Crunchy Mom? Silky Mom? Scrunchy Mom?
What do these terms mean and what happened to just being a Mom?
Moms are the greatest invention on this planet. We all owe our lives and happy, productive childhoods, to a Mom. What are these new Mom-types and how did they evolve?
The Quick Answer:
- Crunchy Moms embrace all-natural solutions.
- Silky Moms embrace the newest conveniences.
- Scrunchy Moms embrace various methods and products old and new.
The In-Depth Answer:
The best way to parent has likely been debated since humans started living in groups, which according to science.org was 52 million years ago. Half of society probably thought breastfeeding mostly from the Left Breast was better, the other half thought the Right was better. One group thought it better to set bedtime at sunset, the other thought it was better to allow another hour for running around the cave to get kids good and tired.
It’s important to remember that despite the good vs bad, right vs wrong judgments, over 100 billion humans have been born and survived childhood because of Moms. Children survive, and often thrive, even with parents who “break every rule” in every parenting book that ever existed.
Being surrounded by love may be the most important parenting method of all time.
Whether you are a Crunchy, Silky or Scrunchy Mom, what everyone is striving for is to be the best Mom that they can be.
A word of caution. Although knowledge is power, it can also be extremely irritating for parents to be told how to parent. Beware when “recommending” your favorite tip to other parents. The well intended gesture can often backfire.
What is a Crunchy Mom?
A Crunchy Mom is someone who tries to raise children in as close to an “all natural” way as possible.
What are other names for a Crunchy Mom?
- Hippie Mom
- Earth Mama
- Natural Living Mom
- Organic Mom
- Natural Mom
- Holistic Mom
- Green Mom
- That Weird Mom
- Granola Mom - this term is sometimes used for a “light” Crunchy Mom.
Crunchy Moms question current practices of what is considered the best way to raise children. Their goal is to make informed choices to create an environment to parent in a way that is closest to nature. They have a willingness to research and accept not commonly used approaches that may come from history, other cultures, or other countries. Their choices are often based on research and self-experience rather than what “everyone else” is doing. They are the type to research the ingredients in a new booty balm rather than looking at the number of stars the product has.
Mental and physical health are important objectives for a Crunchy Mom.
Crunchy Moms are more likely to:
- Have a home birth
- Have an unmedicated birth
- Have an unscheduled birth
- Breastfeed, and may utilize extended breastfeeding
- Use cloth diapers
- Engage in baby wearing
- Not vaccinate or not utilize all possible vaccines
- Engage in co-sleeping
- Make food, including baby food, from scratch
- Homeschool
- Follows a particular diet such as organic, whole foods, vegan, paleo etc.
- Limit screen time
- Use essential oils and other natural remedies rather than pharmaceuticals
- Addressing possible health issues early, at the first hint of something that might be wrong or alternatively addressing medical issues after they are obvious. They may let their child be sick for longer and let the immune system take care of the infection.
- Emphasize recycling or environmental issues in the home.
- Avoid plastics especially in food prep and storage
- Exclusively buy organic foods
- Have a garden or wild forage foods
Crunchy Moms are less likely to:
- Circumcise boys
- Have a planned C-section.
- Have induced labor
- Allow children to have soda, candy and processed snacks.
Crunchy moms may view child rearing as part of a larger ecosystem that includes the child’s needs, the family’s needs, society’s needs, and the planet’s needs. Parenting methods and solutions are determined by factoring in as many different important variables as possible to obtain the best outcome.
Pros of being a Crunchy Mom
Can encourage a stronger bond between Mom & Child for example through breastfeeding or baby wearing
Child may be healthier in the long run
Encourages children to research health decisions
Cons of being a Crunchy Mom
Significant research needed to find alternative practices to the “norms” of the day
Significant effort may be needed to get providers and family “on board” with non-conventional parenting practices.
Methods can be more difficult and may require learning new skills
Can be inconvenient
As practices generally take more time they can produce more stress
There may be an increased cost for some products and methods
Takes a significant ongoing time and thought commitment
What is a Silky Mom?
A modern-day mom is sometimes referred to as a Silky Mom. A Silky Mom utilizes all the modern day products, services and conveniences. They are the opposite of Crunchy Moms
What are other names for a Silky Mom?
- Modern Mom
- Early Adopter Parent
-
Convenience Mom
-
Easy Mom
- Progressive Mom
Silky Moms use leading edge science and technology to decrease stress and increase productivity in their lives. They often will also use medical advances to their full advantage including cosmetic dental work for their children or cosmetic plastic surgery or laser hair removal. They can be early adopters and embrace new inventions like self-rocking cradles. TIme management, convenience and decreased stress are important objectives for a Silky Mom.
Silky Moms are more likely to:
- Have medicated births
- Have hospital births
- More likely to have a scheduled induced birth or a planned C-section
- Bottle feed without attempting breastfeeding
- Utilize sleep training if child is not sleeping for an extended time
- More likely to use self-soothing, cry-it-out methods
- Use disposable diapers
- More likely to vaccinate
- More likely to use pharmaceuticals earlier
- More likely to treat a low fever
- Allow abundant or unlimited screen time
- Provide immediate pharmaceuticals to address apparent health concerns rather than letting the child suffer with a fever or cold symptoms.
Silky Moms are less likely to:
- Make foods from scratch
- Let children play in dirt
- Strictly monitor what their children eat
Pros of being a Silky Mom
Easy
Convenient
Less stress
More time available for other activities
Cons of being a Silky Mom
Increased cost
May affect child’s health long-term
May teach the child to take the fastest, easiest solution rather than the solution that promotes long term health.
May encourage the child to not research health decisions.
What is a Scrunchy Mom?
A Scrunchy Mom is a combination of a Crunchy and a Silky Mom. They choose parenting products, methods and techniques that are in alignment with current needs and resources.
They may choose cloth diapers generally but choose disposable diapers for trips and when the child is in daycare or with relatives. Moms may choose to make baby food from scratch, but when times are busy use jarred baby food.
Scrunchy Moms may aim to buy organic foods but choose conventional if organic is not available or cost significantly more.
Balancing resources and results are important objectives for a Scrunchy Mom.
What are other names for a Scrunchy Mom?
A “normal” Mom
Scrunchy Moms are more likely to:
Make decisions for pragmatic reasons rather than lifestyle specific reasons.
Scrunchy Moms are less likely to:
Absolutely restrict or embrace a particular method, product or practice.
Pros of being a Scrunchy Mom
-
Easy to adapt to life’s current schedule
-
More convenient than being a Crunchy Mom
- Methods can be adapted to decrease stress
- Easier to adapt to provider, family or daycare preferences
- Choices are not dependent on research
Cons of being a Scrunchy Mom
- May have an increased cost
- May affect child’s health long-term
No matter what a Mom’s choice, all Moms need the support of the entire village. It’s important to remember most parents are doing their best to raise healthy and happy kids. Whether a Mom is Crunchy, Scrunchy or Silky they all deserve our appreciation and gratitude for taking on the toughest job in the world!