Today I have a new appreciation and awe for you!
Let me explain why...
Today I was given responsibility of two very lively three year olds on a shopping trip to Big C (the equivalent of a Super Walt-mart).
All started off well as I situated the two boys into the shopping cart. They were awestruck by the bright lights, the sounds, and the bright colors of the store. This phase lasted approximately 3.5 seconds before the "I need to touch everything in sight" phase set in.
As I am searching the kitchen supplies isles for measuring spoons, child #1 manages to get into my purse and is pulling everything out one item at a time. I quickly manage to stuff everything back into my purse and throw it across my shoulder, as child #2 is leaning as far as he can out of the cart trying to grab for the nearest items on the shelf. I manage to stop the ordeal before he falls out of the cart or knocks an entire row of glass plates to the floor. (why is it that they always go for the glass items?)
It seems like ages before I find the measuring spoons, as I am trying to occupy two lively boys, while keeping them in the cart and away from all glass objects. I throw the measuring spoons into the cart and start to take off towards the body wash. That was my first mistake. Never ever put just one item in the cart when there are two children. Fighting immediately broke out over who was going to get to hold the measuring spoons. So, I decided we would take turns holding spoons. Mistake number two. 3 year olds do not share... ever.
So, I ended up holding the measuring spoons, while navigating the cart and trying to keep two children inside the cart away from all shelves. We turn down into the body wash isle and as long as I can keep the cart moving, they don't try to climb out. So I did what I like to call, "drive by shopping". This means, I kept the cart moving, while scanning the shelves for the cheapest body wash, grabbing it and keep trucking along.
At this point, if you have been counting, I have two items. Now, each child can have something to hold on to as we continue our shopping. Problem solved right? WRONG. Mistake number three.
Within a time span of 2 minutes, child #1 is opening the measuring spoon packaging, while child #2 is trying to bite into the body wash bottle. Yikes. I mean really how many more mistakes can I make in one shopping trip? Just when I start to think that things have to go up from here, I made the biggest mistake of the whole day.
I took a short cut down the chip isle. Now by chip isle... I literally mean an entire isle of nothing but Lay's potato chips in every flavor known to man kind. Immediately both boys are suddenly very hungry and will stop at nothing short of an epic tantrum if they don't eat potato chips at that very moment. I gave in. (I'm sure all mothers have done this at some point right?) My thought process is that if I can possibly get through the rest of the shopping without bite marks in my body wash bottle and all glass objects remaining in tact, then by all means GIVE THEM THE CHIPS!
So, the children settle in (all arms and legs inside the cart) with the potato chip bags and we continue on to buy the other items I need. We proceed to the check out with ease. Man, we made it through the entire check out process smoothly! Nothing grabbed off the shelf, no one climbing out of the cart. Just the sound of greasy chips being consumed.
I put the shopping bags into the cart and we head down stairs to wait for the rest of our group to finish shopping. Krista (my roommate and fellow volunteer) and I stop to grab some lunch to go, when both boys simultaneously (I think it was a conspiracy against me!) decide they are in dire need of the bathroom. I quickly grab both boys and am half running (while carrying them) into the bathroom. A comical scene I'm sure! I get them both in side-by-side stalls and breath a sigh of relief that there was no accident as I wait for them to finish. Child #1 of course finishes way before child #2 does and is trying to escape the bathroom. I am chasing after child #1 as child #2 is yelling for me to come help him button his pants (of course he is yelling in Thai... which I don't understand and I am yelling back in English... which he doesn't understand). I manage to grab child #1 as every woman in the bathroom is staring, and I'm sure thinking how crazy this white girl must look. (I'm sure they went home and told their family the circus they witnessed in the bathroom!)
Eventually, we make it back to the cart and I get the boys settled back into the cart so they can finish their snack. Thinking how glad I am that the rest of the trip will be smooth sailing (mistake number 4), child #2 starts yelling "POO-POO!" This is to inform me that an explosion of epic proportions will occur in under a minute if I don't get him on a toilet fast!
As I am whisking child #2 out of the cart to run him to the bathroom (again), child #1 starts throwing a fit because he doesn't want to wait in the cart with Krista. Not wanting to deal with a screaming child, I pick child #1 up as well and again all three of us are running (this time a little quicker) back into the bathroom only to be met with even crazier looks.
Finally, child #2 finishes and we make it back out to the cart just in time to go outside to meet our van.
All that to say...
To all you mothers out there, I salute you!
I applaud you! I am in awe of how you do this day in and day out! I had to drink 2 cups of coffee after that ordeal just to maintain my sanity and try to pump myself with more energy for the rest of the afternoon with the kids!
Thank you mothers for all you do!
Cheers!
Left: The boys fighting over who got to hold the spoons
Right: The boys eating their chips just looking at the items on the shelves and not touching them! (thankfully!)
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