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    I Parent Differently Than My Mother

    By | Parenting – Thu, Mar 8, 2012 10:54 AM EST

    By Charlotte Hilton Andersen, REDBOOK

    When it comes to parenting, it's easy to feel like no one's on your side. But when your own parents cross you? That's rough. Thanks to a generation gap and our current trend of crowd-sourcing our parenting, more moms are looking at the way they were raised and deciding they want to do things differently. From safety to soda, some moms share their biggest parenting disagreements with their own moms:

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    1. "I was overweight as a kid, and my mom used to cook different meals. My step-dad and brother would eat burgers and fries, and I would have a boneless, skinless chicken breast. I really resented it and now I feel that healthy eating habits should be focused on as a family, instead of singling out one person." -Michelle S.

    2. "My step-mom spanked and hit with objects and I don't think hitting is ever okay. It teaches that it's okay for a bigger person to hit a smaller person and it's humiliating for the child." -Justine

    3. "I rarely have soda pop in the house and I only let my son have it occasionally as a treat. Even then it's usually something without caffeine. I found out after a weekend my with my parents they were letting him drink Moutain Dew and Pepsi. Mom said she didn't see what the big deal was, and then proceeded to tell me how crabby and obnoxious he'd been all weekend." -Mary

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    4. "When my kids were babies, the disagreement was about giving them water in their bottles. All the grandparents insisted they had to have water. When we would leave, I just knew they were sneaking them water." -Rachel

    5. "I disagree with my parents about 'finishing everything on your plate.' It hasn't served me well, and it's founded in the idea that food shouldn't be wasted. I get the root of that, but I think it's detrimental." -Michelle G.

    6. "I grew up being told that children are to be seen and not heard. While I get the point that children should be quit and respectful of adults. I do think it was taken to the extreme 20-plus years ago. I want my children to grow up with strong intellectual voices. I especially don't want my daughter to follow this rule-I don't want her to be a quiet pretty face-I want her to be strong and do big things with her life and if that means being loud then so be it!" -Dorothy

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    7. "I wouldn't let the kids ride in the inlaw's car unless I personally installed the car seat or they had the installation inspected at a fire station. This pissed them off, but the consequences were too catastrophic not to put my foot down." -Kirsten

    8. "My wife and I do not do fast food. On the other hand my mother-in-law helps us with our childcare and she takes them to McDonalds. [I've decided it's] one of those battles I don't fight." -Chris

    What parenting rules do you do differently than your mom did?

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