Today was by far my most ambitious of the summer. I woke up when Jarmon did– as has become my routine now that Arabella is (somewhat) sleeping through the night. On his way out the door, I reminded Jarmon (in case my note on top of his wallet wasn’t enough) to take the stroller out of his trunk so I’d have it for the day. He said that he would and also said that he’d be home at lunch time to drop off his dry cleaning. I have no idea what possessed me to offer to drop off said dry cleaning– I hate dropping off dry cleaning under solo circumstances, so doing so with a baby would in theory be doubly torturous– but I did. Letting him drive home during a busy week at work seemed ridiculous when I really had no excuse to not drive a few blocks and drop it off for him. So I did. And it was easy. I decided to experiment with carrying Arabella down the stairs before putting her in her carrier and it was a total game changer. I can only wish I had discovered the strategy sooner.
When I got home from the dry cleaner, Natalie and Franci texted to see if Arabella and I wanted to join them for lunch. My first reaction was no because I had a hair appointment at 3 and it sounded like too much activity for one day. But I love lunching with friends and had plenty of time, so I said I’d love to join. It was around that same time that Jarmon responded to my email (happily announcing that his suits had been dropped off and would be ready after 6 tomorrow) with an apology for forgetting to take the stroller out of his car and offering to bring it home at lunch. Again, I’m not sure what possessed me to be so agreeable, but I told him that wouldn’t be necessary and I could get by without it.
Slipping out of the house the second time was just as easy as the first with the new strategy of leaving the carrier in the garage. (How did I not discover this sooner?!) I scored a great parking space close to Yolk Test Kitchen in Bucktown and we had a great lunch with Natalie, Sailor and Franci. After lunch, we stopped back home before my hair appointment. Arabella was an angel the entire day. She got a little fussy at the end of the hair appointment– but to be fair, she was hungry, hadn’t napped and it was practically her bedtime (#momoftheyear). Lucky for me, Amy (my colorist at Edit) has a little boy and 100% understands the struggle is real. Today she swooped in to help me mix baby formula when Arabella started crying– at my last appointment she swooped in to grab a poop-filled diaper out of my hand and take it to the dumpster in the alley for me. Amazing. The kindness moms show to one another in those trying moments is incredible– and something I’ve been blown away by all summer long.
I used to be super judgy toward friends and family who didn’t leave the house after having kids. I, of course, would never be like that. Well, guess what? For the last four months I have been exactly that (x10). The giant sets of stairs in both the front and back of my house are daunting. The multiple locked doors and gates waiting at the bottom of each are exhausting. Now, in my final week off, leaving the house is finally feeling manageable– like a routine part of the day as opposed to an event in and of itself. It feels good to be mobile again. I guess that means it’s time to go back to work.
Trina Orlando 