I’ll be honest, I had never heard of the term “do-over” before moving to the United States. I remember the first time I heard it I had a long list of moments scrolling through my mind that I would have liked a do-over for. Most of them have to do with parenting…
One in particular comes to mind when our daughter was just a couple of months old. She’s 16 now, but it’s something we still talk about. Actually I can laugh about it now, back then – I was simply horrified and thought for sure I was in the running for worst mother of the year.
See my husband had a co-worker that ended up leaving their workplace and opened a restaurant in a small town about an hour and a half outside the city. We decided to drive out when our daughter was a few months old to eat there, as we had not yet been there and they had not yet seen our daughter.
Parenting came with a bit of a learning curve for me (well I guess it does with everyone!), and since generally our daughter was really laid back and easy going, when things went wrong…they really went wrong. And that evening, she was a little stinker…literally.
Tell me…how can such a cute, small bundle…create such a HUGE stinky mess?!
Full. Blow. Out. If you’re a parent, you know exactly what I mean. There was no salvaging the cute, adorable little outfit she was wearing, because really a public restroom sink…not cutting it, when you’re trying to wrangle an infant into a clean diaper and get out a clean outfit.
| Umm…so a brief message from Frigidaire (I could even have used this to clean her up!)
The Frigidaire Gallery™Dishwasher gets dishes fully cleaned the first time, so there are no dish do-overs. Nearly half of adults admit to re-washing and/or re-drying dishes after the dishwasher cycle has been completed. To prevent dishwasher do-overs, Frigidaire® is stepping in with its new Gallery® Dishwasher featuring the OrbitCleanTM Wash Arm, ensuring dishes are cleaned right the first time.
Okay back to our regularly scheduled blog post:
Oh um yeah, that’s where I epic parent failed. I DIDN’T PACK AN EXTRA OUTFIT IN THE DIAPER BAG!!! Really, I mean who doesn’t check the bag before leaving home to make sure there are extra clothes in it when you have a baby (me apparently)?!
So here I come walking back from the restroom, with my baby who is now only wearing a disposable diaper and paper towels, back to the table where my husband’s friend is introducing all of the staff to him waiting for me…
This, this my friends, is a do-over moment if there ever was one. Until I no longer carried a diaper bag, EVERY time we left home my husband asked me “do you have a couple of extra outfits in there?”…sigh….
So if I had a do-over on that moment, I’d make sure I’d have half my daughter’s dresser and closet contents packed in that diaper bag. Along with a wet bag so I could have salvaged the oh so cute outfit that I ended up having to toss. I know, I know it’s really a paltry thing in hindsight, but at THAT moment, I was so embarrassed and horrified I was speechless (and those of you who have met me in real life, know that almost never happens!)
So make me feel better…what’s your do-over parenting moment?
I was compensated for this post as a member of Clever Girls Collective. All the opinions expressed here are my own.
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Tammy Litke is a Dallas blogger, blogging since 2008. She loves to watch movies, play video games, spend time in the kitchen, and travel. Between recipes and reviews you’ll find many helpful and some just plain funny posts on her blog. Welcome, pull up a chair and stay for a while!