Kelly Ripa spoke the truth about parenting during a recent appearance on the Wendy Williams Show. Ripa shared how she caught her 13-year-old daughter, Lola, on Instagram when she was supposed to be studying Spanish. Ripa said, “‘I don’t think she likes me, but I don’t care. I’m like, ‘I’m not your friend, I’m your mom.'”
You can see video of her appearance at this link. (I’ve been unable to find a link that I can embed so you can watch it here. YouTube has taken them all down. I apologize.)
Ripa went on to say, “I feel an obligation as her mom to keep her living in the real world.”
Frankly, I’m a little shocked that this is making headlines across the country, and even the world. Admittedly, not all parents think that way, and I love that Ripa feels that way. I wish all parents did. But I don’t think the concept of “I’m a parent, not a friend” is brand new. To the contrary, it’s return to old school parenting.
It’s so very true kids will have lots of friends, but they only have one mom. Be a parent. And have the fortitude to be an unpopular parent.
In fact, in my Tween/Teen to English dictionary, “You’re such a mean mom” translates to “You’re doing something right, mom.”
So hang in there, moms and dads. Set those boundaries, declare those expectations, enforce those consequences, love them fiercely even when they’ve declared they don’t love you, and do so with the knowledge that you are doing your job.
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