It's been a day for the books, that's for sure. Nothing big has gone particularly wrong, but little things have piled up on me, to the point that I've almost been in tears several times today.
Campbell is continuing his destructo-baby phase, and he is demolishing the house a piece at a time. His favorite thing is to play in our kitchen pantry, which doesn't have a door on it, so I have no way of closing it off to him. I came around the corner to see him in the process of throwing out every single thing on the bottom shelf of the pantry. He was so proud of himself. Later in the day he got his hands on a box of 200 zip-lock sandwich bags and shoved about 100 of them into the recycling bag. I'm finding it impossible to baby proof for him, because he does things I never in my wildest dreams think he would do.
As the day progressed, I started feeling worse and worse -bad enough that I took my temperature. At 5:00 it was 100.1, which is high for me. I almost never run a fever, not even the time I had mastitis and the time I had a sinus infection.
I still managed to put dinner on the table, and that's when I really lost it. B and I are big proponents of family dinner time. We really believe in the value of everyone gathering at the table to share stories of the day and visit. After tonight's dinner, however, I think I may be switching to an every-man-for-himself dinner plan.
Ella wasn't sitting properly in her chair, and just as I was about to ask her to sit correctly, she managed to flip her plate over and onto the floor, hitting her lap and her chair on the way down. Great hilarity among the kids ensued. B and I weren't as amused. Just as we got Ella focused on her task of cleaning up the mess, Lily knocked over her cup of milk, covering the table. She and Ella had another good laugh at the mess before Lily headed off to get a towel to wipe everything up.
At that point I asked to be excused.
But I didn't get away without one more problem. As I was getting Campbell out of his seat to take him to bath time, he chucked his cup of water off the table, hitting Ella, who was lying on the floor still cleaning up her mess, square in the back. Campbell thought it was hysterical; Ella, not so much.
Campbell had a blast in the tub, as he usually does, and I called my mom so that she could listen to the racket he was making. It was fun and games until he leaned over to pick up a toy and donked his already bruised head on the side of the tub. Sigh.
Finally, after wrestling him into jammies, Campbell and I snuggled down on the sofa for his bedtime cup of milk. And that's when he did something he hasn't done since he stopped nursing - he just cuddled with me. When he was done with his milk, he handed me his cup, and I prepared for the usual wriggling that follows his evening drink. Instead, he just laid here, head on my shoulder. I scootched down on the sofa so that I was stretched out, and we just snuggled. It was the calmest 15 minutes I've had all day. I could have easily fallen asleep like that - feeling the rise and fall of his chest, smelling his wonderful baby hair. I think he might have drifted off if it hadn't been for his sisters, who picked that moment to come crashing into the living room to tell on each other.
Sigh.
I put Campbell in his crib and dangled over the rail for a minute just stroking his back as he drifted off. I wish every day could end so calmly. It made up for all the mess and noise of the day. Now if I could only find a way to not get sick.
5 comments:
OMG, OMG! The flashbacks! The flashbacks! Little boys are definitely FREAKING NUTS!!! As a matter of fact, I always wanted three kids, but my son, aka the boy who could be rented as birth control, came along. Fortunately after I'd already had a girl. HOWEVER, the good news is this: the boy actually becomes the easy one... or maybe that's the bad news. I don't know. In any case, I hope tomorrow's better!
Ah, yes. The amazing destructive power of boys. Girls make messes, boys destroy things. So glad you got your snuggle time - funny how it can make all the difference in the world, can't it?
....but isn't it amazing that he snuggled with you just *today*? It's almost as if he knew that mommy was at her wits' end.
I hope you're feeling better and that you're not coming down with something.
Heidi
I love that sort of snuggle time. I guess that's what makes me forget all the destruction and mayhem, right?
Here's the thing: really, I hate that dinner hour. It seems nice to sit and visit with the family, but the constant "Sit down. Use your fork. Where's your napkin. Wipe your mouth. Eat your meat." WEARS ME DOWN.
However, it got to be regarded as an investment. Do it now or pay later.
P.S. I've missed your site for a week or so. It was good to get caught up.
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