The start of spring around here also means the start of tri-athlon season and last Sunday was the first one--The Annual St. Patty's Day Tri! Mike competed with his brother and my brother-in-law. Oli and I were in the cheering section with my mother-in-law and we were all decked out in our green.
I knew it was going to be one of those awesome days the second my angel baby woke up. She was in a great mood and humored me by wearing her St. Patrick's Day gear purchased especially for that day. She was cute and talkative when we got there and so many people stopped to stare into the stroller at this oh-so-adorable little girl.
Before the race began, we were standing next to another couple with a stroller and the mom commented on how adorable my girl is. "Thanks!" I said brightly and then realized that she was one of the competitors. "How old is your baby?" I asked (the stroller cover was up so I couldn't tell at all.). "9 weeks," was her reply. I choked "9 WEEKS!?!?!?!? Holy crap, I could barely walk around the block at 9 weeks and you are in a flippin' tri-athlon!" She kind of laughed and shrugged like it wasn't a big deal but I knew better. To be competing in such a tough event 9 weeks after having had a baby is a huge feat.
We stood and chatted for awhile and I'm not sure what she said that prompted my next statement but something indicated to me that she was still in the throes of that Newborn Phase. So I told her, "Look, I don't know about you. Maybe this whole baby gig is easy for you. But, it sure wasn't easy for me. I remember being here at one of these events at 9 weeks and thinking 'This is NEVER going to feel normal.' I was a mess. Tired, confused, in love with my kid but wondering if the rest of my life was going to suck. And if you are experiencing any level of that, I am here to tell you that IT DOES GETTER BETTER. Tons better in fact!!! Look at my kid, she's so awesome and we are having so much fun and getting here today felt NORMAL!!!"
This lady looked at me and relief flooded her eyes. "Really?" she asked, with a touch of hopefulness in her voice. "Really," I affirmed. Then she slapped her husband on the side of his arm and said "See, these people say it gets better!" And I knew I had done my good deed for the week. Then we oohed and aahed over her precious new miracle. The Boss Lady maintained her cuteness by chatting at everyone who passed by and getting lots of compliments on her adorableness.
Then it hit me: we have these great days quite a bit lately. How did I get here on the other side? How did I get to be the person assuring another new mom that things would eventually be GOOD. That one day, she would be making another new mom feel better about the insanity that had become her life.
After the tri-athlon, we went out to eat. While we were there, Olivia turned her cuteness on every woman in the place and one of them stopped to say, "Oh, she is giving me baby fever!" I'm sure my child caused quite a bit of baby making to take place that day.
I remember before I got pregnant and during my pregnancy when I would see a family like mine out and about. I would see how cute the baby was. I would see how happy the couple was. I would see just how *fun* and *easy* having a baby was. And now I know better. Now I know it's what you don't see.
For instance, everyone who saw my awesome and cute family out on Sunday didn't hear the 13 conversations Mike and I had about whether or not to wake Olivia up when he needed to leave on Sunday or let her sleep in so we could just come later. They didn't see the alarm clock go off two hours before I had to walk out the door because that's how long it takes to get a baby ready and that didn't even include a shower. They didn't see the massive poop explosion diaper that I changed in the restaurant bathroom that had my arms and Oli's legs & feet covered in poop. They didn't see that when we got home and Mike and I needed sleep, Olivia declined family nap time because she had had a nap in the car on the way home. And they didn't see that when we got home, we had a sick baby the rest of the week and I was thrown up on EVERY SINGLE DAY.
That's okay though. I feel a little proud to be one of those families that makes being a family seem so easy and fun. The truth is, it's not easy but it is A LOT of fun. It's okay if our admirers on Sunday don't know the whole truth. I was clueless before I went through this too.
This weekend, we had dinner with my sister, bro-in-law and their friends who are expecting their first baby. Mike had a chance to hang out with the dad-to-be and I asked Mike how he was feeling about his first child. Mike said he was excited and I remarked that men are pretty clueless when it comes to having a baby. "Well, I guess women are too," I added. "Isn't that a good thing though?"
Mike's response? "Yep, because if men had any clue about what happened when they have a baby, what happens to their wife, to their home, to them, then procreation would come to a halt."
Good thing for the world's population that my family makes this look easy AND adorable!
No comments:
Post a Comment