clean and organize the kids' toys while they are home and awake.  It's like eating oreos while brushing your teeth.  Completely pointless.  And yet, I keep trying to do it.

6. Assuming that silence means the kids are actually napping during naptime.  Every mom knows that silence is to be feared when you have kids.  Sometimes, though, I'm so desperate for the kids to nap so I can finally work, that I let myself believe that the silence means the little angels are in fact sawing zzz's.  And I always pay for it later.

7. Letting the kids nap too late in the afternoon.  Doing this means that they will then assume that their bedtime can be moved to the AM hours.  This also applies to letting your 6 year old sleep in until 11 am which is something I may or may not have done last week.

8. Not hiding the permanent markers.  Seriously.  It's like I don't even use my brain sometimes.

9. Assuming that the kids won't get into any trouble in the 4.8 minutes it takes for me to take a "mom shower" (a "mom shower" consists of jumping into the shower, throwing soap all over myself, jumping out, and getting dressed while still dripping wet all while listening for suspicious noises which include, but are not limited to crying, screaming, thuds, bangs, and silence).

10. Relaxing for 2 seconds.  Being a mom means that you're always "on."  There is no relaxing.  Ever.  See all of the above for reasons why.

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10 rookie parenting mistakes I still make. How about you? http://bit.ly/2btZ0RZ

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What rookie parenting mistakes have you made?

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