Anna is changed and fed before we leave the house. She'll fall asleep in her car seat on the way. When we get there, I'll quietly and gently place her in the Moby Wrap that I'm OBVIOUSLY a pro at using since I've worn it twice before. Penn and Jude will sit quietly in the buggy and I'll give them my phone to watch Netflix while we shop. I'll leisurely stroll the store getting everything we need and browsing for more while my well-behaved children make all the other parents jealous. We'll check out and I'll look like super-mom to everyone who sees me when I tell them my kids' ages. We'll have lunch at the snack bar as a reward and head home for outside playtime followed by naps.
The outing actually more like this:
Anna was changed and fed before we left the house (according to plan). She fell asleep in her car seat on the way. When we got to Sam's, I put on the Moby Wrap and clumsily tried to stuff her in there. I obviously needed to practice using it some more before trying it in public. I woke her up while readjusting her. I grabbed a buggy and realized that Penn and Jude couldn't get inside because I couldn't lift them up while Anna was hanging on the front of my body. Her little head was bobbing around because I couldn't figure out how to wear the wrap to support her neck. I pushed the cart with one hand and held her head with the other while yelling for Penn and Jude to stay with me and not run ahead. As soon as we stepped inside, Anna started screaming. We walked to the back of the store and I tried to rearrange her. That didn't work. Penn and Jude REALLY wanted to ride in the buggy so I had to push the cart next to a shelf, let them climb the shelf (I know, super-safe, right?), and get into the buggy. While they are sitting, I tried to nurse Anna in the back of the store to calm her down. It works, but she starts right back up as soon as I stop feeding her, but I don't know the "wrap" that is good for nursing. I knew I should have brought my old, faithful Snugglie. We threw toilet paper in the buggy and then grabbed all the fruit I could squeeze between Penn and Jude in the buggy before we checked out. It was about this time that I started noticing all the stares that silently said, "Poor girl..." Not exactly the adoration I was hoping for. The man in front of me generously offered to unload my buggy and the cashier rang us up in record time. We couldn't stay for lunch (thanks to Anna) which really upset Penn and Jude since they were actually really good in the store. Then we were finally out the door after our receipt check and one last comment from the checker at the door, "You sure do have your hands full." Thanks, Lady (eye-roll). I spent the next 15 minutes sitting in the car feeding Anna (again) and deciding that when we get home, I was letting the boys eat hotdogs and watch a solid hour of TV before naps so I could breathe.
Mother of the Year, right?
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| Kimberly "IshouldhavepracticedtheMobymore" Packard |
The fact is, even though I definitely don't make parenthood look easy (it's not), I wouldn't trade it for anything. I'm realizing that these days are numbered and soon my wild kids that are practically attached to me will one day be teenagers that may decide they have better things to do than tag along with mom. So for now, I'll take the crazy with the sweet AND I'll probably try sticking closer to home for a while...lesson learned.
