Military mama: Children are a matter of perspective

There is a hierarchy when it comes to children. Mine are adorable, brilliant and naughty on occasion. My friends’ kids are cute, smart and have their moments. Strangers’ children are loud, unruly and often need to learn manners.

It’s all a matter of perspective. Though environment also weighs heavily on just how much cute a kid is capable of being.

All parents have a built-in bias. Most non-parents have a built-in bias as well, however theirs is usually in direct opposition to mine.

There are “kid people” in the world that may be parents, non-parents, teachers or neighbors. Then there are those that simply aren’t. Just like some people favor dogs, cats or may be allergic. Not all adults are fans of miniature people in progress. I’ve always been a kid person, but I’ll respect that you may not be as long as you treat me with respect. I promise I will not force my children on you. They will not drool on you or touch you with sticky fingers, unless you approach them.

It is becoming more common that children in public places are becoming frowned upon. Yes, it’s a fairly normal thing for me to receive dirty looks when taking my family to a restaurant that doesn’t involve arches or a playground. Heaven forbid we try to attend a movie. I shouldn’t even try to navigate my double stroller through clothing racks at the store.

Now there are actually restaurants banning non-school age children.

How fair is that? Childless folk already have a getaway where children are not allowed. They are called bars. Now, I’m not a drinker, but if I was hiding from the land of the littles the first place I’d go is to any place with an ID check.

But to actually exclude children under a specific age as a whole is frustrating to me. When I was a kid, I tagged along to many public events that might have garnered my parents dirty looks. I’m sure my behavior wasn’t perfect. However, there are expectations that i had to live up to or be carried out in shame.

If we never give our kids a chance to learn how to behave in these situations then we can hardly be upset when their halos are not on perfectly straight when they finally hit a socially acceptable age to attend.

If you greet me with a scowl simply because I am a mom that chooses to allow my children to experience a small taste of the real world, don’t be surprised if my children return your glare. They’re cute like that.