Hot Topic Tuesday

When I was new at this parenting thing I fell into parenting clique. It's natural I suppose. It's a natural tendency to hang out with people that you have more in common with, and I think that's OK...but sometimes it can get catty and nasty.

When I was first pregnant I was most comfortable hanging out with other "infertiles". They were the only women who could appreciate all that I had gone through to attain a pregnancy. I felt that no one could understand all of the love and the work, the tears, and the money that had gone in to making that little miracle in my uterus!

The next clique I fell into was the "AP" clique. Cloth diapering, non-spanking, selective/delaying vaccinations, organic feeding, creative playing, co-sleeping, breastfeeding, etc....

Then I had tragedy after tragedy happen in 2006, and I had a complete meltdown. I had many miscarriages and uterine surgeries, and I found myself in yet a different group. I was in a support group of women who had multiple miscarriages. Even tragedy can be a clique of it's own.

Then I became a mom of multiples, which CAN be a huge clique. The Triplet mom's think that the Twin mom's will never understand! (After all, human's have TWO arms....NOT THREE!!!) Or, the Twin mom's think that the Triplet mom's think that the Twin mom's have it easier than they do...... Or the Quad mom's think that the Triplet mom's have it SO easy because they don't have to worry about buying a Quad stroller........

SIGH..... It's really amazing.

Let me see. What am I? I am a mom of 5 kids. I am a Christian. I am NOT AP. I am a non-spanker, but I do not hold judgment against those who do. I use the book Love and Logic. I still delay / select vaccines, and I cloth diaper part time. I co-slept with Reagan, and Ethan full time, and the triplets for 2 months. I have lost 5 babies to miscarriage. I struggled with infertility. I am a mom of multiples.

I fell into the trap of parenting cliques, and I am sorry to everyone I offended when I was on my high horse in my learning days.

What do you think of parenting cliques? Were you a part of one? Are you a part of one? Have you been on the rejected end of one?