This is one of those pet peeve posts. I know, I said only positive things here. So let's look at this as a suggestion of strategy as opposed to a complaint of behavior kind of thing and maybe I won't look like such a complainer. Maybe.
I don't like to run out of things. I refill the Keurig reservoir before it's empty so when I'm ready for a cup of coffee, the machine isn't out of water. If I'm getting low on paper towels I'll make sure we get more before we have only one remaining sheet stuck to the cardboard roll. When we're getting low on baby squirts (what I call those new food pouches for staged baby foods) I'll go to Amazon and order three bucket-loads. In general, I don't like to be left hanging.
Those things are convenience things though. There are some things that are more of an issue when the last is used. Interestingly enough, they all seem to be related to babies and their bottoms.
Babies have messy bottoms. Babies are squirmy and don't like to sit still on a dresser to be changed. And there are things that should be right there, ready for use, so the changing process can move swiftly to clean up and not make more mess.
Imagine a baby with a diaper that's been dirty for some time. You just noticed it and it's a doosie. This little baby doesn't want to hold their legs still for the diaper change. The baby wants to flip over and look at the carpet. This baby wants to put their hands between their legs or maybe they've figured out they can reach around the leg to see what kind of mess is smelling so lovely. Also, this baby is getting strong. You need to be fast. You need to have your tools on hand.
Someone used all but the last wipe and you're in the middle of a three-person train wreck of a diaper? Arrugh. Someone used the last of the bags to put the dirty diapers in and didn't replenish them? Grrrr. Someone crammed the prior diaper into the diaper pail and the pail bag is full, at the end of it's capacity and you can't get your wad of diaper and wipes into the container without taking it apart and emptying it? Oh, and there aren't any diapers to put back on the baby because someone used the last one at the last change. Ugh...
These things don't usually happen all at the same time. I have had them each happen to me within the past twenty-four hours. There's always a reason things didn't get refilled or replaced. It's called babies. And they're distracting. But there is a way to prevent this from happening.
Don't wait for the last diaper to be used. Make sure the stack of boy and girl diapers has plenty of diapers in it. Half stack? Make it a full stack. Wipes looking low? Fill the container up so even the most horrific of diaper changes can be dealt with. Diaper bags running low? Go grab a stack from the pantry when you have a chance. And if that diaper pail is full enough for you to have to cram in this diaper, it's time to empty it. Think of the poor, next diaper-changing victim. Think of them and make sure they've got the tools they need right where they need them.
Most of the refilling I do is between diaper changes. It's being pre-prepared. It's making sure I never leave the area with "just one" of anything because a crazy, busy, distracting diaper change when there's "just one" of anything is going to result in a "there are none" diaper change next.
But even with preparation, things can go wrong. When I mentioned something to my husband earlier he said, "oh drat, I meant to refill that and got distracted." He's a great dad and we all make mistakes. Only an hour before, he was changing my daughter and he said, "I'm sure you told me already, but where did the wipes go?" And this was funny, because I had just gotten done completely filling the wipes. I had filled the container, turned around, and put the container away with the refills. He wasn't left with few wipes or even an empty wipes container. He had no idea where the wipes had gone off to. Distractions, it's a way of life with babies.
The Big Boy Update: Apples. Everything is apples right now. He's obsessed with apples. It's more the word than the item, or the juice, or the squirts, or the sauce. It's anything that looks like an apple or that sounds like an apple, or that has apple in the word like "pineapple." When he's not sure what to say, "apple" is his current go-to word.
The Tiny Girl Chronicles: Cough and snot. She has so much snot I'm afraid some of her brain is being systematically replaced with mucus. Yellow mucus. Gross mucus. We spend lots of time during the day doing "brain suckering" with the nasal aspirator. She does not like this. I find myself tense all over through the entire process because I hate having to do it to her. Today, after hearing her make a disconcerting cough for two days, I took her to see our favorite pediatrician. This is the pediatrician who we love so much because she always makes you feel like you're doing the right thing as parents and that your children are just perfect. Her chest is clear, so good news there. The cough is from so much sinus drainage that it sounds like it's from her chest. Humidifier with Vicks Soothing Vapor for the next several days for both children and they'll hopefully be happier kids. Well, she's pretty happy now. She charmed the doctor. She's my best girl.
Fitness Update: Hey, I'm not sore. Whew, two days of sore and I knew I'd given my legs a good workout. Today I feel great. There's a fun run tonight at six I'm thinking of doing. I hate leaving daddy with the kids through bedtime to go running though. The fun thing about the run is it ends at a Popsicle store. How awesome is that?
Someone Once Said: How is this place run? Is it an anarchy? No, I wouldn’t say so. It is not that well organized.
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