Monday, April 20, 2009

The Daily Grind

I load the four children into the van and thread through a detour and then one-lane traffic to the downtown library. We park and as I lift Benjamin from his carseat, I detect the sweet, buttery scent of baby poop. It has migrated up his back and I have forgotten to pack an extra outfit for him. I spend the next chunk of minutes in the front seat wiping him down as best I can and reasoning that no one will see his stained clothing because he will be tucked inside the sling. I walk to the passenger side of the van to let the other children out and ask, "Where is the library bag?" as the realization that it is still at home by the door hits me! Without our returns and a place to hold the books we will inevitably find to take home, it is pointless to go on. We re-buckle with the promise that we will drive home, grab the bag, and come right back. As we pull out of the parking lot, a young voice in the backseat says, "Daddy would never forget the library bag, would he?"...for I will yet praise Him.

Kristin

4 comments:

  1. Hmmm... I've smelled my share of baby poop, but I don't know if I've ever described it as a "sweet, buttery" smell. I think you might have turned me off of butter. ;)

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  2. That tricky baby poop. When it's too early for it to stink, it's incredibly messy; once it firms up enough to stay in the diaper, it's so smelly it'll trigger a gag reflex. Suzi's breastmilk poop smelled like Cheerios and sometimes coffee, even when I had consumed neither before feeding her.

    At our house, Daddy forgets things too. Maybe not as much as I do, but still--it happens. Just getting all four kids dressed and to the library sounds like an accomplishment to me :-)

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  3. Oh my. I can understand, even though I haven't yet been blessed with a family of my own. :-)

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  4. Wow! Didn't mean to gross anyone out! It's not a bad smell at all--that's the best way I could think to describe the distinct of scent of breastmilk poop.

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