How I miss the bliss of having a child with zero awareness of what’s going on around him. I didn’t appreciate it at the time but I’m beginning to have fond memories of it. I could watch the entire Saw franchise while breastfeeding and he would not be affected (well, I guess that’s for his future therapist to determine). For a long time, we’d be playing in the TV room while Bones would be on. [author’s note: do you watch Bones? They always show the corpse at the very beginning and it’s nightmarish.]
Now Monster is becoming aware of his surroundings. He can understand what I’m saying (hey, that’s better than most adults!) and follow simple directions [author's note: I said ‘can’ not ‘does’]. So do I want him seeing mauled corpses, hearing foul language, or even knowing anything about those Disney shows aimed at Tweens? Can I get a “HELL NO!”?
But if Monster starts dropping the “F Bomb,” can I really blame anyone but myself? Our morning mad dashes to the babysitter’s have me throwing curse words like Mardi Gras revelers throw beads and moon pies (mmm, moon pies). My dad had a terrible temper that came out when he was behind the wheel. I remember fist fights in parking lots following especially tense drives. I see my brothers get The Rage and I am aware of my own behavior in a car. I do not want that for my son.
My mom, on the other hand, was all ‘shucks!’ and ‘gosh darn it!’ I don’t really want that for my son either. So what’s a modern mommy to do?
And when do I have to decide by? Do I wait until the babysitter pulls me aside at pick up and tells me he’s teaching the other kids how to say f@#$? Or do I make a real effort to watch my filthy mouth starting, oh say, tomorrow?
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