This past Sunday we loaded up the Scobey Clan and spent the day at Carla's for a family portrait mega event with all of the other peeps from the studio. It was so much fun. And Evie, in typical Evie fashion, was a trooooo-per. She was incredibly patient and smiley. Especially considering that she only took a 20 minute nap the entire, 6 hour day.
I guess that shouldn't really surprise me. She is a really happy, good-natured baby. But this one time, when Evie was about 12 weeks, I drank caffeine and by the time it got to Evie it had apparently morphed into rocket fuel and she was all schooooooooom, kazoooooooommmmm, wablammmmmoooooo for the next 12 hours.
I spent the majority of that day crying. It was enough to scar me for life.
It is also the reason I am still a little shocked when Evie is her typical, awesome self.
At the end of the day we all sat down and watched a slide-show of the images: they were unreal. It got me all jazzed up and made me want to take more pictures.
So on Tuesday I got Evie all dressed up, put her in a little tutu, and we had a little mini portrait sesh of our own.
Super cute, yeah? Mommy-daughter bonding time, right? Except that exactly .45 seconds after this photo was taken I look down at my camera to check my exposure and Evie rolls off the chair. Does a full 360 degree flip in the air. Lands smack on her big 90th-percentile-head. On the hardwood. And starts screaming.
Yeah. I am officially one of those moms who drops their children on those-things-that-HOUSE-THEIR-BRAINS.
I felt/feel awful about it. Like, seriously terrible. So much so that even after Evie had stopped crying I kept the good ole' Tear Train going for a solid hour.
If life were a video game I would have had little "Mom-guilt + 2,000" signs popping out of my head for the next four days. My mom assures me that every parent has accidently hurt their child in some way, but that doesn't really make me feel better about it.
What have you done that has caused the most self-inflicted-guilt?
5 comments:
The Rowell clan were in Cracker Barrel eating. Chris was in one of those wood high chairs with no tray. He had been buckled in, but I unbuckled him to take him out, then turned around to get my purse or something. He took a head first dive out of that chair onto their very hard tile floors. It was an awful feeling and I sat there with him screaming in my lap, and crying myself. Don't beat yourself up, Ashley. We didn't earn the "Perfect Parent" label...but really, only God has that one.
Evie's just a gorgeous little doll. I'm so glad I got to hold her for a bit when you were in Atlanta. Kim
Technically she rolled herself off the chair so really it's not even your fault!!! I remember once way back when, I was probably 12 or 13 and babysitting for my neighbor. The mom was still home and I was holding her baby when all of the sudden he started wiggling around in my arms like crazy and... I dropped him... right on his head... on the tile floor... with his mom watching!!! It was terrible! Granted it was not my child but still.
I think its a right of passage for every new parent lol :)
It's okay, Ashley, it happens to the best of us. I dropped a camera on Mal's head when she was about two weeks old. J let Jake roll out of his arms & onto the couch several feet below when he was little. I could go on for a while! I always just tell myself that it's a reminder to be careful & then try to move on. We do the best we can!
Visions of Graham falling through the branches of a tree(in his soccer uniform, complete with cleats) just ran through my head again! I was just trying to get us all ready for the game - who knew a 4 yr. old could climb that high in cleats? God saved Graham from more disasters than I can count - You are a great Mom, Ashley - I thank God for you daily! Love Lolly
Short version - Caleb was 4 weeks old and I put him in his carry carseat but didn't buckle him in. Went to pick it up and the handle didn't lock. He flipped forward onto the hardwood floor, face first!!!! Ohhh, I still cringe today thinking about it. If he had had teeth, I would have broken them all. I cried all the way to the pediatrician's office where they told me every parent does something like this and not to worry, kids are resilient ;)
And in the last 3 weeks, Jon let him fall off the couch backwards, Shawn let him fall off the bed onto his head and my dad hit the back of his head on the floor while sliding him across the room. Happens to everyone :)
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