We had a busy day today. It was our first holiday with a kid, and it wasn't easy.
First, we went to church for the first time since the kid got here. We sat in the church's Crying Room, because we didn't know how the baby would do in a new setting, and she was markedly the best kid in there. Because apparently "crying room" is now code for "loud rambunctious toddler room". There were about five two-year-olds running around screeching. The baby should have napped for most of the service, but was frequently startled out of almost-sleep by noisy kids.
Then we went to my folks' house for brunch. The baby does pretty well with my parents but it's still a change of pace, and my brother and his wife were there so it was extra stimulation and change. She napped about half as much as she usually does. We finally got her into a decent nap, and after she woke up we headed to Andy's parents' house.
We haven't brought the baby there at all. Andy's mom is a smoker and she smokes in the house, so when the baby first arrived, we had a very difficult conversation with her and told her we wouldn't bring the baby there if she still smokes inside. Andy's mom wasn't thrilled with our choice, but we think it's important for the baby's health and have stuck by it for three months. However, holidays are a little extra complicated. We didn't want to not celebrate Easter with his family, but we also didn't want to host a huge group at our house with a tired, overwhelmed baby. Andy's sisters were both in town, both with new romantic interests, and Andy's uncle and his girlfriend were there too.
I also had forgotten that FUCKING EVERYONE HAS AN OPINION ABOUT FOSTER CARE and we're expected to listen politely to all of those opinions. I got a little sassy at one point, because I am not interested in being lectured about this, but overall it could have been worse.
Now we're all fucking tired and going to bed early. Hope your Easter was restful and full of joy!
lol....typical family reaction. so much fun to listen to
ReplyDeleteDude. Way to stick to your guns about the no-smoking-in-same-building-as-baby. I bet that wasn't fun.
ReplyDeleteAlso, crying rooms. I kind of wish our church still did those. As it is, my options are either a) a closet-sized "mother's room" off the women's bathroom which is really for breastfeeding, not for howler monkeys, or b) the hallway. Good times.
I hope your Easter food was good!
MamaFoster, I had sort of forgotten how everyone thinks they are allowed to weigh in on this foster stuff. We have seen the same group of people, mostly, since the baby arrived, so seeing new people meant they all felt like they should tell us their opinions of foster care in general, our county's system in particular (which none of them are familiar with), and even the baby's mom. Ugh.
ReplyDeleteAnd Nem, yeah, the smoking thing has definitely been a strain. And the crying room would probably be awesome for TDL because he would have other toddlers to stare at in awe and confusion, and his monkey shrieks would blend right in!