While some parents like to run a tight ship with their kids, others let them figure it out for themselves a bit more.
A “free range” mother who lets her kids drink coffee, go outside barefoot, eat sand and sticks, and bathe in puddles has furiously defended her unconventional parenting style – insisting that her methods actually make for healthier, happier children.
Mara Doemland, 29, from Corpus Christi, Texas, who has four kids under the age of 10, says she ‘doesn’t want her children to be restricted’ in life.
She also encourages her kids to play out in the rain and doesn’t dictate what they eat.
While it might seem a little chaotic to some, Mara and her partner, Christopher Mareth, 36, believe that their parenting style allows them to learn life lessons.
Mara also doesn’t force her little ones to share, explaining that as adults we also don’t have to share if we don’t want to. Her techniques could be seen as controversial, as they break the conventional norms, but Mara claims that when she first became a mum she was strict and so learned to allow her kids to make their own choices.
The mom also lets her daughter, Emmy, shave her hair and allows her boys to wear pink clothing and dresses if they ask to. The stay-at-home mom said:
“I’m a barefoot person and have strong feet. I let my kids go barefoot if they want unless the pavement is too hot. Emmy and Indy love to be barefoot.
“I let them drink coffee if they want to try it, but they don’t drink it like adults do. They’re not doing shots of espresso all day. When it rains, I make sure we all get out in it and just have fun. It’s freeing but it is a mess.”
“We want them to be comfortable and wear what makes them happy. Emmy has her head shaved and is only wearing black and oversized clothes at the moment. We let our boys wear dresses if they want to,” Mara said.
Mara has gradually built her own ‘free range’ style of parenting after having Emmy at just 19. She said: “I was mean and had no patience when I first had Emmy.”
“I don’t agree with restricting food for my kids. I don’t want them to have a negative relationship with food. I make sure all food is available for them which doesn’t categorise certain food as ‘special’ or a treat. It actually stops them craving sweet things if it is all available to them.”
According to AWM:
Critics feel that parents are allowing children to do things that are dangerous to their health. For example, a mom allows her young children to drink coffee and to run around outside without shoes on their feet.
Although medical professionals advise against it, Mara allows her young children to drink strong Starbucks coffee. Children under the age of twelve should not have caffeine.
No amount of caffeine is safe for children.
While the free-range parenting style might not suit every household, this family looks to be having plenty of sand-eating barefooted fun together.
Source: AWM
