I am slightly crunchy. Well, OK, maybe a bit more than slightly. I have a strange attraction to any and all things tie-dyed and I like Mother Earth--a lot.
If I did not live in Alberta, I would never wear socks and rarely shoes. I have a ridiculous collection of baby carriers and use them all. I have been breastfeeding for four years straight. I get turned on by words like, organic, free-range, and hand-made. I was even busted once for henna tattooing in Edmonton during the Fringe Festival. Here is the rub, I am also quite non-crunchy too.
When I do wear footwear, I have a weakness for soft, brown and usually very expensive leather. I am a skin care snob and spend far too much on natural products that also guarantee my agelessness (I'm particularly partial to Caudalie and Korres). I will buy recycled toilet paper and paper towels, but just can't go the un-paper route because of the ick factor. I vaccinated my kids, granted at a much slower pace than recommended, but I believe it is important. And I don't think circumcision is necessary, but as a sexually active adult, I, um... appreciate it.
I am also what most would call an attachment parent. I birthed my babies as naturally as possible given my situation (I was considered high-risk), I breastfeed (for an extended time), I co-sleep, I babywear, I have practiced elimination communication with my kids and I try my darnedest to practice gentle discipline. And I am contemplating homeschooling. On paper, it looks like I am simply a few check marks away from having my own chicken coop in the back yard and scoring the ultimate crunchy trophy - my own milking cow. I assure you, I have no such aspirations. I like my yard free of all livestock, other than my own kids that is.
So how does a mama reconcile these two sides - the crunchy and the non-crunchy? A few months back, at a book signing, a new friend who had previously known of me, but had not yet met me made a comment that has kind of stuck. She agreed that I was not your typical crunchy mama and instead referred to me as Lipstick Crunchy. Now I know labels are bad and blah, blah, blah, but honestly, if I have to have a label, I think I will take that one. I think it fits and I am just fine with both my lipstick side and my crunchy one.
And it is a lot better than the alternative.....Chewy!
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