The World's Most Awkward Mom: Do You Feel like It's You?

When I first became a parent, it seemed like I was awkward at everything. I saw other moms that seemed to be able to do anything and everything while carrying their children or feeding them. I struggled with carrying my child with anything else. Nursing was not easy for us, either. It took about a week before I felt confident that he was getting much of anything. The whole six months that I nursed him, I never felt comfortable doing it sitting up. We always had to lay down for us to both be comfortable. I saw all these other women that were able to nurse their children, eat, and hold a real conversation all at once! I was so jealous!

I also saw parents carrying two kids at once. They would have their newborn in a snuggly, and a toddler on their hip. I never really could get the snuggly to work properly, so I just opted to carry my newborn. My arms got tired still, I couldn't imagine carrying a toddler as well. Now that he's a 25 pound toddler, I feel like I am constantly switching him over to the other arm if I have to carry him for very long. I guess I don't have the arm strength that other moms have.

Now that my son is a toddler, though, I'm learning that even those moms that look like everything comes so easy to, do not have it down perfect. All Moms make mistakes now and I'm learning that is okay. I may not be able to hold my toddler indefinitely, but I am able to carry him when and where I need to. I know that if I need to put him down, I can find a safe place and set him down. I'm learning to accept my awkward moments as mom. All moms have them, right?

That's not to say that there aren't times when I still feel like I am THE world's most awkward mom. Recently my son and I were shopping at the BX. We just bought a few items and they all fit into two bags. It was cold outside, so I opted to leave the cart in the store and carry my stuff out since there aren't any cart corrals in the parking lot. I picked my son up with one arm, and carried the diaper bag, my purse, and our two bags in the other arm. As soon as we left the store, my son saw the Taco Bell sign in the food court and decided he was hungry. I realized that it was about 5 minutes past lunchtime and decided we might as well go ahead and eat a Taco Bell lunch. I got in line, and ordered our food to go. What was I thinking? I'm not sure. When our food was done, I realized that I now had to walk across the parking lot carrying a toddler, a diaper bag, a purse, two bags of stuff from the store, two bags of food, and two drinks! I got halfway across the parking lot before I had any problems. Then out of nowhere, my precious toddler decided he wanted to "Fly!" He jerked forward so hard that I almost lost my grip on him. I had to carry him by only holding onto him around the middle of his belly the rest of the way out to the car. He was laughing hysterically and screaming about how great it was to fly the entire time.

The entire time I was walking across the parking lot, I was trying to quiet my son down. I remember thinking "Why is my child doing this?" as it seemed like everyone stared at me. I felt like I was the only mom in the world that had a child like this. Once it was over, I was able to laugh about it. I realized that every kid has his moments when his parents wonder why he is doing something. Even those kids that look like they are perfect and always seem well behaved have their moments. I realized that the important thing is how I deal with the way my son behaves.

Even when your child does something crazy like what my son did, be thankful they weren't hurt and that they were able to have fun. It does make a funny story that you can tell your child when he is older. Also remember that even the most put together families have their moments like these. Being able to laugh about it and handle the situation as it unfolds is key. Have fun with your toddler, he will grow up fast!