I remember first time I heard the term “Helicopter Mom”. I was sitting outside of a pre-school director’s office. Their Open House had been the night before and I was there to follow up about some concerns I still had. My daughter was 3 and had never been to any school or daycare before, so I was a little nervous about her safety and had a long list of questions for the director.
As I sat in the waiting area looking over my notes, I overheard the director on the phone talking about Helicopter Moms. I’d never heard that term before, so I listened a little more carefully (ok, so I’m nosy). As she continued to talk, I heard snippets like “At some point, they have to let their children go” and “We had one try to volunteer as the teacher’s aide so she could stay with him all day”. I began to realize that the term “Helicopter Mom” wasn’t a compliment.
I was shocked. How could taking great care of your child be a bad thing? How could researching her school, carefully planning her playdates and then only inviting well behaved children, choosing only safe and appropriate toys and books be wrong? Checking and double-checking every aspect of my daughter’s life would keep her safe, healthy and happy, right?
Turns out, some people think I might be a little overbearing. I can live with that. 🙂
Mickey says
A comment AND a follower! From the black-line-killer, too! YAY!!!!!!! 😉
MusingMom6 says
Hey there! Glad to see you got your blog up and running!
I have found with schools, they have a tendency to think “everything will come out in the wash”. But not everything does. Be fair, be consistent and don’t let them tell you your job. Is probably the best advice a mom of 6 could offer.
Mommywantstoread says
Nothing wrong with being a helicopter mom. I’m a stay at home mom and dread the day that my son goes to pre-school. Simply because of so many horror stories and because of a bad experience with my stepdaughter. My stepdaughter a few years ago would get her bus to school and home from school at the same daycare as her other brother. Well one day her school bus didn’t show and the daycare never called any of the parents nor emergency contacts to let us know. Because of course one of us would have gone to get and take her to school. The moment we found out about that we immediately stopped her going there and my husband’s ex-wife pulled her son out of the daycare there. So irresponsible.
crystal says
Looks like you’re just getting started with blogging! Welcome to the blogosphere! We’re a fine bunch really and insanely in love with blogging! Drop by any time and if you have any questions drop me a line!
Following back!