Humans love categorizing things. Animals, plants, and even cloud types are recorded and chronicled in minute detail. But there's nothing humans love to categorize more than other people. Reading parenting board lingo might make you wonder: what is a scrunchy mom? The term does not refer to a mom who rocks a fabric-covered hair tie all the time.
The scrunchy term falls under a continuum between crunchy and silky moms. Confused? Understandable. Most people are familiar with the idea of a crunchy mom, or one who favors organic foods, cloth diapers, and unmedicated birth, as noted by Scary Mommy. At the other end of the spectrum is a species known as the silky mom. Although an exact definition is hard to come by, according to a community post in Baby Center, a silky mom favors sleep training techniques, disposable diapers, and medicated birth in a hospital. Like Goldilocks, the scrunchy mom opts for a middle path between these two extremes. A scrunchy mom combines both crunchy and silky mom preferences, as noted in Kidspot. For instance, the scrunchy mom might feed her child an organic foods diet, but use disposable diapers every now and then. Scrunchy moms are yet another species in the world of parenting ornithology.
For some people, this shorthand way of referencing parenting styles could prove helpful. Claiming your identity as a scrunchy mom (if appropriate) is a quick way to explain your stance on some topics. Maybe you serve up organic food at home, but your kiddo is welcome to eat technicolored birthday cake at a party. It's a choice.
On the other hand, this kind of categorizing can feel a bit ridiculous. Just how militant are these so-called silky or crunchy moms imagined to be? Does a silky mom slap an apple out of her tot's hand to replace it with a can of soda? It feels like the vast majority of mothers would fall under the scrunchy category — picking natural, sustainable choices sometimes, and opting for convenience at other times. You know, just like most every other human. Instead of assigning moms into factions, isn't it more helpful to look at the big picture? Whether crunchy, silky, or scrunchy, most parents are doing their best to raise healthy kids, and maybe that underlying unity should be the focus instead.
