We all enjoy celebrating baby and toddler milestones such as eating solid food (without spitting it back out), using the potty (without having an accident immediately beforehand) and sleeping through the night (without kicking a nearby parent in the groin). But we rarely celebrate parenting milestones with the same fanfare.
If any milestone is deserving of a page in a scrapbook, it’s the first time a parent sleeps for more than seven consecutive hours, whether that happens at night in a bed or face down in an office. So why aren’t we celebrating such achievements? The first time you use the bathroom without interruption should be photographed and showcased as your Facebook profile picture. The best day of your life isn’t your wedding day anymore, it’s the day your kids went to sleep before 9:00 p.m. Celebrate!
Not all parenting milestones deserve a parade or even a golf clap, but no milestone should break a parent down to tears. Happy tears are usually appropriate, and every parent can sympathize with someone having a cathartic cry about the collective stress of parenting. But much like tripping over your feet on the sidewalk, even the most frustrating things can be quite funny. So why not celebrate the frustrating milestones too with at least a chuckle if not a full belly laugh?
Consider these 10 parenting milestones and why they should make you laugh instead of cry.
