Fit to be a parent??

So I was returing our rented shampooer to Safeway on Monday and I decided to take Carter out of the carseat and carry him in the store with me.
While waiting for someone to help me, I sat Carter on the counter and gave him a rattle which he started pounding on the glass countertop.
When the Customer Service girl came to help me, she was gooing and gaaing at Carter and having a gay ol time with him.
She needed me to sign some paperwork, at which point I picked Carter up and held him while I grabbed the pen. She offered to hold the paper and all I had to do was sign, but I told her it was ok, it was actaully easier if I used the same hand I was holding Carter in to hold the paper and I would sign with my other hand.
She said ' Oh I figured you Moms wouldnt need any help! You guys have it all figured out!".

Its funny how sometimes you feel like you are having a disaster day, you havent showered( your messy hair in a half assed pony tail is the sure-fire sign!), your kid just puked all over his jacket and crapped his diaper (to which even a homeless person would say stinks) and to someone elses eyes, you have it all together, the perfect Mom.

But what makes a 'perfect' parent?
Your age? Your marital status? The fact that you've wanted kids since you got your first dolly at the tender age of 2?

I was watching this episode of Dr Phil (or Dr Full as Mark likes to call him!) a few weeks ago, and they had a 17yr old girl with her 18yr old bf and they were battling with everyone about the upbringing of their infant daughter.
Everyone was against them. Everyone but the boys father, and me. The boys father was allowing the teens to live with him, and he was helping out with raising his little granddaughter.

Now, I am not all for babies having babies, but yes, they did make a mistake and got pregnant (the first time they had sex, as they claim) and yes, they are young and unemployed, but does that make them bad parents? The 18yr old did have some random part time jobs, so its not like he was sitting on his ass all day playing video games and not making an effort. Were they financially prepared to take on a responsibility so huge as a BABY? No, but who is? You always hear the excuse of people saying 'oh, were going to wait until we can afford it.' If you wait, you aint having kids. Everyone is poor. Get over it. Its called the Recession.
Dr Phil showed a couple pics of the very cute little girl. She was healthy, bright and alive. They were doing something right! There was one picture that showed the baby laying on her tummy to sleep, and Dr Full went on a rampage about they were awful parents since they should know that that causes SIDS, to which the teen mom replied her doctor told her to put her to sleep that way.
If you dont want this 17yr old girl to be a mother to her baby simply because she lays her to sleep on her stomach then take my child away too.
I stopped breastfeeding my child at 4 months. (Oh gasp- the agony. Whisper Whisper Whisper)
My kid has plowed his head onto the floor more times in the last month than I can could on 2 hands, the most recent episode being 2 hrs go.
We let him chew on a pea pod 3 nights ago and we are pretty sure he bit the tip of the pod off and started chocking since his face went all red and he was only half breathing and coughing.

Am I proud of these things?
Absolutely not.
But my kid is just that, a kid.
He is going to fall and even break bones.
He is going to swallow something whole and have a hard time digesting it.
He is going to eat grass. Touch dog poo. Play with his weenie. Pick his nose and eat it and probably enjoy it!

Just because they are teens does not make them bad parents.
Just because I am a 26 yr old married woman does not make me a good parent.

If people gave up kids every single time just because they were teenagers, or just because they were single, or just because they didnt feel like they had the nurturing mother gene, then we would have a whole lotta lonely kids in this world.

Millions of teens, single parents, poor parents, rich parents and crackheads alike have been raising their children for years. This is not a new concept. There is no such thing as a perfect parent.
No one knows what goes on behind closed doors. All you are seeing is what they want you to see.

1/2 way to 1

Carter is 6 months old.
1/2 a year.
26 weeks.

No matter how I say it, he is growing up so fast. No longer my little helpless baby boy. He is my independent, smart and happy little boy.

In the first few months when I was really struggling with Carters tummy problems and my anxiety, I would have paid any amount of money to fast forward the time through all the heartache and pain, and now that he is growing up so fast, and learning new things and becoming this little human being, I would pay any amount of money to slow time down.

Every day is a new journey with this guy, and sometimes we just sit there for a half an hour making silly faces and smiling at each other. My heart is filled with so much love for him.

I think that this is the best age. He is so alert and understands so much, can entertain himself, and laughs at the silliest things, but can't talk back or move!


At 6 months, Carter
- is 16lbs 2 oz
- is 26 1/2 inches long
- is wearing 6 month and 6-9 month clothing
- sits on his own
- hates loud sounds like the vaccuum and my blowdryer
- loves peek-a-boo
- loves when I sing to him, espcially Wheels on the Bus
- still loves faces, but now grabs for the hair and glasses
- still no teeth
- eats 2 meals of rice cereal, and has had sweet potatoes but doesn't care for them
- loves to walk, and will stand on his own when propped up against something
- will balance himself when he's wobbly when he stands
- just started sleeping through the night again
- makes all sorts of sounds, espeically 'm' sounds
- loves to raspberry with his tongue and sent spit flying everywhere
- thinks the dog is hilarious when he licks his lips or yawns or chews his bone
- will push himself up when doing tummy time
- can roll but doesnt
- is all over in his crib now, he is never in the same spot you put him to sleep in
- is taking his sweet time growing his hair
- recognizes faces (me, Mark, grandparents, playgroup)