Cry Baby

I've always been someone who cried easily. I am the target audience for those sappy Hallmark commercials and I've shed a tear in almost every movie I've ever watched. But as a mother I find myself crying in a whole host of new situations. When Jeeper was six weeks old I tried to go grocery shopping but he pitched a huge fit at the store. No matter what I did (rock, shush, bounce, swaddle, sling or even nurse) he wouldn't stop crying and I finally started to cry too - right there in the Safeway floral department. Fortunately it was a quiet weekday so there was no one around. We eventually calmed down and left the store without much notice.

This morning we hit sluggish traffic due to an accident and Jeep got frustrated and started wailing. He was frustrated, mad, and sad all at once and he let me know it. I sang songs, told stories, offered crackers, opened the windows, reasoned, cajoled, pointed out garbage trucks and then started to cry myself. A mama has an instinct to soothe her baby's cry and car seats, traffic, and office hours don't always cooperate with that urge. Once Jeep got to school he settled down within a matter of minutes, but I felt spent all morning. I guess I'm the crybaby!