Life has changed since becoming a parent, there's no denying that. But my new way seems so normal that I don't think twice about it.

I only realise these things are a bit strange when other (usually non-parent) people look at me with either amusement or disgust.

Some of the things I've noticed others finding a bit strange lately include:

Picking up my child to smell her bum. There's a suspicious smell in the air and you think you know where it's coming from. But there's only one way to find out, and that's to go straight to the alleged source. And in all honesty, we check quickly because we're secretly hoping the smell is coming from elsewhere (as though we aren't completely familiar with that smell). "Oh damn, I have to change a nappy," you say, looking up at your friends to find them watching you smell your child's rear end like you're a bit odd. But all parents do this ... right?

Talking about childbirth. Mums love nothing more than recounting their birth stories in great detail - I think there's something really therapeutic about it. I feel a couple of steps removed from my children's births, as though it didn't really happen to me, so I have no trouble giving details as though they're lines from a novel I once read. ("And then I screamed and the nurse said, 'pffft you've got hours left yet' ...") However, not everyone has become desensitised to such gory details and they visibly squirm at the thought of childbirth. I guess it can act as either contraception or preparation for reality.

Randomly yelling before returning to normal conversation. As parents, we're used to holding interrupted conversations - in fact, finishing a sentence feels as new and refreshing as a holiday. So it isn't uncommon for us to be sitting with a cuppa in hand saying, "Did you read that column in the news - Fred! Don't sit on your sister's ear! - about that woman who - Janey! How many times do I have to tell you not to pick your nose? - lived in a zoo?"

Letting kids eat off the floor. I'm sure not everyone does this but I do recall one evening out with a group of acquaintances who commented on how quiet and well-behaved my toddler was. I laughed: "That's because she's on the floor eating the food she dropped earlier!" They didn't laugh, instead looking at me like I was completely deranged. In my defence, the floor looked pretty clean and my daughter was very happy.

Eating dinner at 5pm. The kids are hungry, and hungry kids are no fun at all, so we feed them early. But it's so hard to cook a meal and watch someone else eat it, without wanting to eat it yourself. And so I find myself having dinner early most nights. When I invite friends with kids over, they're often happy to arrive early and eat early - mostly because they need to leave before the kids get too feral - but my friends without kids usually request a "normal" dinnertime. "We're not expected to eat dinner in the daytime are we?" they joke.

What do you do as a parent that others might perceive as a bit odd? Leave your comment below.

- Essential Kids