It's 11pm. Do you know where your mom is?

Occasionally we hear or experience something that just baffles all accounts of common sense. This week the message hit twice as hard. Okay, I'll admit that I have made my parenting mishaps. I've messed up schedules, forgotten plans, not double checked homework, AND have submitted to weekly frozen pizza nights... justifying all food groups represented in just one convenient slice... I admit it. I'm also laden with the guilt that goes along with it all and try again to encourage my family to actually USE the calendar, sign the homework notebook and plan healthy, non-guilt filled meals.

I've submitted to the fact that as parents we generally do the best we can to raise our kids in a healthy safe environment. We want to offer them the world of options while still maintaining some degree of personal sanity ourselves. We've all heard it from the day we brought the baby home. It's a balancing act.

Yesterday, however, I found our balance is off. Several, none of my business, conversations were taking place with some mothers whose children, 16 & 17 year olds, had found some trouble. One commented that her 'kid is old enough to know better and that it's not her problem anymore.' Another said that she gave up long ago. The third child's parents never showed up.

I did a check of my equilibrium as I budded into the conversation, questioning their parental accountability.

Hey, I get it. It's tough sometimes. But does that mean we just quit when our children begin walking down paths we don't like? That is exactly the time our kids need us the most. We need to lead by example and show our children that even though our world sometimes presents itself to be tough, we need to make some tough, healthy choices. If we need help, it's a sign of strength, not weakness, to ask for it. If we can't provide the help our kids need, we help them find it. There are some great resources out there with our schools, government, doctors, churches, and neighborhoods.

So as I'm contemplating at which point it would take a parent to 'give up' on their child, thinking it must be after that parent has really experienced some difficult things with that child, I find this:

"Pregnant woman accused of smoking crack - Pregnant woman was released from rehab 4 days earlier. A 19-year-old Village of Pewaukee woman, six months pregnant and already facing a charge for possession of heroin, was charged Monday in Waukesha County Circuit Court with reckless endangerment while allegedly driving down I-94 smoking crack cocaine." http://www.livinglakecountry.com/LakeCountryReporter/story.aspx?storyId=785589 Posted: August 21, 2008

Where is our community, our society going when we have given up. Not only of our children but ourselves. It's time for us, ALL of us to engage. Hats off to our fellow community member for making the call that helped the police find this woman.. this mom. I salute you!