Oh The Throws of Parenting!

Last night I was on the floor in me and Matt's bedroom with the boys. We were reading a book together when I heard Allison crying. I asked Matt if he wouldn't mind bringing her to me since Wayne was in front of me with the book and Bruce was on my lap. He said he didn't mind and went in her room.

The boys and I kept reading and then started playing with a really big sticker. We were laughing, tickling each other and throwing the sticker when Matt asked if I was ready for sister (Allison). I told him we were and he told me to get ready to catch her.

Now, I thought he was just joking. I figured he would act like he was going to throw her. So, I was expecting him to come to the bedroom door, swing her in his arms and act like he was going to let go. That's when I saw something flying in the air. I thought it was her but it was actually this:

I caught the fake Allison and just held on tight because I really thought it was her. I kept thinking, "I can't believe he actually let go!" Of course it didn't take long for me to realize I was holding a sleeper full of a blanket. It reminded me so much of a chicken when you are cleaning it before baking.

I started laughing so hard I couldn't breathe. Matt was laughing so hard he couldn't breathe. The boys didn't know what to think because they couldn't tell what we were doing. All Allison wanted was to be held, so I held her......after I took the picture!

Yes. She is my kid.

I am not one to remember to take a picture of my child’s milestones. In fact, a few days before Allison turned 1 month I remembered and thought maybe this would be the child I would remember to take pictures of. But on the exact day I totally forgot. Then about a week later I was telling someone how old she was and finally remembered that I had forgotten to take a picture on the day she turned 1 month. Oops!

However, despite my forgetfulness of my children’s ages I have never had someone ask me if the child with me is my child…..until now……

Last weekend, Matt & I were on a date at a restaurant here in town. Matt went to wash his hands and the waitress came over to see the baby. She asked how old Allison was. I couldn’t remember right away, so she asked me if Allison was my baby. I said, “Yes. She’s mine.” (I’m thinking, ‘I know she turns a week older on Mondays. What day is it today?’)

When Matt returned from the restroom I told him about my conversation with the waitress. Matt said I should have said, “No, it’s not my baby. It’s my husband’s. We haven’t figured out who the mom is yet.” (I thought he came up with that all by himself but he admitted he stole the line from a movie. It was still funny!!!!)

Then, later in the week, I was at the store. As I was leaving a lady had that look in her eyes like she really wanted to see the baby. I stopped so she could see her. She asked how old she was. I said, “Uh, I don’t remember. 5.5 weeks. Yeah, that’s it.” She said, “Is she your baby?” I said, “Yes, she’s mine.” I was thinking, ‘She’s fed, breathing and not naked. What do you people expect?!’ Again, I couldn’t even remember what day it was.

In our humanness, we have limits. Sleep deprivation can cause us to forget things. But I am so thankful to have a heavenly Father who is limitless. I may not remember off hand exactly how old my children are, but He does. He knows everything about us. He has so many children yet he knows all of our names (John 10:3b), the number of hairs on our heads (Matthew 10:30), the number of days we have been here on Earth and the number of days we have left (Psalm 139:16). The title of Psalm 139 in the NIV Bible is “God’s Perfect Knowledge of Man.” Maybe next time I should say, “God only knows how old she is!”