Taking a pregnant pause

Remember the blog project I did in 2010 with three other women? Well, Froggie decided to resurrect it with me and we each got to invite another friend to join us. She invited a mutual friend (someone I met through her) and I invited a friend whose blog I really enjoy reading. So now it's Froggie, Mom of Many, Moma Rock and Merrylandgirl. Hope you enjoy the topics that we'll be exploring!

This week, Froggie picked the topic: Louisiana charter school changing pregnancy policy.

Before reading ahead, first see what everyone else had to say on this topic:
Froggie
Mom of Many
Moma Rock

I don't have much to say on the policy itself, other than that it's incredibly obnoxious to expect female students to take a pregnancy test in order to go to school. Everyone has a right to an education. If they were consistently disruptive to other students or posed a threat to anyone at the school (or even the entire building), I could see that being another story. I'm not saying that I support teens getting pregnant, but it shouldn't keep them from getting an education so they can at least get a job and be able to provide a good life for their child, should they choose to raise them on their own. And even if a student was found to be pregnant, they don't ask guys to take a DNA test to see if they're the one who impregnated the girls in question (after the baby is born).

However, I think there should be a boot camp that all teenagers are mandated to go to before starting high school. It would involve them raising a toddler or young child for a month. They would not be given ANY instructions and would be lectured whenever they did something another person felt was wrong (kind of like how other parents lecture each other based on their own opinions). They would have to complete the following tasks:

1. Taking the child grocery shopping where there was temptation for the child in every aisle of the store. They'd have to say "no" to everything and effectively diffuse tantrums while the threat of DCFS being called hung over their head.

2. Taking the child to a restaurant where the service is incredibly slow. They'd have to handle the child not liking anything and throwing it all on the floor and potentially breaking glasses and plates in the process.

3. Participating in a bedtime routine that doesn't account for the child getting up several times after they were tucked in, excuses being they want a drink, need to go to the bathroom, are scared of the dark, etc. They will also be woken up multiple times during the middle of the night. Losing sleep isn't only for parents of newborns.

4. Putting the child in a room with several other children and only one toy for all of them to share and having to break up several fights.

5. Taking a minimum two hour airplane or train trip while the child is screaming, kicking the seats in front of them, wanting to get up and walk all the time, asking for a snack every few minutes, asking "are we there yet," etc. Oh, and there will be a long wait before the trip even begins and you'll all be stuck on the mode of transportation during that time instead of being free to roam around the airport or train station.

6. The final activity when the month is over will be to watch an extremely gross and detailed birthing video, including the insertion of an epidural and removal of the placenta.

There are many more activities, but if this keeps teenagers from getting pregnant in the first place, it will be all worth it. I personally love being a mother, but there's a lot more to it than just the hugs, giggles, and hearing them say cute things. Being a teen mom (or dad) is not as glamorous as MTV makes it out to be. Sorry to break it to all you teenagers!

This is what a toddler having a tantrum looks like....