Parenting comments

I guess it's naive of me to think that people won't talk about our parenting skills and whether or not they think we're doing ok, but it does bother me.

Last night my sister commened on how my mom commented on "Merlin" being a bad name for a dog. This led to me asking if my mom made any comments on the names we picked for the baby. This led to me asking if she's made any comments on our parenting skills in general. I should not have asked.

It's not that it's bad or anything. Maybe my sister was being nice and sparing me any details, but she did say that both of my parents have commented on us being overly protective of Ellie.

Why does this bother me so much? Do I really need my parents to think that I'm doing everything great? Or maybe everyone thinks I'm overly protective of her? Or, is this an opinion that they made at the beginning and just haven't modified it as Ellie grows? What else have they said?

I'm not sure why it bothers me so much. Maybe it's because I don't think it's true. I do think that we are protective of Ellie, but not overly so. In fact, we've gotten the opposite comments from our friends - comments on "you are both so relaxed" when it comes to us watching nervously as Ellie approaches the edge of a small staircase, with the grass just two feet below. We try not to jump to rescue her all the time. It's not easy being relaxed.

I think that's what bothers me so much about my parents comments. We work hard at not being overbearing so it hurts my feelings to hear that they think we are being so. I really wonder why they think that. Do they still think so? I wish they could adjust their opinions instead of sticking to the first impressions they got. Or maybe they have? Maybe the problem is that my sister just hasn't heard the new opinions.

UGH. Stop it. It's not that big of a deal.