Lynda Loveland: Poolside parenting pluses

Doesn’t it make you feel a little bit better when you see other kids get in trouble at the pool?

Now don’t get me wrong, I feel badly for the parents dealing with it, but it brings a little relief to my mommy soul knowing everybody else’s kids aren’t perfect. (Although some of them come pretty darn close.) I have three very energetic kids and I could use a little break from being the example of mischief and mayhem!

Occasionally my offspring will get in a tiff with other kids, but most of the time it’s with one another. They’re together at home all the time, can’t they divide and co-exist at the pool?

I’m finally at that stage where I don’t have to stay an arm’s length from my youngest so it’s such a treat to sit poolside and talk with the other moms. I think we’re all entitled to some downtime together!

I wish I was the mom from "The Incredibles." I could stretch out my arm, grab the offender and set them in a chair for a time out, all without so much as a pause in the conversation about the great book we’re all reading!