I’m sure we’ve all seen it. The parent(s) that are parents when it’s convenient for them. They are the parents that are out and about every weekend while their kids are at home to take care of themselves or thrown to a babysitter.
Now I became a parent at 20. I had my wild days before that time. And yes, since becoming a parent I have gone out with friends. I’ve gone to the bar to have a drink. I’ve gone and stayed away from home for the night. But I know that my kids need me when I get back. I call and check in throughout the night while I’m gone to make sure they’re doing ok. I feel guilty for that once in a few months night they stay with their Grandma. Heck, I feel bad just leaving them for me to go to the doctor or school. I hate the idea of me being ABSENT.
So you became a parent while you were young. Well, part of being a parent is acknowledging that you do not come first anymore. Your children do. So while you think your kids will be ok at home with their “older sibling” taking care of them or it’s not that big of deal you are out every other night while they stay with their grandparents-It is. Children are smart. They will remember who they spent the most time with when they become adults. They also will remember how their parent raised them. Are you okay with the thought of your child going out all the time and still living their wild days while the little one suffers?
Your children need you. If you wanted to live the party life, you should have thought of your actions before bringing a child into this world. It’s not about you and only you anymore.
3 Comments
I totally agree, I was one of those kids that don’t remember my parents around. My dad was an alcoholic and always in the bar and my mom was always right there beside him well me and my brother were home alone. When I had my children I promised myself I would not be that parent. I believe that parents need a break and they need time for themselves but I don’t agree that parents should be out having a blast every other day! Those people in my mind don’t deserve to have children. Children are on loan to us from God and if you aren’t good to them he can take them back. Children of precious gifts.
Great Post Jenna.
Hey when I was a teenager, I was one of the babysitters for a family like that. Worse yet, there son was sick and they still went out. He had such a bad asthma attack, and I couldn’t reach the parents where they said they’d be. I ended up getting the next door neighbors that lived by them to drive us to the hospital. We called the police and gave them the info about where the parents were suppose to be. I also left a note on their front door when we left. About two hours later they were located by the police at the place they said they would be going, only problem was they actually arrived two hours later because they stopped off at a friends home first. They got to the hospital and found out from the ER staff that their son ate some food given to him by another child at school earlier that Friday. Apparently it had products in it that this little one was allergic to, which caused the delayed allergy attack that went on to become an asthma attack. I can tell you, it bothered me that I couldn’t get ahold of the parents with the info they left me. They wanted me to babysit the very next weekend. I didn’t, because I didn’t like the idea of the Dad coming to the ER already really intoxicated just from being at this friends house on the way to the place they told me they’d be.
Agree with you totally! I became a mom at 23 and was still in my wild years when that happened! Since then it’s ALL about my kids! I know that some people just don’t get this, the only problem is there’s little ones at stake in the process of them trying to grow up!