Parenting is constant. Never-ending, always learning, parents are meant to evolve with each and every minute. Being a multi-cultural parent takes this to another level. As an African American mom, I can say that I’ve experienced an additional amount of worry, pressure, and drive to get it right for my multi-cultural children. Recently, I was invited to attend a special breakfast during Mom 2.0 Summit, celebrating multi-cultural moms who are working on “getting it right.” Baby Dove wanted to give them some time to enjoy one another, and express their thoughts on parenting little ones in this day and age.
Dealing With Stigmas
One recurring theme within the breakfast was hearing every mom in the room struggle with stigmas. From being a minority mom who breastfeeds, to homeschooling, to dealing with family members who judge their parenting style, these moms had much to say about their current stigma.
Natasha Brown of Grits & Grace shared that being a homeschool mom has always been a bone of contention with her family. As an African American, her family didn’t understand why she wouldn’t send her kids to school, especially since the integration of schools was such a big issue within the Civil Rights Movement. She said “I’m making the right choice for MY children.”
Special guest speaker Brandi Riley of Mama Knows It All continues to feel the stigma of being a work at home mom from online and offline acquaintances that have things to say about her traveling for work.
“They say ‘why are you away again? I thought you were a stay-at-home mom?’ Actually, I’m a work-at-home mom, which is quite different.”
In this quick video, Brandi also touches on the fact that she had to learn that her version of being a mom is very different than her mother or grandmother’s version, and that’s OK.
For The Culture
Many of these phenomenal moms are passionate about educating their children about culture — whether it’s their culture as multi-cultural children, or the culture of others. Nine out of 10 mothers feel pressure to be a perfect parent, leading 72% of moms to question if what they are doing is good enough.
Jennifer Borget of Cherish 365 is raising two bi-racial children, with another on the way. She’s been adamant about teaching her children as much about their African American culture as possible, but still feels like she may be failing them.
“We have lots of access to information, yet I still feel guilty for not teaching my multi-cultural children ‘enough’ about their culture.”
Virginia from Mandarin Mama teaches her children Chinese, while creating a bilingual homeschool environment. She’s taking on the role of teacher, not only to have her 4 children fluent in this language, but to make sure they know how amazingly complex they are as people. She admits, her parents don’t always get it, but she’s pushing forward because she knows how important this is for her children.
Alternate Lifestyles With Little Ones
Millennial moms want to fit baby into their lives without giving up the other aspects of their lives.
A nomad and mom of 3, Megan wondered if she was being selfish by taking on this new lifestyle with her husband and family, instead of staying rooted in one place “like we’re supposed to do.” Growing up in Alaska as a minority, Megan knew that she wanted to see as much of the world as she could, and taking her children along didn’t seem out of the ordinary to her, but it did to her family. But, when she sees the joy in her children’s eyes at they explore the US together, she realizes she’s doing the best for them.
A big thank you to Dove for putting together this hour of inspiration for these amazing moms. Also, kudos to Baby Dove for believing there is no one right way to be a parent and encourages parents to trust their way and do what they think is best for their babies and themselves.
If you’d like to learn more about Baby Dove, and Dove’s support of women, be sure to check out their website.