Sometimes, It Feels Like I’m the Odd One Out
As a mother in this fast-paced, filtered world, I often feel like I’m swimming against the current. While other parents around me are booking luxury birthday venues for toddlers or buying their kids the latest iPhones “just because,” I find myself standing still—questioning, doubting, and often, feeling out of place.
Don’t get me wrong—I love my child more than words can express. But I’ve chosen to raise them with values over vanity. And in today’s world, that sometimes feels like rebellion.
The Pressure Is Real
There are days I feel like I’m failing—not because of how I parent, but because I don’t fit in. I don’t post curated birthday photoshoots. I don’t dress my child in designer brands. And I don’t reward every small task with a toy or gadget.
It’s not because I can’t—it’s because I won’t.
Still, when I’m sitting in a room full of moms talking about the “must-have” items their kids just can’t live without, I sometimes question myself. Am I being too rigid? Am I holding my child back?
But then I look at my kid—the way they say “thank you” without being reminded, the way they offer their last cookie to a friend, the way they bounce back after setbacks—and I know I’m doing what’s right, even if it’s not what’s trendy.
It’s Hard to Say “No” When Everyone Else Says “Yes”
One of the hardest parts about parenting today is not the parenting itself—it’s the pressure to perform. Social media has turned childhood into a competition, and parenting into a public spectacle.
When your child comes home asking, “Why don’t I have what they have?” it stings. Not because I want them to have things, but because I don’t want them to feel less. But I’ve learned to push through that discomfort and turn it into a conversation—about worth, gratitude, and how happiness doesn’t come from stuff.
I know saying “no” doesn’t make me a bad mother. It makes me a present one.
Raising a Child in a Material World
We live in a time where kids are growing up surrounded by abundance, but often lack the emotional tools to handle the real world. They expect rewards without effort, praise without progress, and comfort without challenge.
And I get it—millennial parents like myself often grew up with less. We want to give our kids everything we didn’t have. But somewhere along the way, “everything” became too much.
Our kids don’t need more things. They need more guidance. They need to learn how to fail, how to be kind, how to sit with discomfort without crumbling. And those lessons aren’t learned through instant gratification—they’re built over time, often through struggle.
I’m Choosing a Different Path—Even When It’s Lonely
There are moments I feel isolated in my parenting style. While others hand over the latest gadgets or throw parties with bounce houses and photo booths, I’m teaching my child how to bake cookies from scratch or write handwritten thank-you notes.
It’s not glamorous. It doesn’t get likes. But it builds character.
I want to raise a child who leads with empathy, not ego. Who values people over possessions. Who can weather life’s storms without falling apart at the first drop of rain.
Final Thoughts From One Mother to Another
If you’re a parent who feels out of place because you’re not raising your child by society’s inflated standards—know that you’re not alone. The quiet values you’re instilling today will echo far louder in the years to come than any birthday post or brand name ever could.
We may not be the loudest voices in the room, but we’re the steady ones. The ones raising kids who will grow up not only to succeed—but to deserve their success. And in a world obsessed with more, sometimes the most powerful thing we can do is choose less, with purpose.
