PREMIUM Here’s why motherhood stops becoming ‘that serious’ I see no reason to reprimand my third-born for sometimes responding, “Bruh!” when asked to do something he doesn’t want to. Lifestyle Just now Listen

In a household where her first two were not allowed to use even the mildest of abusive words, when her third child developed the habit of throwing in four-letter words into conversations, the most her worn-out mother could manage was give her a side-eye, much to the shock of her eldest two - how was their small sister repeatedly getting away with murder?

Article I was watching Leanne Morgan’s 2023 comedy special: Leanne Morgan: I'm Every Woman, and was especially tickled when she confessed that by the time she became a mother for the third time, parenting had exhausted her so much, she pretty much allowed her strong-willed daughter free rein.

When my third-born came, like Leanne, I was exhausted not only from the many demands of being a mother of two young children, but also from constantly being worried and anxious about their welfare and whether I was doing the right thing.