"Alpha mums turn parenting into a serious issue and motherhood into martyrdom, and the result is nobody has any fun"

[Twiglett]

article in sunday papers says Alpha Mum might have had her day

and that Beta Mums are raising confident happy children

well hurrah

I'm a Beta mummy and actually feel quite that its not that great to be ferrying DS around to lots of different classes because er...well....I just don't do it!!

All that rushing around to various classes can't be good for them really can it??!!

Supposing you don't have a Nanny? Who can I teach Mandarin to then?

Yes Nikki it is. Get with it.

lOL at timetableing Dwarves.

'It is Grumpy's turn to practice the violin, Doc, you get started on your Cyrillic'

Bookworm - you're going to get a nanny. I'll get you one, and she'll be fluent, I promise.
My poor children still haven't been in the shower because I'm having to drag you lot through to Alpha Status. Help! The timetable is collapsing. . . ..

Noooo!! I'm all for one or two classes a week but I fail to see how a stressed parent rushing around like a mad thing to do lots of different classes in one week is good for the child. I personally think (and I know I'm going to get lynched for this but...) the classes are more for the parents to meet other parents than the kids......

Nonsense, Nikki, they are for the development and advancement of our children, so they can do more things and be better at things than all the others, in this way they will then in turn be more successful in our hyper competitive world.

Jeez.

I think we will have to agree to disagree on this one!

I think these days, its more along the lines of if you aren't seen to be taking your child to whatever classes, you are seen to be failing as a parent, hence the pressure to do so. My DS is sooooo sociable, beams in company, doesn't cry when new people hold him and I always get complimented on how content he is and as yet, he has hardly been to any classes - just lashings of attention from DH, family and myself and mixing with other friend's babies!

Nikki, Nikki. I'm going to put dcs to bed now, after we've done our IQ improving exercises and recited our latin verbs, and then I'm coming back to give you a good alpha talking to.

The things I take my 2 children to are:-

(a) Swimming things. This includes lessons, clubs and galas and involves ferrying one or both of them somewhere approximately five times a week.
(b) Tennis things. Twice a week.
(c) Music things. Only once a week. Hurrah. This is mainly done through school but piano teacher poorly this term so this is a temporary fix.
(d) Football things.

All of these activities are a total PITA, and have to be scheduled around work and my complex (and to some extent unsatisfactory) childcare arrangements.

Meet other parents? Do me a favour. I don't want to meet other parents. In fact mostly I don't want to be there at all. I do it because my infants expressed an urge to go. Except for ths swimming, which is something I started because I was frightened of them not being competent around water.

Writing all this down has made me realise I am a total mug. I am going to practice saying NO in the mirror.

lol at hundred times

I didn't do any baby classes for my dd either but since she's gone to school, she's added ballet/tap/football/Rainbows to her swimming classes as most of her friends go as well. I must admit it's gotten me talking to more parents than if she didn't go. But I'm not learning my Mandarin sat here typing this then .

100X. just Latin?

Shouldn't you be on to Greek by now? Or Sanskrit?

Alpha mum , my arse!

Don't forget Eygptian hieroglyphics.

Phah! picture writing. We did that in utero!

I think its great that when they start asking to do things, you let them because that's something they want to do and I would encourage that in DS when he's a bit older, but at the moment, I really do feel he benefits more from short outings to the park or mixing with other friend's babies and still getting his proper naps etc - he's so unhappy if I take him out for the afternoon and he doesn't get to nap properly!

alpha ,ums
please move over to OUR thread

www.mumsnet.com/Talk?topicid=8&threadid=340968

I'm an Iota mum

Cod - didn't you post the other week about how you didn't like people specifying certain types of people to join a thread????

FioFio!!!

yes but yt smy game adn MY rules

,goes off muttering abotu nikki>

Ha ha!!!!