Label of Choice: Mum

Apparently, I am a green parent. I don’t particularly like the term; it conjures up images of unshaven limbs, unlocked doors and the distinct absence of deodorant.

But despite my protestations, it stands that in today’s competitive world of parenting formulas, I am almost absolutely lumped with the ‘green’ kind. And it’s kind of funny because I never considered myself a greenie. Or a hippy.

The term eco or green parent often has negative connotations (remember the unshaven limbs?), but if you turn back the clock a generation or two, you could have classed every parent as a green parent.

Cloth nappies, babywearing, minimal toys, homemade food, hand-me-down clothing and a natural preschool education that flowed from life in a community (it takes a village to raise a child)… these were the norm. There was no alternative.



But now we have a choice. There is an alternative. We could choose disposable nappies, prams, tonnes of plastic educational toys, store-bought food, brand new designer clothing and a formalised preschool education that starts at birth with a child’s first Baby Einstein board book.

And this would probably afford us the term ‘modern’ parent.

Now don’t get me wrong. I love to mix and match. Because I’ve discovered you can’t go jogging with a baby in a carrier. And tinned baby food is rather handy on long car trips.

I love that we have the choice. Because it means we can make a decision we feel good about and can really own. I’m sure my grandmother would have loved the opportunity to choose disposables once in a while! And I doubt she would have considered cloth nappy advocacy a serious endeavour. Who on earth would have the time to lobby for a nappy, I hear her ask?

But the fact that we have choices today means that we can all get rather passionate about it. The recent Channel 7s Sunrise debate is a prime example. The morning show asked its viewers: "cloth or disposable". Within an hour, there were hundreds of responses and the contention continued throughout the day with over 1000 responses on their Facebook thread. Mothering, it seems, is a highly competitive sport and every mother feels the need to defend her decisions. Why? Who cares?

Well, we do. We want to know – we want to be completely sure – that our decisions are good for our children, not detrimental to them as others are implying.

While I’m the first to get passionate about cloth nappying and babywearing, homemade food and handmade clothing, it’s good to remember from time to time that the labels aren’t important. As much as I dislike the term ‘green’ parent and want to shout from the rooftops that I’m a ‘traditional’ parent, I don’t want to raise my children by labels.

I want to raise my children according to a method that fosters a peaceful and happy family. If this means disposables for a few weeks while we endure a gastro bug, then so be it!

Whoops! Did I just say that?? Maybe I’m not so green after all.

© Oz Baby Trends 2011