I’ve listened to and read about other moms dealing with the judgmental comments and glares from clueless strangers, but I didn’t realize how infuriating it was until I experienced it myself for the first (and most likely not the last) time.

Baby R and I were visiting my sister and nieces for a fun-filled girl weekend. We were at a fabulous local restaurant where Baby R was sitting in a wooden restaurant high chair (you know, the old ones… not these new-fangled plastic lounge chairs you see at some of the newer restaurants). I used to take the time to “strap her in,” but soon realized she is such a mover and shaker that strapping her in only creates more chaos.

Well, cue a mother at another table… I glance over to see her looking at my child all wide-eyed. I (again) checked on Baby R to see what in the world was creating such a scene. She had spun around with her feet dangling out the back of the highchair, waving at the passersby. Ummm… Okay. Then I see her telling who I assume to be her parents about what she saw. Based on her wild hand gestures, I could tell that she was appalled that I had not strapped Baby R into the highchair. After what seemed like a lengthy explanation of what in the world I had done, her mother and father both turned around to witness the horrid affair. The mother scowled; the father just smiled (God bless him).

You’d figure I could just let that drop… Who cares what this random stranger thinks about how I’ve chosen to let my child sit, of all things? Baby R was in absolutely no danger. But all I could think was “How DARE you judge me; you have no idea why I haven’t buckled in my child. Did you for ONCE ever think that by buckling my little wiggle worm into that chair that perhaps she could squirm so much she would tip over that chair with her in it? Thus causing even more harm to herself!” I simply glared at her… Mentally, I was shooting the rays of a thousand suns out of my eyes. I glared until she finally made eye contact with me. She quickly looked away and didn’t dare look at my table after that.

This whole thing was bugging me to my core. It was interfering with the conversations I was having with my own family. I was distracted. I was concocting responses in my head just in case she had the audacity to stop by my table with her sage advice. After 10 minutes, I realized what I was doing. It wasn’t easy, but I forced myself to stay in the moment… to stay focused on my family and the conversations at my own table. I spent a lot of money flying 1,000 miles to visit them. I couldn’t let some random stranger ruin that for me.

And I’m glad I listened to my inner voice. That lady not only avoided looking over my direction again, but also never stopped by my table after her own meal for me to spew my own thoughts on her judgmental antics. I would have spent far more than the 10 minutes fuming over something that was so fleeting and unimportant, thus sacrificing sacred time with my dear sister and her girls who are growing up way too fast.

So remember that… Don’t let outsiders ruin your day. Don’t let them make you feel inferior. Don’t let them steal your joy. It isn’t worth it.

And remember… “Nobody can be a better version of you than you, so you might as well rock it!”