Dealing with Other School Moms..

There's always one in every class, isn't there? Last night I was sitting in my daughter's class for Back to School night and there was this loudmouth, know-it-all class clown mom who kept interjecting her comments while the teacher was speaking to the parents. I wanted to tell her to put a sock in it. Went home and told my husband about her and he knew EXACTLY which mom I was talking about with very little description. Word gets around and we all notice. What can you do? Nothing, really. I just sit back, smirk, and watch the show.

be there for the teacher....she is the one in charge.

Most of those other moms are not worth your time & effort. Look for the nice ones & stay far, far away from the H.S. drama hangovers.

I make fun of them behind their backs! :) Not when anyone is listening, I like to make myself laugh, keeps me from hurting people. :p

I am a pretty strong woman but I like to let other people be in charge.

From my experience they will not back down and they will not accept criticism. If it makes you feel better they are that way because they are very insecure.

Oh I never had the personality for this but you can control them by blowing sunshine up their butt and making them think it is their brilliant idea.

Not being a very "girly mom", which makes me think this is why I run into this a lot [usually prejudging me and whatnot], I say it's easier to let it go. So I basically agree with Sue. I usually vent to my husband later about it. ☺

Not sure what exactly happened, but take a deep breathe. I always treated relationships with other school moms just as I would when I was in the corporate world and had clients. I didnt always like them, didnt always get along with them, didnt always agree with them, didnt know how to deal with their obnoxious/rude/quirky behavior/comments, BUT I always did take the high road.
Laugh it off and know that you only have limited interaction with them. Put on your smiley face whenever you see them.

I know the type.
Just do what you are there to do.
You're not there to make friends, you're there to help. Sometimes the super duper über school moms forget that part.
There's a difference between "friendly" and "friend" -- don't mistake the two. But too bad she can't be either. Bet ya she doesn't have many either.
Focus on what YOU are there to do. Be polite and professional. Then no O. will ever be able to say anything about you or your contribution.

remind her that you are the Mom not one of the Students and yes you are old enough to think for yourself and you can handle this situation- if that doesnt work then tell her to shut the hell up and stay in her corner... sometimes you gotta be rude back

Hard to know what to say because we don't know any details of what makes this mom "rude and obnoxious" and "need to be in charge." Not sure, either, if this is based on just this one morning or on other experiences you've had with her.

If it's just this one day -- try giving her the benefit of the doubt; she may have had a rotten time before she got there and took it out by being bossy. Or she may be the person who is the lead or committee chair for that event and she feels terribly responsible for its success, and she just isn't good at handling that responsibility. Not an excuse for rudeness, but it could explain why she's not handling other people well.

If this is an ongoing problem, she might be a person who finds it hard to delegate things to others and who feels she must do everything herself. That's not a character flaw, it's just sad for her, since she'll burn out and drive others away. Find another volunteer activity at school to be involved with where she's not involved. If you must work alongside her, smile and find tasks to do: "You're doing so well at handling X over there, how about if I do Y to take it off your hands."

Brooke, trust me, there seems to be one in every crowd.
You just can't let it get to you.
It can be annoying as you-know-what, but most of the time, you can't take it personally.
I'm a good leader and organizer, I know that about myself, but I don't "need" to be in charge in order to "feel" like I'm being useful.

One of the most important things I learned in therapy when trying to deal with my overbearing, often rude, and extremely controlling husband, was that at the very root of it, people who behave that way are often profoundly insecure. For whatever reason.

This woman probably won't be the last mother you encounter like that. There are varying degrees. Most moms are really nice and enjoy working together.
I know one woman who volunteers for everything, but then she gets huffy about it and goes on and on about how no one understands how little time she has so it's like "chop chop, everybody, fall in line because I don't have time to mess around with this."
Yeah.....whatever.
Nobody forces her to volunteer.
Hers is a different dynamic. Volunteering is like her cross to bear.
I honestly don't get that, but she has no impact on my personal life. I don't need so spend time figuring her out.
If I have to be around her, I know that's how she is.
I don't let people like that stop me from what I'm there to do.

I'm sorry you had a tough day.
Don't stew on it though.

Best wishes.

I think a lot of women are like that.

This is why I am choosing to volunteer in my daughter's classroom, and having the teacher tell me what she needs help with. I don't have the time or energy for the b.s. that happens in a lot of PTAs.

Just relax, enjoy YOUR experience, and let her make a clown out of herself.
And Thank God your not like her!

i confronted one because i could not take it one more minute. i felt great until she CRIED and played the victim. then i looked like the b.
be nice, don't give her any ammo, and try not to let her ruin it.