I was really quite looking forward to today. The plan was, put Fern down for her usual morning sleep then head out to the shops together to meet a friend and her new baby. A little lunch... a poke around the shops... maybe even a visit to the indoor playground, if Fern played her cards right.
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The morning started off beautifully. Fern awoke h-a-p-p-y and we had a lovely morning before I popped her down for a quick nap. Half an hour later I could still hear her chattering away to her dolls and I began to get a little nervous. Our 'sleep window' was fast closing in and I had to meet my friend by a certain time. By the time we got out the door (only half an hour late - orrright!) Fern had not slept a single wink and I prayed for a car-nap. No such luck.
We reached the shops and my friend and enjoyed about 3.5 blissful minutes of catchup, with Fern squirming in my lap (no highchairs!) picking at my banana bread. Then it all went a little pear shaped.
We had been at the shops no longer than 45 minutes when the meltdown descended. Its never happened to me before, at least not since the early baby days when a nipple popped into a mouth solved 95% of all dramas before they really got started. But since then I've gotten complacent.
In retrospect, I was asking for trouble:
- No wrap
- No teddy bear
- No dummies
- No bottle of milk
- NO IDEA WHAT TO DO!
We were in Target by this stage; my friend's 4-month old baby was gooing contentedly inside his capsule while my dear daughter was screaming her lungs out just loud enough that the WHOLE OF THE SHOPPING CENTRE could hear her anguished wails. I tried picking her up. I tried putting her down. I tried lying her in her pram. Stealing the 4-month old's dummy. Nothing worked.
Of course, every person within a 100 metre radius was staring at me with either pity, accusation, condescension or a mixture of all three in their eyes.
I couldn't do anything but run. As fast as I could, with my pram, a bag, a toddler under my arm and my 30 week belly surely justifying the looks of "she's having another one? But she can't handle the one she's got!" from almost every person we passed on our way back to the car.
There's a lesson to be learnt here, peeps. But I'm just not too sure what it is at this moment -- Fern still hasn't slept beyond a 6 minute kip in the car on the way home, despite two (failed) attempts this afternoon. My eyes are literally rolling back in my head and I'm wondering how I could ever have possibly allowed myself to think I have got this mothering gig under the wing.
Sorry about the rant - have a great weekend!!!
xo
