Being a mom
I was a mom this week. Or, was mistaken for one.
I took a client to the health department for one of her children, and I watched her other, a 5-month-old, during the appointment. I don't know a single thing about babies. Do you still need to support their heads at 5 months? I didn't. He seemed to be able to do it himself. I bounced him on my knee, and swayed back and forth to hang him upside down. I couldn't tell if other moms in the waiting room were looking at me disapprovingly, or it was ok to hang a baby upside-down, but since he was squealing with laughter, I thought, oh, what the hell?
He also gnawed on my fingers. If he actually had teeth, I think I might have lost a digit. And it reminded me of The Truth about Cats and Dogs: "You can love your pet, just don't LOOOOOVE your pet." I may have gotten a rash from it.
Anyway, it was comforting to be able to keep him calm, and to stick a bottle in him when he started fussing. But most happily, he didn't stink up his diaper when I had him. He fits in my arms, though he is muy pesado (which I quickly understood from his mom as "heavy"). I think I held him so much that my back was sore the next day.
So I guess as long as they don't stink up their diapers (because I'm not quite that advanced in babycare), I kind of like babies.
The weird thing, though, is that I can't figure what to say to them. I can't "ooga-booga" them, and I can't talk to them like they can talk back. Considering how vocal and gushy I am over the kitters, I don't understand my paralyzed silence in the presence of babies. Oh well.
I took a client to the health department for one of her children, and I watched her other, a 5-month-old, during the appointment. I don't know a single thing about babies. Do you still need to support their heads at 5 months? I didn't. He seemed to be able to do it himself. I bounced him on my knee, and swayed back and forth to hang him upside down. I couldn't tell if other moms in the waiting room were looking at me disapprovingly, or it was ok to hang a baby upside-down, but since he was squealing with laughter, I thought, oh, what the hell?
He also gnawed on my fingers. If he actually had teeth, I think I might have lost a digit. And it reminded me of The Truth about Cats and Dogs: "You can love your pet, just don't LOOOOOVE your pet." I may have gotten a rash from it.
Anyway, it was comforting to be able to keep him calm, and to stick a bottle in him when he started fussing. But most happily, he didn't stink up his diaper when I had him. He fits in my arms, though he is muy pesado (which I quickly understood from his mom as "heavy"). I think I held him so much that my back was sore the next day.
So I guess as long as they don't stink up their diapers (because I'm not quite that advanced in babycare), I kind of like babies.
The weird thing, though, is that I can't figure what to say to them. I can't "ooga-booga" them, and I can't talk to them like they can talk back. Considering how vocal and gushy I am over the kitters, I don't understand my paralyzed silence in the presence of babies. Oh well.
posted by LE at 9:20 AM
2 Comments:
Don't worry, it just comes to you after a while. I was the same way. Having a goddaughter helped. I started talking to her like an adult at age 4.
What a sweet post. Sounds like you did everything right, Ellie.
I hear you on the "pesado" thing! I love holding my friends' babies, but damn, after awhile my arms ache!
Random: The word verification I need to type in looks eerily similar to "messuganeh!"
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