It's been well documented this week that I've had a rough go
of it with Ellie. Between all of the
screaming and the hair pulling and the scratching and crying, it hasn't
necessarily been the most fun. However,
what's great is when you just reach that moment in the week where all you can
do is laugh and I finally reached that point today. A huge part of the reason I'm not upset right
now has totally got to be due to attitude.
When I woke up this morning, I looked myself in the mirror and had a
short little pep talk to start the day off right.
 |
| How I'd like to imagine I look for this pep talk. Debonair, right? |
"Self, you're going to have a great day. Even if Ellie cries and screams until she's
hoarse and blue in the face, it's not your fault. Unless it was your fault. Then we'll re-evaluate. Ellie likes you. You've seen her smile at you on
occasion. You're taking good enough care
of her to keep her alive. On top of
that, you're also keeping her clean and dressed. Good job self! Self high five."
 |
| How I actually look for the pep talk. Much less charming. |
Ok, you caught me.
Maybe I didn't have that conversation with myself in the mirror to start
the day but I did remind myself of things along those lines at multiple times
today, especially when things got rough.
And because of that, I kept my head under duress and now live to tell
the tale of the worst blowout ever.
 |
| Nope, not that kind of blowout. |
After Ellie powered through her 1:00 feeding today, she was
still upset. I'm not 100% certain if it
was because she wanted more to eat or because she was just unhappy. Judging by the way she was sucking on my
hand, I think it was likely related to all of the teething pains she has been having. Once I got her calmed, I laid her down on her
playmat, foolishly thinking that she would be willing to play for a bit while I
got some dishes done. Unfortunately,
Ellie did not agree. She wanted to be
sitting up, not laying down, but did not want to be held. Making the best of a rough situation, I
decided to move her to her bouncy seat where happiness always reigns supreme.
True to form, Ellie was immediately overcome with the joy of
one thousand clowns (is that a quantifiable?). Occasionally I glanced around at her while I
was washing dishes and just enjoyed the seeing her happy for what was seemingly
the first time in days. As I plunged my
hands into the soapy water to clean the final dish, I heard an audible grunt
arise from Ellie's lips. Then, I heard an
explosion rivaling some that you hear on the fourth of July. Looking at Ellie's face, I immediately knew
what had occurred. Finishing up my
dishes quickly, I picked up my daughter and headed upstairs to her room.
The very first thing I find is that the Luvs diaper was not
enough to contain this kind of volume and consistency. Heinous brown liquid was seeping through
Ellie's little pink tights at thigh level.
As I carefully unbuttoned her romper, I found that it wasn't just the
little pink tights that had paid the price.
The inside of the romper resembled that of a gas station burrito; Brown,
moist, and sticky. With no other recourse,
I apologize profusely to Ellie as I pulled the romper up her chest and over her
head. When complete, I actually had to
wipe some of the contents from my daughter's face. Now for the tights. Sliding them off carefully, I finally reach
the epicenter of the problem. With
almost as much outside as inside, I slide the diaper off and toss it in the
garbage. Then to set out about the
arduous task of cleaning Ellie. Not one,
not two, but three baby wipes later the job is done and Ellie is dressed in
brand new clothes ready for her afternoon nap.
Meanwhile, I'm laughing to myself regarding Ellie for what
seems like the first time all week. What's
it say for me that the thing that ultimately made me laugh and smile was my
daughter having the worst bowel movement of all time. Not to mention, me having to clean it
up. Maybe it's time for me to seek professional help...#DaddyWrite
No comments:
Post a Comment