Guys, seriously, I know I have a blog. But just so we’re clear, I have no idea what the heck I’m doing. I can’t even wing my eyeliner right. I’m making it all up as I go along. There is not a ton of wisdom that you’re going to get from me, especially if I’m sitting down trying to come up with wisdom to impart. But these two lil’ pearls I had to share with you. They have saved my butt on a number of occasions. Like most things on this blog, not rocket science, but ingenious nonetheless, and if you don’t already use these tips, put them in your parenting toolbox to use when you’re in a jam.
Ask the question: Would would you do if it was your child?
I’ll never forget how I learned this amazing piece of advice. We were at Disneyworld on a trip with my in laws. My oldest was a toddler and I was 6 months pregnant with Littler Tallman. Our second-to-last day at Disney, Little Tallman displayed a fever and fussiness that was only worsening, so on our last day, we spent the morning figuring out where to take her to be seen by a doctor, and we ended up at a Walgreen’s clinic. I wish we had those here! It was so convenient! But anyway, we took her to the clinic, and the nurse practitioner explained that she had a raging ear infection. We mentioned that we were supposed to fly home the next day, and the NP was concerned about Little Tallman being in pain due to the air pressure changes in flight, and also said that her ear drum could rupture! On one hand, it seemed like an easy decision, we simply can’t put her on a plane yet, but on the other hand there’s the real life issues of rearranging a flight.. a huge mega PITA and… cost. Then on a rare stroke of genius, I asked the NP, “what would you do if it was your child?” And the nurse shrugged and said that she would do whatever she needed to do to delay flying for an additional 24 hours. Well, that settled that! I was definitely worried about cost and what my in laws would think and whether or not they would agree. I held my ground that it was the best choice for our daughter, and after only a slightly uncomfortable conversation, all worked out. And I ended up having one of the most blissful moments of that pregnancy- my MIL and I stayed back with Little Tallman as the antibiotics kicked in, and I got an opportunity to swim in one of the resort pools! Weightlessness on that big ole’ belly! We’ll never know if it was truly necessary to have delayed flying, but I don’t regret what we choose. And the flight home was easy-peasy with a more comfortable toddler.
Another event where I used this advice was with a childcare provider we were using. Long story short, there were some issues going on that was concerning me, and I spoke with one of the caregivers that I hoped would be honest with me, and I asked the question: “if it was your child, would you want them in that environment?” (I also assured her that she didn’t have to answer that question, I’m not that bad!) She said, “honestly… no I wouldn’t.” We pulled out our child shortly thereaafter, before we even had a plan for alternative childcare. And sure enough, things worked out.
Give your kid a bath if you don’t know what else to do
An epic meltdown was had on a long weekend trip to Boston with Littler Tallman. By early afternoon, my little 1 1/2 year old was crabbing away, fussiness that would not stop. It kept going and going, and I started running the gamut of “what could possibly be wrong?” Everything checked out, no fever, not hungry, she’s clean and dry, not overheated… My own tears finally came when I couldn’t get her under control and I felt like everyone was looking at me like I had kidnapped this child. Good thing she looked like me! We made it back to the hotel room, and I was a disaster. Tallest Tallman suggested we call his mom and ask for advice. Embarrassed and desparate, I called her, and trying to hold back tears, I explained that I couldn’t figure out what was wrong with this child and why she wouldn’t stop fussing. And, as mothers and mother in laws can do, she calmly told me to give her a bath. That way there, she explained, you can get a good look at her body, make sure you don’t see anything off, and baths are calming. Duh. So I gave her a bath… and the fussing ended. Fortunately, everything still appeared to be perfectly fine with her, and the bath was enough to reset her system and bring back my content child. Thank you MIL!!! Now, not sure if this works with older kids or teenagers, but I suppose it’s worth a shot! I guess by then you can spray them with a hose.?
Help a sister out… what is your go-to parenting advice???