{Guest Post} The underachievers guide to hippie parenting

Today’s hilarious post was written by South African mom blogger Heleen Tshibumbu who blogs at  That Mama. 

 

– This post is sponsored by Phizer, Nescafe and Stuyvesant-

I must be honest- I have always been a bit weird. To a point where in varsity I looked like more like a homeless person than an LLB student. I tend to fancy unconventional and strange things- with interests from astrology to copy writing.

But today, sitting on William Nicol offramp for 35 minutes as usual I was thinking about being a parent and specifically a “hippie parent” as Khloe labbeld me yesterday.

So here is what I concluded:

1. I am not a hippie parent because it is the fashionable thing to do. I am most probably to lazy to go to the shops to buy sweets. It is easier for me to send the 2 of them on a treasure hunt in the garden for cherry tomatoes.

2. I have chickens in my back yard because I HATE running out of eggs. Now I just hop over there during the day for a smoke, a cup of coffee and my daily eggs.

3. I grow my own veggies because I hate how cold Woolies is inside. You need to dress like an Eskimo should you wish to buy fresh produce there. So nothing better than before cooking to pop into the veggie patch and get what you need. It is like having a shop in your back yard.

4. I cloth diaper because I can’t see the point of tossing R2000 per month in the bin. I have a woven wrap obsession and my “nappy savings” get allocated there.

5. Babywearing is my favourite. I love strolling down the street with a monster of a dog and a baby on my back in some beautiful creation. I think it aids in weight loss too as Zoe weighs a ton nowadays.

6. I breastfed for as long as I could because I HATE washing and sterilising bottles. And I am way to tired (read lazy) to get up in the middle of the night to go and sort that bottle situation out. Now, I have to. It SUCKS!

7. I am a gentle parent because my kids count and their emotions are valid. In a world full of people that are so out of tune with their emotions- they can one day be the difference.

Does this make me a good parent?

No.

I still get angry and freak out during the school run most mornings. I still let them drink rooibos tea with 2 sugars in it. They drink coffee once in a while. They eat pizza (Thank you Dominoes) and they have an unexplainable love for Jelly Tots on a Friday. I still work long hours. I still have my demons I deal with. I am still the same me. Bit older than the shabby student- but I am real.

But this makes me a REAL parent. Not the Pinterest parent. They get to see the real life. I can’t make their lives magical as magical is not what the real world is about.

So in all honesty- we actually need to stop being so hard on ourselves. They eat pizza- well, it is not every night and at least they ate. You work hard? It is teaching them to work for what they want. They drink super sweet tea? Better than coke the whole time.

So from now on I am going to live easier. I am the “cool hippie mom” So what?

 

Heleen is a mom of 2 girls and wife to the cool guy. She LOVES dogs. She tries to live in a self sustainable manner and as organically as possible. Heleen supports cloth diapering, breastfeeding and baby wearing. When she is not a mom she is a CEO of a digital advertising agency based in Johannesburg, South Africa.