Diapers...or Wine?: Hey, I Know, Let's Gang Up On Someone We Don't Know And Do Some Adult Bullying!!!
There are a lot of ways to make a mom feel like crap, but I'm wondering, while outright criticism of parenting choices certainly constitutes adult bullying, what about exclusion? It can cause just as much, if not more, hurt. But when we feel left out by our neighborhood mommy clique, is it always a deliberate, evil attempt to marginalize us? I have felt excluded on numerous occasions, but I suspect that the real issue was the fact that I am often reserved, an introvert, and when I have had too much social time, I shut down and am not exactly exuberant. People either pick up on that and realize I need space, or are turned off by my grimace of agony at the thought of having to say another word. (OK, a slight exaggeration, but you get my point.) Now, the topic of my Meeean Mommies post was how a mommy clique was so exclusive that a friend of mine was in a funk the rest of the day. That does sound kind of evil.
I did some research (fancy word for "googling") on mommy cliques and found a bunch of info. The two below are my top picks.
http://toughcookiemommy.com/2011/03/mom-cliques.html
http://www.rantsfrommommyland.com/2009/11/special-guest-writer-mommy-cliques.html
I have definitely had that same thing happen to me! I highly doubt it's some evil plot -- but I do think sometimes it does boil down to me not having enough money to do some of the fancier things others want to do, or the fact that I don't have the same schedule as some other mamas, etc. I distinctly remember once being looked down on by a group of other moms because I didn't exclusively buy my son's socks at a specific store! :) Let's back each other up, ladies!!!
ReplyDeleteSeriously? Socks? That's sad.
ReplyDelete