A hint?

I got an issue of Parenting magazine in the mail yesterday. Addressed to me and everything. I have no idea who signed me up for this subscription. But I'm thinking it may be a hint. Like somebody is watching me thinking, "Dear Lord, Giselle doesn't know what she's doing. Perhaps if I send her Parenting magazine for a year she'll get a clue." Pretty sly.

I read through it. I had Parenting magazine for about a year after Andrew was born. It's not a terrible magazine...but sometimes the articles are a little bit no-brainer, promising to be interesting and exciting and then usually falling way short. Like this month there is an article about surprise pregnancies. I eagerly flipped to it to read other people's stories and the article basically said surprise pregnancies are common because a) people think it's going to take longer than it does b)birth control is not 100% effective or c) one person is not quite on board with having another child and has gotten in a bit over their head. Gee, thanks Parenting magazine. That was enlightening.

Oh, and I HATE the section, "It Worked For Me!". It should be renamed, "I'm a Better Mother Than You, And Here's Why...You Slacker!" It has little "helpful" tips from other mothers. Some of which are actually helpful (one mother put a strip of magnetic tape in a cabinet and attached her nail clippers, etc to keep them out of reach) and others are just blatant super moms writing in to brag about themselves. Something like, "I recycle all of our paper waste by cutting it into sticker size pieces and let the children decorate boxes. Then I take all of our food waste and make it into an animal-friendly granola that we fill the biodegradable boxes with. We then take a family hike with our feeding boxes into the wilderness, and set it put to feed the animals in the winter. This way, I have no trash anymore, my children are practicing their fine motor skills, we are getting plenty of exercise to help fight childhood obesity, and my children are learning to care for others less fortunate than themselves. And we do all this by candlelight with our thermostat set at 55 degree so we help the environment as well." You know, a story like that. Very realistic and helpful.

Anyhoo, thank you to whomever has sent me this magazine. I will probably not learn anything from it (once a lousy mother....always a lousy mother, I always say), but I do enjoy flipping through the pages. Except for that last section. I hate that section. ;)