Responsible parenting

It took me quite a while to realise that motherhood is not a full time job. It's not a job. It's a state of mind. In a job, you can take off and leave when you want to. When you are a parent, you can't not decide one day that you've had enough and call it quits. It's like saying you're bored of your husband and want another. True, there are times when a) you long for your pre-mommy days, for some precious 'me-time' but if you're smart enough you can build your me-myself-I time into your baby's schedule- i.e. when baby sleeps. True, it may mean sacrificing a bit of your own sleep but hey! everything in the world has it's price! and b) you pull your hair out in frustration if baby refuses to eat- making you wonder if it's all that difficult to be a mom?  It's really not- and the best judge of what and how your baby feels is your experience.  I keep wondering if I'm teaching my 1year old the correct things. Is it too soon to teach her good values, to respect Gods and elders?  And then a small voice pipes up inside me and tells me - yes, I should. I should bring her up the way my sister and I were.  With love, laughter and respect.