Attachment Parenting

Why is this considered out of the mainstream? *sigh* I really can't remember how I happened upon this form of parenting. I do remember a friend telling me he was never spanked as a child. I would say he had a pretty unique personality -- certainly not like anyone I had ever met. He seems to be very generous with his friend -- I don't mean materially, either. Something I had read when I was in high school put me on the AP path, I think. I read a study about altruism. In it, researchers were trying to figure why some people helped Holocaust survivors and some didn't. They looked at nationality, religion, etc. What they found is that those who risked their lives for a total stranger were not spanked as children. That was very profound to me and here I am.

I did want to subscribe the traditional tenets of attachment parenting -- really I did. I wanted to breastfeed, but both Rachel and I had issues, and I just pumped for a month. I wanted to babywear, but Rachel developed reflux and she was put on an apnea monitor. I wanted to co-sleep, but Rachel was perfectly happy in her basinett and, later, crib.

Luckily (?), she caught a cold when she was 7 months old and started to co-sleep. She is still in our room, but this is the year of the big transition. :)

While I would have loved to do all those things, to me, attachment parenting is about being 'present' for your child. We have so many things distracting us during the day. Even if you're a SAHM, you'd like to cook and clean once and awhile. But I believe AP is about balance and sometimes the balance goes towards your child and a messy house.

We've also made financial sacrifices so that one of us would be at home. No longer are we going to Hawaii every year. We didn't eve have a summer vacation this year. But if it means my DH can stay home, then everything is worth it.