Can we stop with that mom-shaming?

I remember it so well. I was carrying my brand new baby up the stairs, wrapped in a pink blanket with a soft hat on her head. “May! Watch out!” Our cleaner was worried. That I would hit her head against the door frame. I took a breath and spoke to her. Dear Ivy. That was her name. I carried this child in my belly for nine months. I didn't drink a drop of alcohol, have been taking folic acid for years, didn't eat raw meat or raw milk cheeses, swam every day. During the birth  I suffered twelve hours of terrible pain. Everything, everything for this child. Did you really think I wouldn't pay attention to her head when I was carrying her up the stairs?

That came out. Must have been the hormones, but still. Come on now. Mom-shaming. Why do we do it? Carolien Spoor recently posted a photo of her nursery. Did she even consider that her child could choke if he got his little head caught in the cord of the Luxaflex? I often faced the same when I mentioned that my children went to daycare for five days, for example. In other countries, it's the most normal thing in the world, but here I always got a disapproving sigh with a curled upper lip in response. A bit like they had burned themselves on their first sip of hot tea.

Breastfeeding or not, everyone is tumbling over each other with opinions about you. Lieke van Lexmond was the target of mom-shaming last week. Again, I can say, because some time ago she received criticism for carrying her child in a baby carrier while cycling. Then she faced mockery and ridicule for kissing her own child on the mouth, and now it was again not good that she carried her little Zef in a baby carrier on her belly, because apparently that's sad and not good. I would like to say to the baby carrier mafia the same thing I said to my cleaner years ago. Do you really think Lieke would do anything to make her sons' lives less perfect? Well then. How did they say it in the Bible again? Why do you see the speck in your brother's eye, but do not notice the plank in your own eye? Seems like a nice conclusion for today.