In the News {Suri's pacifier}

I'm climbing on my soapbox today to talk about a hot topic.

-

Suri and the pacifier

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes are once again being criticized as parents, this time because 5-year-old Suri was caught sucking on a pacifier in public.

photo credit

Obviously since my 5-year-old still drinks from a bottle, I will be the last one to throw stones on this one. But that's not why I'm going to defend them. Or maybe it is. The fact is, things have not gone as perfectly in my life as I had planned. {That is an understatement.} So my instinct is to guess that if Suri takes a pacifier at this age, it might be because things didn't go as planned. Maybe she's sick. Maybe she hates to travel (these pictures were taken in Vancouver, where, I believe, the family does not live). Maybe maybe maybe. I don't know. So I think it's mean to guess (as some acquaintances of mine did on facebook) that it's because Tom and Katie are horrible parents who don't want the hassle of taking the pacifier away and the tantrums that would ensue. All I know is: there are a bunch of 5- and 6-year-old kids in this world who still suck their thumbs. Why is that any better? {I suppose the answer is because you can't take your kids' thumbs away but you can throw out their pacifiers. Still, thumb or pacifier are equally bad for kids' teeth.} And again, I don't think we should judge others unless you've walked a mile in their shoes.
-
Maybe Tom and Katie are the worst parents in the world. Maybe Suri is completely and totally spoiled and eats only ice cream and stays up till 2am watching R-rated movies. But I'm guessing that the 3 of them are just {relatively} normal people who are trying their best and making some mistakes. Part of me wonders if Katie "let" Suri get caught with her paci so the girl will finally give it up already. Because you know the longer you let these things go, the harder it is to break the habit.
-
Anyway, I feel bad for the family. For being so closely scrutinized. For Katie, watching the media and public call her a bad mom. {Aren't our egos fragile enough as moms? Aren't we always comparing ourselves to other moms who seem to be doing it better or have it all figured out?} For Suri, she's going to grow up and be so embarrassed that she was caught with a pacifier at age 5.
-
And don't even get me started on the paparazzi!
-
Okay, I'm climbing off my soapbox now.