Lazy

As much as I criticize the parents (L & P) that I work for, I know they love their children. And they aren't perfect. I know I won't be a perfect mother, nor do I know any perfect parents. We are human, we all make mistakes. But from this job, I mostly learned all the things I won't do when I have my own kids. I am sure sometimes I will do things wrong, I will even do some of the things I swear I would never do, but there is one thing I will try my hardest to never be and that is a lazy parent. I have concluded that that is what L & P are, lazy parents. They have good intentions, but they cave when things get too hard to deal with. They work long hours, 11 hours a day to be exact. By the time they get home, they are so exhausted that the last thing they want to deal with is whiny kids. They are excited to see them, but aren't ready for the hard things. I was these children's parent or co-parent (when grandmother was here) for 2 weeks. I learned how difficult being a parent 24/7 can be. But I never gave in. I didn't use this as my excuse to cave into all the difficult things I know a parent should do. I didn't feed Baby S one time in the middle of the night, not even the night she cried for a straight hour. I wanted to feed her, I really wanted to. I was so tired and I knew it would shut her up. But I knew it wasn't good for her. I didn't sleep with S one night, she cried, screamed, begged, but not once did I give in, not even when she woke me up at 2:30 in the morning and kept me up until 4 am. I wanted to just let her sleep on my floor and call it good, but I knew it wasn't what was best for her. The parents have been home for 24 hours. Already they have done so many things wrong in my book, simply because they are lazy. They didn't discipline S neither night even when she was being mean to Baby S. Why? That is too much work. They slept with S when she threw a fit. Why? Because getting her to sleep by herself is too much work. When Baby S was fussy and refused to eat, they let her go without dinner. Why? Because it was too hard. They put the kids to bed past their bedtimes on both nights. Why? Because they want to spend time with them. And the tip of the iceberg, the one thing that is more frustrating to me than anything, when Baby S woke up at 3:30 am and cried for 20 minutes, for a measly TWENTY minutes, they fed her. Why? Because they were tired and listening to her cry kept them up. She was not fed once, not even the first night, while they were gone. SHE DOES NOT NEED IT. Nor does she want it. She uses it for comfort, not for hunger. So I know that parents aren't perfect. I am sure when I have my own kids I will cave in occasionally to all these things. But I promise I won't be lazy and give up on what is best for my kids because it benefits me. That isn't what parenting is about. Parenting is about, well, being a parent. It is no longer just about you.