Every Parent's Nightmare

I came across this article today that my cousin shared on her Facebook page and it's one of those things that you think about in the back of your head, but most people don't think much of it until it happens to them. I've never personally dealt with this or had my girls deal with it, but I totally plan to be that mean mom that this article describes.

 The article is about how to protect your child from sexual abuse. It talks about how the majority of cases are not from strangers, but people that you or the child knows. There have been people over the years who have made me uncomfortable and I've learned to trust my instincts when it comes to things like this. I absolutely HATE that we live in a world that we can't just send our child to a friend's house without basically putting the family through a thorough FBI approved background check. It's ridiculous that when a women is sexually assaulted that the first thing people tend to say is "Why was she drinking so much?" or "What did she think would happen wearing clothes like that?" or my absolute favorite "Men can't help themselves whenever a woman is a tease." What?!?!?!?!?!? Are you freaking kidding me???

As a parent I want to do everything in my power to protect my girls from the evils of this world, but I also was to keep things realistic for them. 

-Not all people are good: They need to know that just because someone is an adult doesn't mean that they have to listen to everything that they say. If it's something that they feel isn't right and makes them uncomfortable, then they need to know that adults aren't always right or good people.

-My kids are going to be the ones who use words like penis and vagina. That's what they're called people. If you really can't handle hearing those words, then just stop reading. It's super important that they know the correct terms for body parts for, God forbid, in case anything ever happens and they need to tell an adult what's going on or for a court case. 

-I want them to understand, just like in the article, that there are safe areas and bad areas to touch. Anything that is covered by a bathing suit are areas that someone should not be touching and I want them to know that they aren't going to get in trouble for telling me. 

I just want my girls to stay safe and innocent for as long as possible and I want to protect them from every evil that I can, but I also want them to be prepared for the world. I don't want them to be afraid, but to be confident that they know what to do if a bad situation arises.