F...people who tell you how to parent

[Monkeydad]

Originally Posted by SolidSnake84

I wonder the same thing about why people bring newborns and babies into the movie theaters. I can only imagine that its from not having any babysitter. My cousin used to work at Carmike Cinemas in Winchester, and she told me one time that these people brought a 2 year old to see Friday the 13th....wtf??

My kid is 2 and I still know he doesn't have the attention span for a movie in the theater. He's a VERY well-behaved boy...but I know a little kid's limits. A movie theater is no place for a small child, you'll only waste your money by leaving early or disturb everyone else by staying. I haven't seen a movie in the theater since he was born and don't mind. I knew ahead of time my priorities in life were going to have to change. It's not about me anymore.

I wish more people would realize this and take responsibility when they become parents, whether it was planned or not. Once a child is created inside the mother, your life is no longer about yourself, it's about protecting and raising that life you created. So if you can't go to movies, or shopping or amusement parks for a few years...tough, you're a parent now. If people would stop being so selfish and taking small children to places where it isn't appropriate for lengths of time beyond their tiny attention spans, we'd all have less screaming kids in public to deal with. It's not the kids' faults most of the time. You can't expect them to be able to go around town and into places where silence is required and behave like an adult with manners. Sure, kids should learn to behave to an extent in public, but if you're testing their boundaries and abilities to restrain themselves for so long, any kid can act up from boredom or fatigue. We took our son to NY in a car from PA...we learned his limit...about half an hour from Long Island. For the first 4 hours in the car, he was perfect...but there's a point. My butt was sore too.

Some people should get some parenting lessons, but I won't speak up, that's their lesson to learn.