If you're going into a big battle of the mommy wars, I might not be your best soldier. Because when I looked at a picture of Kate Winslet making a big ol' blunder of the parenting variety, all I could think was: "Oh thank GOD! It's not just me!"
The actress was out with boyfriend Ned Rocknroll (nephew of billionaire Richard Branson) and her kids Joe and Mia when paparazzi caught a shot of them. Looks like a cute family shot, right? Bonus points to you if you can spot what's wrong with this picture.
That's right, Joe is skateboarding down the bumpy sidewalks of New York City without a helmet to protect his little noggin. The 7-year-old appears to be having plenty of fun, and there are two adults right there should anything happen. But when you consider the American Academy of Pediatrics blames skateboarding injuries for 50,000 emergency room visits annually, and at least 1,500 kids are hospitalized for getting hurt on one of these things every year, you could say mama Winslet is either brave or an idiot.
Personally, I'm going to go with option three: a mom who picks her battles, but not a bad one.
I say that because I've so done this. For the most part, we are a safety-conscious, helmet-wearing household. I have one of the dorky brain buckets not because I particularly like them, but because I want to set a good example for my 6-year-old. If I wear one, she doesn't have an extra excuse to avoid buckling hers on.
But then there are those days! When you're out on the front lawn, the sun is shining, and you're thinking, "OK, I'm RIGHT here, what could go wrong?" I find myself relaxing on the rules when I'm standing with my kid, watching her every move vs. when I'm working in the yard and my back might be turned.
As parents, we tend to consider ourselves relatively omnipotent, like simply being there will make disaster turn its tail and run away like a hiker who sees a mama bear and backs away from the cubs. It's not always right. We should make our kids wear their helmets, wash their hands, eat healthy foods. But sometimes, feeling like we are better protection than a big chunk of plastic is the only thing that keeps us from going insane over all those things out there that we can't protect our kids from!
Do you see other moms making mistakes like Kate Winslet, and think, "Thank goodness I'm not the only one"?
Image via SplashNews