Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Oh Crap!

Today was a long day.

I was up before 6 with Andrew, and faced blazing hot temps outside that only a toddler would love. We had too much tv time, as I tried to keep him cool, and I didn't get one non-baby-related thing done.

I also felt pretty lonely, yearning for adult conversation, but also for alone time and the opportunity to write and create. Mid-morning, I took Andrew to the fancy-pants gym to go swimming, but it was at least 45 minutes of prep and wrangling for 20 minutes of fun. I saw moms and their kids socializing in the gym cafe and wondered if/when I'd ever feel up to that again instead of trying to do this mom thing solo. Perhaps I'm doing us both a disservice by not reaching out for activities and playdates. I know that being busier and more plugged in would make our days go faster, but it just seems like such an effort.

Margaret stayed holed up in her room most of the day.

At 5:30 p.m., as Andrew and I played, Tim sent the dreaded "I have to work late" text. I'd been hoping he would walk in the door any moment.

When Margaret came down and smelled the prepared dinner I'd picked up at the grocery store to save time, she rejected it outright and claimed the odor might make her vomit. I'm not saying it smelled good-- it really didn't-- but when I didn't care for my mom's dinners, I'm pretty sure I kept my mouth shut and made myself a Lean Cuisine. At least I hope I did.

Anyway, after a "disgusting" dinner that Andrew loved, during which I taught him how to put black olives on his fingers, I took him upstairs to change his stinky diaper. Too late-- I could feel dampness seep through my dress as I carried him on my hip. Oh well, we were cruising toward bath time anyway. He wailed and flailed as I cleaned up his bottom, so I decided to let him have some naked time while I started the water. I didn't feel like wrestling with him any longer, and what was 5 minutes diaper-less? His wails turned to smiles as he got busy pushing Tim's new roller suitcase around our bedroom, his chunky tush getting a nice airing out.

When I'd readied the bath, I stepped into the bedroom to grab him and noticed moisture on the floor. A little pre-bath pee is not unusual, and easy enough to clean up. But something else caught my eye. Pile after pile of frothy baby poop-- that he was running over with the suitcase while making car noises.

Some days I'm kicking geriatric motherhood's rear.

Other days there's not enough ice cream in the world.

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh Anna,

IrishRN07 said...

Made. My. Day.

Hang in there mama!! xo

Mags said...

Oh my goodness! You need a quiet day of peace after this! I need a stiff drink just reading it!

Tomorrow will be better... tomorrow will be better... or at least have less poo.

Pat said...

Oh Anna,
Some days are just shit.... figuratively and literally! Hope tomorrow is better!

Laurie said...

I will bring you ice cream any day of the week.

Jennifer said...

Oh, no. Just Oh no. Oh, and also, that stinks!

Anonymous said...

Remember days like that so well & they sucked. Hope tomorrow goes so much better!!

Corrick family said...

oh no. I can feel the defeat and deflation as you discovered that. Been there (well, honestly not that bad - you WIN!). Here's hoping tomorrow is a better day!

Debby@Just Breathe said...

Oh my, oh my!

Cindy said...

Ooooh. It's happy hour somewhere, right? I remember when my little guy was sooo constipated & I insisted on using a suppository on him. Stuff started coming out, & I thought, this isn't so bad. Why did that doom & gloom pharmacist say we didn't want to do this? Then the crap just kept coming. And coming, and coming, and coming. I swear we had 10 feet of it on that chane table. We threw out everything he was wearing, towels, all if it. Just brought up a garbage bag & scooped it in. When I screamed for my husband, he thought the baby was dying. Then he just looked in horror at the carnage. Never again with the baby suppositories. Whatever crap book I read that adcixe in got chucked in the same garbage bag with all the poopy carnage. Feelin' your pain. Cindy

gina said...

Just remember. You could be a 20-something year old mother, and some days would still be crap. You've got this!

gina said...

Just remember - you could be a 20-something mother, and some days would still be crap. You've got this!

Kara said...

Oh, the visual! I hope you get to wander through a thrift store all alone very soon!

Dawn said...

Someday you will laugh about it.Maybe even today.

Karen L. said...

Oh, Man, one of those days---stinky for sure!

Linda said...

I'm with Dawn. A dear, dear friend of mine (who sadly passed away last week)used to say to me, "It's hard to remember that 10 years from now, you'll look back on this and laugh." I so feel for you. My mom was 3 weeks from 41 when I was born (with two considerably older brothers, on a farm). I often wonder how she did it.

Gigi said...

I don't think your age matters when you are in the trenches with small ones. Some days just massively suck.

twingles said...

reminds me of the time my 3 year old son ran a Matchbox car thru some poop he had deposited on the basement floor as a way to show his displeasure with the arrival of his new baby sister (that's all I can guess anyway..and he doesn't remember!). I just remember his twin brother coming to me and tattling on him....he must have known it was VERY naughty and should be stopped. Lucky for the blog, so you also know exactly when this little treasured story happened!

Tracey said...

I'm sorry.....I giggled. But these tough moments make for great stories, don't they? And just my two cents (my boys are now 22 and 18) but looking back, I wish I'd made that effort to join up with playdates and activities more....not every day, but definitely a couple times a week. If it doesn't bring you joy, you can always go back to your current ways ;-) But I think you'll enjoy it.

Anonymous said...

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Unknown said...

Save that story for his first date! Here's to a better tomorrow!

Anonymous said...

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Ernie said...

Oh nuts!!! Those days suck. You did such a great job describing this. I have a clear visual.

I've been really disgusted lately with my kids' willingness to turn their noses up at the dinners I make. And I make some seriously good dinners. So frustrating. It's impossible to cater to everyone's tastebuds.

I agree that maybe you should try to get a playdate scheduled. I met so many good friends thru my kids at library story times and the neighborhood pool and the park. I also once invited a mom and her kid and the dad (who I had never met) over for dinner. The thought was that my husband and her husbnad would hit it off. It fell flat. So flat, that years and years later we still laugh about it. So maybe stick to playdates during the day - meet someplace and then you can always fake a need to run home, like I forgot the cable guy was coming. Hopefully you won't need an out.

Hope better days head your way!

WebiProg said...

Oh my, oh my! Made. My. Day.