mommy mondays

Monday is the not the only day of the week that I'm a mommy, it is however the one day where being a mommy is less interrupted then others. The one day of the week I don't make doula appointments, school meetings or playdates. Since my other baby is in 8th grade, I have the gift of one full day where it's just me and the three year old princess. Sounds blissful right?

Well then you haven't met my three year old.

The day typically begins with a large hot and delicious smelling cup of coffee, which has been brewed  and lovingly placed at my bedside by A, just before I wake up. Yes I am so completely spoiled and I love and appreciate it so.

Before I head downstairs Emma usually asks me if I put my contacts in, which makes me laugh out loud just thinking about how I've trained her with my crappy eyesight to ask if I will actually be able to see fully for the next very important morning ritual, waffles.

If you haven't heard the waffles story then you may not know that it's kind of a big deal around here. Specifically the syrup, but I digress.

Today Emma and I had only one very important task: grocery shopping. Sounds easy right? Again, you haven't met my three year old.

I elected to wait until after nap to head to the store for some much needed refilling of the pantry, which was of course my first mistake. At least once every week my sweet pea skips her nap and today was that kind of day. Oh she'll lay in her bed and talk to her animals, which I thank my lucky stars for, but no sleeping of any kind actually happens.

Late afternoon rolls around and it's time to head out for shopping, we elect to hit the Target because Emma has a specific item in mind for this shopping trip.

Backing up for a moment, Emma arrived home from preschool on Friday and presented me with an empty smores flavor granola bar wrapper. "Mommy we need to buy these." Apparently they were given out as snacks and my little genius held onto it as to provide me with the most specific instructions. Seriously.

So we're off to Target and amazingly enough we make it into the store and through the shopping trip with little to no incident.

We even got the smores granola bars for sweet pea and hot pink nail polish for mamma.

We also scored some fruit snacks on sale and here is where the madness begins because Emma is addicted to fruit snacks. If left alone with a box, she would eat the entire thing in one sitting.

The items were bagged and we were off to the car with time to spare! This is a rare scene indeed. We reached the car and as I began to unload the cart, the pieces of my perfectly executed shopping trip began to unravel as I hear the words "I want my fruit snacks mommy".

It's now 4:55pm and I've calculated the timing of dinner so I start digging for the fruit snacks as a reasonable tide me over for the sweet pea. At this point she has started to crawl into the trunk to start looking for them herself.

There are about 10 Target bags that all look alike and her desperation is growing as each second passes, "where are the fruit snacks!!". Just in time I locate the box, get one packet out and open it for her, placing her back on the curb next to the car.

I'm finishing loading the car and she has now decided it's a great idea to take all of the fruit snacks out of the little bag they were in and hold them in one tiny little hand while holding the now empty bag in the other tiny little hand.

I finish up and turn to see the first fruit snack hit the ground, in the mulch. No five second rule here because the fruit snack is gooey from the warm tiny little hand. Phase one of meltdown begins with a sigh.

I close the trunk with the cart still resting against the car and start to console the broken hearted look on her face. I remind her of the handful that remains and as she goes to pop another one in her mouth it falls to the ground.

Another one bites the dust.

Tears begin to flow and they are those fat, wet tears that just roll down their sweet faces. She is begging to have me pick them up and clean them off and there is just no reasoning with her.

As I pick her up to place her in the car seat she is now screaming and kicking her feet, wailing at me to put her down and insisting that she has to go back for the lost fruit snacks.

Another shopper takes pity on me and gently tells me she'll return my cart and gives me a warm smile.

And that literally saved the moment for me. Something so simple and yet so incredibly thoughtful. And it reminded me of the story I read over at Rants from Mommyland called Tea Party at Target and I smiled back. My eyes welled up and I looked at my screaming little love and remembered that in her world, those fruit snacks were about the most important thing she had going on at the moment.

I was also reminded of a brilliant comedian Brian Regan, he gives a great perspective to what kids are going through at moments like these:

 

 

The line "jeepers creepers folks" always makes me cry with laughter.

So instead of diminishing her sadness I reassured her that there would indeed be more fruit snacks. I told her I understood how upset she was, handed her the beloved blankie and kissed her cheeks where the tears had been.

And so another mommy monday comes to an end. Perhaps it turned out pretty damn blissfull after all. I really do love Mondays :-)

Comments

[Juanita Spence]

Kerry I read this when you posted it and have thought of it several times lately when Sadie has had a mini breakdown over something that - to me - seemed so silly. Not being able to zip up her own jacket, her banana breaking in half, losing her ladybug clip. Not important to me, but they meant something to her and it made a difference to tell her than Mummy understands why she was upset and that I understood why it was important to her. So thanks!!

[Kerry Reynolds]

I am so glad to hear that! We all need little reminders now and again and I'm so happy mine helped you :-)
Speaking of reminders, Emma had received a helium balloon from a neighbor and last night she insisted on taking it outside despite all our warnings. Within seconds it had broken loose from her hand and as she sobbed while watching it float upwards towards the star I couldn't help but think of how sad that must have made her little heart!