Lately, some situations in my life have really got me thinking. Thinking about the person I am, the one I want to become, the one I know my son will look up to one day. I try not to judge others based on their actions, but more often than not, something about that person forms in my head before I have a chance to think. I think judging others is normal- we all do it. But where do we draw the line?

We all want what is best for us, our families, siblings, friends, etc. But without judging the outward actions of others, how do we bring this to light to them without being harsh and mean? At what point does it become our business? We say “well, I am not going to confront them about this or that because it’s not my place to judge” but, in all actuality, the judgement has been made.

It is frustrating to watch people in a situation that you think, “wow, if that was me, I would do _____”. At this point in our lives, we are educated and have enough life experience to instill boundaries on our own lives. How do we let others see those boundaries we have for ourselves without pushing them onto others? It is especially hard when you have a child in your care that you have to think about.

As a mom, I don’t want to be judged for the things I do with Brayden, but deep down, I know I am being judged. And it’s by the older generation of people in my life. It is frustrating. I wasn’t around to critique their every move when they had kids, so what gives them the right to do the same? I know that I am making the BEST decision for Brandon and Brayden, given the circumstances, every time. Is it always the right one? No, but that is how you learn and grow as an individual and as a parent. No one has all of the right answers! (Well, most of the time I think my mom does…)

Brandon and I need to be the ones deciding what we will allow for Brayden, what we won’t, etc. I don’t want others to always agree with my decisions either, but at least respect them. There will always be unsolicited advice that I will just have to ignore, but I have a hard time shutting out those words.

Some of the situations that have been happening make me want to pack up and move to a deserted ranch in Montana (we’ve talked about it!) but I know running away won’t solve anything. I know I need to stick up for myself, my family, and my decisions, but I often don’t get the chance. I feel like I am in a bubble and that everyone else is just carrying on around me, not giving me a second thought, until I do something that still doesn’t involve them (but it might), and then I am getting badgered from the outside of the bubble. It’s a terrible feeling, really, when I am trying hard to make the right decision so that people around me feel included or whatever- but I still get burned every.single.time.

Enough is enough. But I don’t know how to change it alone, I know I can’t, and I don’t know when it becomes “my business”. Thoughts?

I have been playing Words with Friends on my iPhone for awhile now. It’s just like scrabble, only free! I always have great words and it tells me “invalid tile placement” or “that is not a word” even when clearly, it is a word! I have actually never played the board game, so my sister picked it up yesterday and brought it over for us to play.

We had no idea what we were doing. The biggest word that any of us played was “hidden”. I was certain that we picked up the wrong game or Jr. Scrabble. So, I have some questions for those of you that play Scrabble…

Do state abbreviations count? Do you always have to play off of someone else’s word?

Maybe with some more practice, we can get a little more competitive!

Oh, and the winner? Me!