I don’t know if this was necessarily a common thing, but, thanks to the parenting subreddits, I know for a fact I was not the only person who experienced this. The masterclass in passive aggressive busybodying!! Critique by proxy!



I was not prepared for the sheer rudeness of some people – strangers, even! – who’d use Momo as their mouthpiece so they could comment on whatever they thought I was doing “wrong.” Like I’d somehow be confused by Momo’s sudden and inexplicable ability to form complete sentences. Like they somehow knew, within seconds of seeing her, what she needed more than I did. Like if they said it in a singsong voice, I wouldn’t realize how staggeringly rude they were being. I mean, it’s like… cartoonishly rude. You wouldn’t think people would be like this, but babies make people want to step all over your personal boundaries.

(FOR THE RECORD, busybodies, I was right: to this day, Momo prefers being a little chilly and doesn’t like wearing socks and hats. SO THERE.)