The show was funny because it pointed out a truism in many homes. Once kids are born, many parents give up their interests and change their priorities in deference to their children. Now, of course, parenting requires sacrifices. Ask any sleep-deprived new Mom or Dad. Or all the parents who spend entire weekends at soccer or hockey tournaments when they'd rather be on the golf course or getting a massage. But in parenting, as in so much of life, moderation is the key.
One of the things my husband and I have in common, even though we grew up halfway across the country from each other, was that we spent Saturday nights sleeping over at our grandparents, so that our parents could go out with their friends. And we spent those nights watching The Lawrence Welk Show, because our grandparents controlled the TV. Somehow, we both survived the polkas and accordion music, even though it certainly wasn't our first choice of programming.
As we watched "The Middle" last Wednesday, my husband and I both laughed because we saw ourselves in the parent characters. How many times have I run out late at night, after working all day and preparing dinner, because one of my sons forgot to mention that he needed kumquats (Or some other rare item) for a special event in school THE NEXT DAY! We haven't attended any of our college reunions, because we didn't want to miss our kids' football games. And every morning, I make everyone's beds and do laundry before I leave for work, when really, I know the boys could make their own beds if I forced them to.
At the end of the show, the parents relent a bit, of course. And we all are willing to sacrifice our time and energy for our kids because we love them, we're responsible for them and we want them to be happy. But this New Year, maybe it's time for all of us parents to make a few resolutions about forcing our kids to take more responsibility for themselves and about putting ourselves first at least some of the time. Our parents did, and we seemed to turn out OK.
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To watch a clip from "Taking Back the House" on "The Middle" click: http://abc.go.com/shows/the-middle
Read more Parenting Perspective blogs by visiting the Parenting Channel on 6abc.com.