MamaLaw #6 - Stop and Smell the dirty diapers
Well, you know what I mean. These precious moments of our kids' childhoods will be gone all too soon. My Youngest is already 9 months old and crawling. It feels like just yesterday when she and I were sitting in the hospital room together hours after she arrived. For me, the pang of sadness hits once they become too big for you to cradle them in your arms - that's when I realize that they are no longer a teeny tiny baby! Last night I fought traffic after work as usual, hoping to make it home before Youngest went to sleep (since she's usually out by 6:45pm). I ran in the door at 6:20pm, only to find out that was already sleeping! I kid you not, I immediately was overcome with sadness - tears started to well up in my eyes and everything. This was the second night in a row that I missed her. Then the guilt set in. Was I a terrible mom for working full-time during these first years of my kids' lives? What kind of mom only sees her baby for 1 hour in the morning every day during the week?? All I wanted to do was see one of her huge gummy smiles and smell her sweet scent. I suppose I could have woken her up, but how selfish would that have been of me to interrupt her slumber...Then I felt even worse for being visibly upset for missing Youngest while Oldest was still awake! So, I got myself together and spent the next couple of hours enjoying QT with Oldest. It was great. But I still hate the fact that Youngest has only been here for 9 months and I've spent 5 of those months working. But, I guess I have to do what I have to do. So, in looking for the positive in this situation, I decided to make the most of the time that I do have with both of my girls, whether it be an hour or a weekend. Remember: in the midst of the hustle and bustle of each day, make a special effort to stop and smell the dirty diapers. Because before you know it, they'll be asking to use the potty.
Mamalaw is a group blog about three moms and wives who just happen to be lawyers too. We have seven kids between us which means that we have no shortage of funny stories, touching moments, reasons to rant and the occasional kernel of parenting wisdom. In our "spare time," we founded 
2 comments:
I concur with your premise of stop and smell the diapers. Time does go by really fast. I have decided to minimize (if not eliminate) any household chores while Lady Day is awake. Although I am fortunate in many ways, I've calculated that she's actually only awake about 8 hours a day, so I try to spend as much time with her as possible. So, enjoy EVERY minute with them both and keep positive:)
Hey, we are all on the same wave length. The past few weeks I decided that it was time to slow down the errands and carting kids around to spend some quality time with the kids doing kid related activities. Even when I had the nanny, I would normallly bring one kid with me to run errands. I did this thinking that this was one way to spend some one-on-one time with whomever I brought with me. It's so hard to really give each child the individual attention they need and deserve when you have 3 little ones. Not only did the child who I brought end up not enjoying their afternoon out with mommy, but, that's not quality time. So started leaving them home and trying to run all the errands in a few hours or less so that I wasn't away too long. Sounds silly but I don't like being gone too long. Well since the nanny left (14 days ago to be exact), I have devoted errands day AND devoted kiddy days. This seems to work out better for everyone. And yesterday afternoon, during devoted kiddy day, I could not help but get teary at how much I love my kids and enjoy being in their presence. It's really a blessing to be a mother. I could share some more sappy stories but I hear Miss Cyd. waking up on her moniter. Better get her before she wakes up Little B.....
Post a Comment