The good news is that I do not need to cancel my subscription to Martha
Stewart Living. I took the quiz in The White Trash Mom Handbook and I am not white
trash, although after reading this book, I do share the white trash
philosophy. And I have a loud laugh - a mom at school told me the other
day that she could hear my laugh from the parking lot - which is a
white trash trait, apparently.
I thought this book - written by Michelle Lamar, a Deep South mom blogger - was funny and I whole heartedly agreed with one of the book's main messages: get involved in your child's school. Michelle wrote that "pitching in always helps your child," which is so true. For those moms who may be naive to school politics, the lesson is helpful. It's best to blend in and participate in a visible way. Politics is everywhere, it is a fact of life and The White Trash Mom Handbook spells out how to best navigate the school scene to ultimately help your child. When I was young, my mom worked as a yard duty ("yard nard" as the kids called these moms) a few days a week at our elementary school and I know that her involvement got me and my sisters spots in the classes with the more popular teachers. Even if we did not acknowledge our mom while she was patrolling the playground, her being there helped us.
Also, I have never been big on kid's music, making my kids listen to NPR or music that I liked, which throws me into the White Trash category. Sure, we have all of the They Might Be Giants kid's albums, but I liked them before they got into the kid realm, so I still think of them as a regular band. I've always justified the lack of hokey kid music by arguing that I was doing them a favor, exposing them to more complex music. But really, I don't remember listening to children's music as a kid. My parents were heavy into disco and many of those songs formed the soundtrack to my childhood. I turned out just fine. Right?
Other book club takes on The White Trash Mom Handbook can be found here.
