Mama Moments... The Good, Bad, & Ugly

I was "that mom" today. The one you look at and say "awwww, bless her heart", and then thank your lucky stars you only have to watch the scene from afar, and not be an active participant. It wasn't for very long, but I had a good hour this morning, where I just couldn't get it together, and I blame it on the fact that I actually LEFT my house at 7am... on a bike... towing my 'little' men (which after having towed them, I'm seriously thinking of replacing with enormously HEAVY men)... Seriously, as I was trying to get them up a SMALL hill.... a runner passed me... I WAS ON A BIKE! Note to self... let's up the endurance workouts.

Normally that first hour after I wake up, my brain is still dusting the cobwebs off, however this particular morning, 30 minutes into that first hour, I was attempting to lock up my bike and transition my stroller from bike mode to walk mode, while listening to Logan scream his little lungs out and Caleb say at least 50 times in 2 minutes... "Out... Out mama, Out". I tackled that, acknowledged Logan was NOT gonna stop crying unless I was holding him, so put him in the sling and set off to get Caleb the promised 'treat' of Hot Cocoa.
We are now in line at Starbucks... Logan, STILL screaming, despite my consistent 'mama bounce' going non-stop with intermittent "shush's"... and Caleb off of his "Out" repeat has switched to "Hot Choc, Hot Choc mama, HOT CHOC!!!". We order, they make, we go to pay.... Um yep, I forgot my debit card and am cashless... AWESOME! More screaming, Caleb still on repeat, and now I'm on the phone activating the secondary card I had in my wallet, and THANK GOD, it worked! (I did not actually hold the line up, had that been the case, I would have just walked out)!

SO... We finally get the Hot Cocoa, Logan is now at least 'thinking' about calming down, and we make it out the door. As I get Caleb positioned back in the stroller with his drink, the following quote summed up perfectly from a nice woman enjoying her 'peaceful' morning cup 'o joe at one of the sidewalk tables, "You have my respect and pity"... Um... Thanks, I think :)

The intent behind this little morning jaunt was to check out the Farmer's Market in Old Town, and let Kevin have a morning to sleep in/relax without distraction. As I walked past that first booth at the Farmer's Market, I had a Homer Simpson "Doh!" moment as I recalled... Farmer's Market = Cash... (Morning: 2, Julie: 0).... However, having a newly activated Debit card, I walk to an ATM... Not so fast.... newly activated ATM = Unknown PIN # and therefore still no cash (Morning: 3, Julie: 0). Some how un-deterred by ALL of the above, I set out to the CVS around the corner, where I intend to buy a water, over pay, and FINALLY get some cash. Luckily that was just the moment when my morning turned. We bumped into Tonya, the boys new nanny, on the street. She fronted me a $20, and helped push the stroller back toward the Farmer's Market, where we found some DELICIOUS fresh fruit, the flowers were breath taking, and Logan finally passed out in the sling! Tonya had to head on for her day, but Caleb and I took our treats, and headed down to the waterfront to watch the boats in the morning and feed the ducks... and Finally the tally in the Mama column started to go up :) After leisurely walking back up the street, with Logan now in the stroller and Caleb on my back for piggy back ride, we made it back to the bike and started to head for home (11am)... About 10 mins into my ride back home, I turned around and both boys are passed out in the buggie. I rode for the next hour, enjoying the beautiful bike trail, bridges over the streams, through the marsh, saw a bald eagle, and enjoyed the peace and quiet!

Despite my rocky start, the day turned out spectacularly... I would say it even qualified as one of my "Perfect Saturday's"... It's amazing how a flawless blue sky, with a bike trail sporting views of water, and a nice cool breeze can make you overlook even the most trying experiences!