Some people aren't that sentimental about objects a memorabilia when it comes to their kids. It doesn't mean they don't love them—just that they're not emotionally attached to a lot of "stuff."
It's pretty common to see parents who might keep a small lock of hair from baby's first cut, or a first lost tooth, etc. They don't love their children more than those non-memorabilia parents.
They just have emotional attachment to these items and the memories they trigger. For some people, having a physical object helps to connect them to those thoughts and feelings.
... and then there's Wendy Williams.
The talk-show and radio host has always been open about her unusual parenting style and her close relationship with Kevin, her only child. So fans already figured she would be a "memorabilia mom."
But her recent post celebrating her son's 20th birthday has people wondering if the connection to objects has gone too far.
Wendy posted this the other day
There's a lot going on with the picture and the sentiment that has the public giving Williams a bit of side eye. So let's talk about a few of their main points.
Firstly, she opened the post by referring to her son's birthday as HER biggest day. Not his. Hers.
Some people might hear it as a parent who is incredibly excited and goes all out for their child, like "It's my biggest day because there's just so much to do for them!" but most of the comments seemed to indicate that people took it as Wendy making things about her when they should be about celebrating Kevin.
Next, people took issue with what was actually in the photo. Sure, some parents keep a small lock of hair or a first tooth, but not many can say they kept (or even wanted to keep) all of their children's teeth or that much hair.
A circlage, by the way, is a set of stitches placed inside of a woman to keep her cervix closed and help avoid premature labor. Not all women need them, obviously, and almost everyone who does require one just lets the doctor throw the stitching away with the rest of the biological waste when it is removed.
Wendy, whose road to motherhood was full of heartbreak and loss, kept the circlage when doctors cut it out of her and added it to her collection of baby stuff.
Altogether, the items and description left fans worried that things went past motherly love and moved toward obsessive.
Wendy Williams / Instagram
Wendy Williams / Instagram
Wendy Williams / Instagram
Wendy Williams / Instagram
Wendy Williams / Instagram
You get the point.
The comments went on telling her how creepy it was for her to keep so many biological items. The comparisons to witchraft and voodoo were pretty common; and of course some folk just thought the whole idea was gross.
Having said that, though, Wendy also found a lot of support in the comments—particularly from parents whose roads to parenthood were rough ones like Wendy's. When you've experienced loss, it seems, you become a bit more sentimental about things relating to the child or children you got to see grow up.
Are Wendy's keepsakes creepy and a little gross? Do you see them as indicators of unresolved trauma from losses prior to having Kevin?
Or does this all seem like a perfectly normal and sweet thing for a loving mother to have kept?
Maybe Kevin should be the one to decide.
