[navywifey2003]

How were you brought up? Are you doing the same or something completely different?

[angelsailor288]

I was formula fed, slept in my own crib on a schedule.. which is total opposite over here. Breastfeeding & cosleeping & no schedule haha. I do see a pattern of when he gets tired though.

My parents used time outs mostly and spankings as needed, which I do intend to do the same. Time out worked great with me... I even put myself there a lot of times before they realized I did something wrong LOL. I remember being 5 and I colored on the wall and then ran myself to time out haha. The one thing I dont intend to do is constantly YELL at him.. yelling always made me feel 10x worse than any spankings, as those were done with hugs and kisses and explaining. Yelling was done in anger To this day when someone yells at me I cringe and tear up.

[noworries]

I was formula fed, left to CIO, spanked, etc. That being said, I think my parents are amazing and I always felt very loved growing up. My mom had a lot of emotional problems when I was little (depression mostly) and I think she would have done things differently if she was in a better place emotionally. My dad was abused by his dad growing up and I think he did a great job in not continuing that cycle but it still affected his parenting in an adverse way.

I do things differently than my parents did (and very differently than either of my sisters do). I breastfeed, baby-wear, don't do CIO, don't think that spanking is an effective form of discipline (this one has been the hardest for me because it's my first instinct when I get really upset about something my daughter has done). I've had to work really hard to try to reset my mind and to find other techniques to handle situations when I am at the end of my rope. I work really hard to do positive, peaceful parenting.

[shanirah]

I was formula fed and left to CIO also. I got grounded for every little thing I did wrong, if I left the light on in my room to run out to the living room for a book and then return to my room, I would get grounded for leaving the light on. It was always about what my parents wanted (down to the flavor of kool-aid we would have in the house) and my sister was always more important then I was and they would think nothing of breaking a promise to me. I try to steer clear of all of those things and give my kids options and I try to never break a promise and I don't promise to them often. I did formula feed and leave the older two to CIO though when they were babies (they are 14 and 10). I blame my immature age (18 and 23 respectively when I had them). I'm 33 now and the last baby is due in April, so I think as a more mature person I am able to put her ahead of myself.

[alwayssmile]

My mom BF for only 6 weeks. Cereal in bottles by 8 weeks. CIO with me and it was practically extinction. They spanked. With belts at times. I even had to pick my own switches at one house too. I love my parents, but I never remember a time where I wanted to go to them to share important stuff or to ask them questions. Ever. I chose to stay in my room and not leave it unless they made me. Easier that way. I struggle to fall asleep at night and wonder if it goes all the way back to them CIO for hours with me.
I obviously am parenting way differently. Still BFing. No CIO. We bed shared for 8 months. Babywearing. My parents don't get why I want him on me so much. And there will definitely not be any spanking of any kind here. That didn't teach me to not do things. It taught me to get better at not getting caught and it taught me to not trust them.

[HippyMomOf4]

I was formula fed and my parents spanked as we got older. My mom didn't do CIO and she cloth diapered 6 months. The biggest thing that I look bad on and have hard feelings toward my mom is the yelling. I found myself with my girls kinda following that but I had to get myself outta that and do what I knew in my heart was right. With my first I did a lot of things like my mom but quickly learned that wasn't for me and made changes along the way

[joonzgurl]

I was breastfed for 7 months and no CIO. We were spanked once in a while but hardly ever.

I think my mom did an amazing job (dad was outta the picture at 10 years old) and she trusted us A LOT. We had no curfews as long as she knew where we were, and that we were safe, I don't think I was ever grounded, and I shared so much with her. I think it has to do with how much she trusted us to make the right decisions.

She was short tempered sometimes though. I still remember her yelling (especially in the AM when trying to get to work on time) so I am going to try not to do that with my little one.

[ashj_1218]

Honestly, if I could be half the parent my Mom and Dad were, I will be happy.

I am coming from the opposite end of the spectrum from lots of folks in here. My parents were amazing and I have thousands of supportive-positive memories of growing up. I have three bad ones, all involving my Dad getting mad, since it was such a rare occurance. And I can say that two of the three times, I totally deserved the yelling I was getting. The did spank...but it was done with love and support and it was less about the hurting. They wore us, slept with us, did not CIO (didn't have to, we were all huge sleepers), and did way more time outs than spankings. They were always playing with us, volunteering at our schools, getting excited about the same things we were.

I feel that I want to be very much like they were with us. And sometimes I feel I am not nearly as good as my parents. But I got a really good example and feel I can learn along the way. My mom says she was not nearly as perfect as I remember her being (she says she screamed a lot when we were little). Which goes to show that our children will not always remember exactly what we want them to remember about us.

DH had a far worse lot growing up though and he/I make a serious effort to not repeat his parent's tactics with our boys. There was lots of blame, anger, fighting, and selfishness in his parent's parenting. But, thankfully, he recognizes that he does not want our boys to have that same experience. And we actively avoid a lot of that. DH still has an issue with his parents and how they use emotional warfare to "control" his behavior.

[PorterXVX]

I was breastfed and I breastfeed - my mom taught me how important it was to breastfeed. All the pros from it, and etc. She let me sleep in a crib and I co-sleep with my little one. I don't think I could sleep unless she was safe next to me. My mom wasn't vegan and I am. I think that's about it.

[brightmommy]

I come from two very different styles of parenting. My dad and step-mom were very loving and a lot more AP type parenting. I can only remember ever getting 2 spankings from my dad and when I got older my step-mom told my dad cried after he gave them to me I just didn't see him at the time. I still have a wonderful relationship with them today and I know I can go to them with anything and they are always supportive and there when I need them.

My mom who I lived with the majority of the time was completely the opposite. My brother and I would get spanked or grounded over the least little thing. I was breastfed for 5 weeks, CIO, cereal in bottles at just a few weeks old and a lot of other things I don't really believe. I think my mom has some emotional issues because she has always been selfish in her parenting. I am 6 years older than my little brother, and as I got older I could see her doing the same things to him as she did to me. She would yell and scream a lot over little things that were basically selfish and didn't go her way, and she used emotional blackmail with us a lot and made us feel terrible about ourselves. When I turned 18 I moved out immediately and we didn't talk more than a handful of times in almost 4 years. We speak more now, but we still have a distant strained relationship and I don't like leaving Maddie alone with her. My brother is now 17 and I know he is already planning to leave as soon as he turns 18 also.
I will definitely not follow my mother's style of parenting because I never want that kind of relationship with my children. I want to lift them up and have a close loving relationship with them.

[Jule'sMomInOR]

I was breastfed for about 18 months. According to my mom she tried CIO once but couldn't follow through. My parents did spank and my mom lost her temper a lot and yelled. I don't think my parents were horrible but I still plan to do things a lot differently.