A tough job - made tougher!

If you believe motherhood is easy then you haven't been a mother.

It is one of the 'toughest jobs you'll ever love,' and sometimes (maybe more than sometimes) you won't love it at all. It is easier to get into motherhood than to get out. Once you're in, you're committed for life.

Once you fully realize what you've gotten yourself into there's no turning around. Its requires long hours, a substantial portion of your time and money, and potential educational and career setbacks. But we do it - and gladly. Yes, of course there is a 'payback' of love and 'on again - off again devotion,' the yearly Mother's Day card, and belonging to a fraternity (or should I say, sorority) of women who give birth, raise kids, and thereby, 'understand' the demands, pitfalls and bonuses of motherhood.

But society doesn't always make it easy on us. For example, in Missouri, a woman was kicked out of the local Burger King because her 6 month old baby wasn't wearing shoes and thereby violating the 'health code.' Really? One of the least unhealthy aspects of entering and eating at Burger King is whether a baby is wearing her booties. But, it's always something isn't it?

If you're one of the health conscience mother's who not only makes sure your baby has foot gear on at Burger King, but also applies sunblock - you could be in even bigger trouble. Ha! The mothers who have said 'to hell with the sunblock' or just blew it off all these years will love this. Researchers now say that 70% of children lack sufficient vitamin D (and girls were found more likely to be D deficient). The lack of vitamin D contributes to the following: rickets, heart disease, cancer and diabetes. The use of sunscreen blocks the UVB rays that the body needs to make vitamin D - and so, your sunblock is dangerous, too.

Now they're saying to mothers - let your kids play without the sunblock, but only for a 'limited' time, and then apply the sunblock. What a tightrope! Cancer from too much sun or cancer for too little sun. Wow. What is a mother to do? Punt, I guess. Who knows? Michel Holick of Boston University School of Medicine says that, "Vitamin D deficiency has insidious, serious long-term health consequences for children." Maybe the sun is not such a bad thing, after all?

The best advice for mothers is to eat your Burger King meals outside. Leave the booties off the baby and let the little feet absorb the sun. You won't be violating the 'health codes' and by the time you finish the fries the sun-consumption should be just about right. But then again, I'm not a doctor... just a mother trying to navigate.

What do you think?