Lessons in Parenthood

Luke, Leah, and I had a lunch date at Chick-fil-a last week. Mark was out of town, and when Daddy’s not home, the days seem to go by faster if we break out of our normal PB&J lunch routine. So this little diversion was a great way to break up a dull, stay-at-home Thursday. I managed to order our food, secure Leah in a high chair, and corral Luke for a few minutes to eat his chicken nuggets when I saw a little boy having a huge tantrum in the middle of the restaurant. Knowing that on another day, this could very well be my life, I sent that other mother sympathetic vibes until I heard her say to her screaming son (in an unnecessarily loud voice): “You are being very bad! Do you want me to pull down your pants in front of all these people, show them Woody and Buzz, and spank you?”

And I cringed. Rather than reflecting on the whether shaming one’s preschooler with threats of public nudity is an appropriate parenting technique, I couldn’t get past the fact that this woman referred to parts of her son’s anatomy as “Woody and Buzz.” Not once have either of these names appeared on the top 1,000 words that Mark/I use when educating our children about anatomical terms.

We continued to eat our lunch, and I couldn’t shake my disbelief. I felt empathy for this poor child, that his Woody and Buzz may be exposed in a public place, that other patrons of the restaurant may witness such an unpleasant incident…

And then the child bent over to pick something up off the ground, revealing his Toy Story themed pull-ups under his jeans. I almost laughed out loud when I realized that Cowboy Woody and Buzz Lightyear were prominently featured on the boy’s pull-ups, and that of course his mother was referring to these characters (and not some very private parts which shall not be further discussed on this blog). I emitted a huge sigh of relief, and realized that despite my best efforts not to jump to conclusions and previously judge that mom, I still had lots of learning to do. The lessons of parenthood do indeed go "to infinity and beyond…"