I Choose to Laugh

There seem to be several events in life that have a fine line of emotional response - you can either laugh, or you can cry. I have found these events occur in high numbers during the course of motherhood . . . most specifically, during the last 24 hours. So let's pen a few of them . . .

1. I took the kids to a scheduled appointment at Olan Mills yesterday morning. The goal was 1 month pics for Evan, 3 year pics for Samantha, and 5 year pics for Marlie. After waiting 45 minutes past our appointment, we finally began taking pictures. Well, of course by this time, everyone was hungry . . . but we did manage to get a few pictures . . . um, did I mention though that our photographer (who of course was the manager) pretty much sucked . . . and so did her idea of backgrounds. But we did get a few good ones - I mean, our kids aren't unfortunate looking in the looks department so it's hard to have all bad pics. But we did end up with about 100 that look similar to this . . . You can laugh . . . or you can cry . . .


2. After spending almost 3 full hours at the mall to get said pictures taken, eat lunch, and pick up pictures (did I mention Jayson was at work?!) we finally got to head home. I thanked the kids, because remarkably, they were all on some of their best behavior - and I said "Good teamwork guys - we made it through", Marlie looked at me and said "That's because we're team Super Cool" . . . . How can you not laugh?!


3. We get home where everyone goes down 2 hours late for their nap . . . and then gets up after less than an hour . . . and then proceed to have a snack and take the full bowl of yogurt and spill it on the couch and carpet . . . and right as I am about to lose it and clean it up, Samantha looks at me in her sweet little crazy voice and says "Accidents happen Mom" - You can laugh, or you can cry . . .


4. Next thing I realize, it is almost time to leave for t-ball and I haven't even thought about dinner. Thankfully Sonic is on the way and Wacky Pack Wednesday means kids meals are on special! You can cry . . . or you can laugh . . . and pat yourself on the back for your stellar mothering skills and the fact that you have fed your child from a paper bag twice in the same day . . . AWESOME!!


5. Then we head to t-ball . . . and that's where I feel I had reached the proverbial last straw in realizing that life was just going to be effing different from now on. See, I am a super prepared person . . . I am that Mom that everyone else borrows stuff from . . . and it may sound silly and stupid, but when we got to the tball field and I was grabbing the brown fast food bag evidence of my already superb mothering skills from the day . . . I realized that my sunscreen was in our pool bag and no longer in my diaper bag . . . and you may as well have looked at me and told me that was it, I had failed motherhood! I know how ridiculous it sounds, I am the one typing it - but to not have something so basic to the needs of my child at that moment . . . like I said . . . last straw . . . of course, there was someone to borrow it from . . . and as I turned around to use her sunscreen Samantha took a dark purple grape slushie, with the top off, and tipped it up - it all came onto her face . . . you can laugh, or you can cry . . . but for my daughter's sake, I laughed so she wouldn't cry . . .


6. So then we got home . . .and while doing baths for 3 kids all on my own is not my idea of a fun night - it had to be done (see slushie incident, yogurt spilling, and tball stories). So everyone got bathed . . . there was a minor meltdown in regards to a band aid falling off a boo boo in the tub (I don't think I've ever typed the word "boo boo" - this is really my life and how I talk!!!!!) but then everyone was calm and getting ready for bed. I went to put Evan down and while rocking him had several interruptions of girls coming and asking for hangers. Sometimes you don't need to ask why, you just need to say fine and please get the heck out of your brother's room so he can go to bed!! After 12 interruptions, you can cry . . . or you can go in to see what they're doing . . . and find this . . . A garage sale they set up on their bed with their doll clothes, and 2 pennies they are using to pay for their items as they charge each other for their purchases . . . and then you can laugh!

And then you reach the end of the day and all is peaceful . . . you know the next day will be a clean slate . . . and then you remember that it's not a break, because even though your husband is off, he gets the luxury of playing golf, drinking, and having the whole day to himself for a "work" tournament. You can cry . . . because for the life of you, there is no date in recent memory where you got to booze it up with friends in the middle of the afternoon with no worries - that was another lifetime . . . or you can remember that you chose this "job" - you picked the job where the pay sucks, the recognition is non-existent, there is no vacation or day off, and you quite literally get shit on often (while you're at the park with your kids in 85 degree heat and your husband is off playing golf) . . . . but it's the best damn job out there . . . and you've been on both sides of this fence and know the one you are on is the greener side . . . so you laugh, change your shitty shirt, put the beautiful kids down to nap, and enjoy 2 hours of peace and quiet where you can bring your thoughts together enough to type a silly blog entry so 15 years from now you can look back and know on that day you laughed about it . . . and 15 years from now, your shirt will be clean . . . . and you will miss it . . . and you will cry . . .