Over the weekend, on my *one* day off, (if there is such a thing, right?) the fam and I were lounging about in front of the roaring fire.
We were warm and toasty and I was basking in the rosy glow of motherhood in one of those Hallmark moments when the kids are smiling, the hubs is exchanging sweet and loving smiles with you, and the world seems full of roses and small kittens. Or a beach, with perfect heart clouds to frame your happy little family.
I was holding Jake up in the air, munching on his chubby thighs, doing the “baby throw,” enjoying those baby gurgles that always make me all warm and fuzzy inside.
As I tickled him and watched him stuff his chunky hand into his mouth to stifle a giggle, I had the thought:
See? This motherhood stuff isn’t so bad! If I could just stop being so darn selfish all of the time, it would be a lot easier. Look how great things are right now!
And with that outpouring of love for my offspring came another sort of outpouring.
The kind of pouring that came from my son’s mouth.
Directly into my eyeballs.
Hot, burning puke. I didn’t even have time to close my eyes. Lovely.
I have to say that in my almost five years as a mom, I hadn’t yet been puked on in my eyeballs, so this was a parental first for me.
And an ironic one.
Because for me, the hardest part about being a mom is overcoming my complete selfishness. My desire for a productive work day. My wish for a peaceful, quiet environment. My hope for a day of relaxation and fun.
Me, me, me.
Who said it was about me? And who said parenthood was supposed to be easy?
I have my suspicions that it’s all supposed to be kind of hard. It’s a way to beat back the selfishness, slowly peel back the layers of ugliness and reveal the interconnectedness that we all share.
And for those of us who insist on being a bit more obtuse about the situation, demanding more me time and the chance to focus on our own individual pursuits…
Well, there’s always a good eyeball-full-of-baby-puke to cure that.
LOL!!! That happened to my son-in-law with #1 grandchild. I had warned him not to do that over his face when the baby had just eaten. However, he always knows better than I do, so he just went ahead. Oh, if only I had had a camera to take a picture of that wonderful moment when my dear (really!) son-in-law paused, with spit-up all over his face!
I hadn’t even fed him recently, so it was a fabulous surprise! lol!
Aw! He was giving of himself! What a lovely present! 😉
You may have just made it into the puke hall of fame with that one, LOL. When I was a few months old, my dad was laying on the floor, holding me in the air above him. I threw up just as he opened his mouth to say what a cute baby I was. Didn’t miss a drop. He says he can still taste it to this day.
Haha, so gross!!
This is hilarious (in hindsight)! I think motherhood is supposed to be hard and easy. There’s definitely a hardship beyond what any person has probably experienced prior to being a parent. That’s a given. But I think it’s okay to also want a few things in life. Otherwise there’s no joy, or the joy rests in another human being that we can’t always control.
I battle the exact same thing. That is my chief weakness as a mother…that ever present wish to do something for myself. It’s the truth. Thanks for sharing!
OMG! I remember when I was playing airplane with my baby (balancing her on my feet while I lie on my back) and she spit up all over me! Gah!