I really like to people watch. I like to sit in a mall or public area and watch people interact with one another. I like to hear strangers views on the world. That’s the key word. Strangers. I don’t want to catch snippets of conversations of people that I know, because then I feel awkward and terrible. It’s far more interesting when you don’t know the persons name, or just in case they are gossiping, who they are talking about. I also find it very interesting when they are mothers. Mothers for some reason really get off on talking about other mothers parenting. Well, I once happened to overhear two mothers very haughtily speaking about other mothers that enjoy a cocktail. This article is for them….

I am a mom that enjoys a cocktail….or seven. I don’t find anything wrong with it. If my son is in bed and my husband is home, then there is an extra set of eyes and ears. I don’t think that it’s a bad thing. I think that its fucking self preservation. Ladies, there is nothing wrong with having a glass of wine, or even the whole bottle. If your children are safe and sound, then you do you. You deserve a break and a chance to unwind. It will help you get rid of some of your frustrations and then you won’t carry them into the next day. Take a deep breath, take a sip and calm your nerves.

The women that want to judge you for that glass of wine really don’t have the right to say anything or look down on you. They weren’t there when your son poured milk in the fish tank, they weren’t there when your daughter took her poop diaper off and rubbed it all over the wall, and they weren’t there when your child took a full bottle of liquid detergent and dumped it down your tv and onto your brand new white carpeting. Bottom line……they weren’t there.

Being a mom sometimes makes you want to rip your hair out. Which these days isn’t much of a loss because a lot of us can’t even get our roots done because of these tiny demanding people that are around all day long. I want to ride up on a horse covered in blue face paint Mel Gibson style and yell at these judgmental women “You may take my hair appointment, but you will NEVER take my wine!!!!” If my son wasn’t being looked after properly, then yes, that’s a big problem. Let’s face it though, the only time my son has it rough is when it’s bed time and he has to take his crown off for the night. He’s really not hard done by.

As mothers and wives, we spend most of our time taking care of everyone else’s needs. Our kids are what our days revolve around. Getting them dressed, feeding them, keeping them alive, you all know the drill. So the sheer fact that someone who doesn’t drink feels that an alcoholic beverage now and then could change that, to me, is crazy. It also made me think that maybe they would benefit from a good, stiff drink (or stiff anything, really). I also didn’t want to judge them while they were busy judging everyone else, so I didn’t chase them down with my flask and ask them if they wanted a swig to prove a point.

So to all of my fellow wine, beer, martini, straight pirate whiskey drinking moms, I leave you this….I respect your choice to have a drink. For those of you that don’t drink, I respect your choice as well. I don’t feel that either have anything to do with being a good parent. However, trashing someone for doing something differently than you makes you kind of an ass. As a mom I already hear about the million things that I’m doing wrong according to other people. How I dress, how I parent, how I talk, and now what I drink? Come on. I know that we are better than that. The next time I’m having a glass of wine I will sit back, close my eyes and replay the conversation about how “moms that drink are disgusting” in my mind. I will smile and think “oh ladies, you should just see what happens when a group of moms find sitters and go out for a night together”. Fun happens. Laughs happen. And we are still good moms while we are doing it.

xo Stephanie