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Saturday, December 08, 2007

Making Me Look Bad

My older son (OS) attended another birthday party yesterday. This one was held at a place with giant inflatable bouncers. While the children get to bounce, run, and jump, parents don't have to do anything. We get to just hang back and talk. The birthday girl was a friend from OS's preschool, so you might assume that I saw many familiar faces. Not exactly. She had been in OS's class last year, while most of the other guests were from her class this year. Translation: I hardly knew anyone.

At one point, OS asked me to jump on the giant bouncers with him. There are few things that I am less inclined to do than jump up and down in front of a whole group of people, particularly strangers, particularly after my experience with the evil camera that ambushed me in Chuck E. Cheese the prior evening. I did the obvious thing and lied. I told OS that parents weren't allowed on the bouncers. OS believed me and went off to bounce on his own. Apparently I wasn't the only one to use that line because I heard several other parents deliver it. Then I saw a mom doing the unthinkable. She was jumping in the bouncer with a bunch of the kids. I was impressed but completely disgusted. Didn't she know she was making me look bad?

As I struggled to make small-talk with an adjacent mom, she confided that she had also chosen this place for her child's party because she didn't have to entertain her kids when they were attending a birthday party. I wondered if I had found a kindred spirit. Then she commented that the mom jumping on the bouncer should be nominated for mother of the year. I completely relaxed and felt comfortable at the party. I had found one of my own!

Unfortunately, my fellow mom wasn't the only one who noticed the bouncing mom. OS soon ran up to me and pointed her out. I had no choice but to say the obvious thing: that mommy had gotten special permission.

A. Elliot's Lesson Learned: Perfect parenting makes real parents look bad.

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posted by Alex Elliot @ 11:56 PM   4 comments
4 Comments:

  • At 12/09/2007 9:31 AM, Blogger Suzanne said…

    My kids have been to a few parties at a place like this. Only one time did I venture on the equipment -- a giant inflatable slide. No jumping in front of other parents, that's my motto!

     

  • At 12/09/2007 12:21 PM, Blogger Kami said…

    There always has to be one mom in the crowd that shows the rest of us schlump up doesn't here?

    :-)

    I would done the same thing you did, in fact, I am fairly certain I have on more than one occaision!

     

  • At 12/09/2007 1:39 PM, Blogger Heather said…

    Thank goodness we've never been to a party like this. Although I'd have two legitimate excuses...I'm pregnant and I weigh too much. Never thought my weight would be a good thing.

     

  • At 12/09/2007 3:16 PM, Blogger Mayberry said…

    There's always one mom who didn't get the memo ... glad you found a compatriot.

     
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Name:Alex Elliot
Home:MA, United States
About Me:Professional Mom of two cats, a dog, an ant farm, and oh yeah...two boys: a 6 year old and a 3 year old. Also found in my house is my husband who is known on this blog as The Big Giraffe.
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For those of us who didn't get an instruction manual with our babies and for whom parenting hasn't always gone as planned. On a more serious note this blog is about supporting a woman's ability to make her own choices about parenting including the choice, for whatever reason, to bottle feed her babies formula.

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