Is it OK to boast about your child?

No one, and I mean no one, other than your immediate family is interested in your childs achievements - they are meaningless to other people. I remember when a colleague was telling me that his daughter could peel a banana and I made my husband swear that he would never ever talk about our children's achievements. So please dont bore your friends otherwise you soon wont have any!

Yes it is, if your not doing it for your self.

If there's one thing the world can't stand, it's a smart arse. Nothing worse than a parent constantly braying about their child progidy. Usually, the opposite is true - their beloved kid is as thick as horsesh*t, or they (the parents) have absolutely zilch going on in their own lives, so it pampers their own ego. An empty vessel makes the most noise.

Your daughter reminds me of my eldest daughter. She was the same. Using the potty at 9 months and saying 'good girl' when she pee'd in it. Ate what ever you put in front of her and could name colours at 1 year. She's now nearly 31, a hairdresser and an alcoholic! Oh yes, and she used drugs for a while. People used to say that she was a credit to me when she was a child. She had a normal upbringing; 2 parents, 1 sister, our own home in the suburbs and decent, though not great, schools. At 7 she had a reading age of 11.7 so I still can't work out where it all went wrong. Be proud of your child and her achievements - you don't know how long it's going to last!

Hmmm - the writer, Elsie Button, says she would never mention her children's achievements to anyone apart from her husband but here she is boasting about them in the media - hardly 'not telling anyone'. This article is just public boasting whilst trying to tell us that she is modest about her children's achievements (not!).

And an important point is overlooked. As a mother and former teacher I can tell you that early passing of milestones, or even early successes in school, are not necessarily indicators of what the child will be capable of later on. I remember being (secretly) proud when my daughter started walking at 10 months and worried because my son who couldn't even crawl at the same age. 20 years plus later, my daughter struggles with anything physical and my son is a very able and fit athlete. Likewise with learning; I know of children who have learned to read very early but have gone on to achieve poorly in the academic sense, and other who have struggled with reading who have gone on to great things. I was worried when, aged 2, my daughter couldn't even count to 6 when a friend's daughter of the same age could count to 50. At secondary school my friend's daughter ended up in the bottom stream for maths whilst my daughter was put in the accelerated grooup and got an A* at the age of 14.

Every child develops differently and parents would be saved a lot of anxiety if they just accepted that. It matters not a jot what age the child can use a potty or what part they get in the school nativity play. What matters is to love your children irrespective of their strengths and weaknessness and to tell them, only them, that you are proud of their achievements, big or small. Of course it is okay to tell others that you are proud of real achievements (e.g., I was openly proud of my daughter when she did a rally to Mongolia to raise money for charity, and of my son when he spent 6 months on the front line in Afghanistan last year) but to boast of or even feel proud about such things as using a potty early is just plain daft - and extremely annoying to others.

Some children (and adults) are more able than others in various respects but that doesn't necessarily mean that they are better people. Just love your children for what they are and don't be the worst sort of mother - the sort who use their children to compete with other parents.

Nobody likes a big head so keep it private.

Hell, my mother-in-law seems to be making comparisons between our 10 month old boy and my wife's cousin's baby already. I've always said he'll find his own way in things as he wasn't showing signs of crawling, no matter what we did, yet the amount of times we got told about this younger baby crawling is beyond belief. Well, with a little help in balance and our little one is able to walk, everyone is different and you don't need to achieve success through your children. We will be happy as long as he learns respect and the value of life.

It is enough to carry your pride in your heart and simply share it with your family, broadcasting it can have adverse affects on the child especially if other parents mention it in front of their own children and they feel threatened y your child, a possible cause of bullying.

Every parent you speak to today , tells you how fantastically well their kids are doing at school, Britain should be like Classical Greece or Renaissance Italy, instead Britain is on the bones of its arse!

It is not necessary to boast or bragg about anything. If one gives care and attention that a child needs, the end result will be reward enough.