The other day we had to take Jonas to the clinic for a blood pressure test. Being the stupid people that we are, we figured that if Chris dropped Maggie and I off at the commissary to do a little grocery shopping, they would be back from the doctors about the same time I finished.

So, Chris dropped us off and we very quickly collected our groceries. I knew there was no way they were going to be ready for me, so I wandered the isles with Maggie for about twenty-five minutes before paying for my stuff and going outside. I stood outside waiting for almost a half an hour. Maggie was overheating and the milk was warming, so I opted to just walk home. We are only about 3 big blocks from the commissary, so it wasn’t too bad. Maggie was in her sling, so I had both hands free. Once I got home I tried to call the clinic to let Chris know where I was. Something was up with the phone lines, so I couldn’t get through. I took an incoming call, and then packed Maggie up in the stroller and walked back. We looked all over, but never saw our car. After another half an hour I told a friend to let Chris know we had gone home if she saw him. Then I went home and called the clinic again, this time getting through and being informed that they had just left. About twenty minutes later they showed up at home. Chris was not happy.

Apparently when he got to the clinic they told him to have Jonas sit still for a few minutes so the blood pressure reading would be accurate. Anyone who knows Jonas knows that unless he is unconscious, this boy does not sit still. After about fifteen minutes Jonas climbed onto Chris’ back and was being still. Then Chris felt something wet trickling down his back. Jonas peed all over him. Chris pretty much freaked out. They had to go to the bathroom to get Jonas cleaned up, and when they returned the technician informed them that he would have to sit still for awhile again before they did the reading. When they finally did it, the dummy tech had no idea if it was high or low, so we really have no idea where Jonas’ health stands.

Chris left the clinic, drove to the commissary and sat there for almost an hour before he came home. We never once saw each other. Of course, there had to be bickering about it too. Chris was mad at me, and I was mad at him being mad at me before he even knew how hard I had tried to find him.

Two days later we went to the zoo. We were all outside the big building. I bent down to put Jonas’ sandals back on and when I stood up everyone was gone. I assumed they had left the children’s zoo, so I went to the entrance (which is very close to where we were) and waited. After waiting a for a few minutes we spotted a cotton candy vendor, so we bought some and waited. Jonas, having gone without a nap, took a huge tantrum when I made him share the cotton candy with me. He screamed, flailed, threw himself on the ground, and turned himself into a sticky snot monster. I dealt with his fit for about twenty minutes before things calmed down. While we were doing this, a few people actually had the nerve to make loud comments to their companions, expressly so I would hear about how they NEVER tolerate crying, and tantrums NEVER work for their children. One woman had the gall to stare directly at me for about two minutes straight, shaking her head and tut-tutting. If I hadn’t been so busy calming Jonas down (without giving him the candy- I’m going for effective parenting here, I’m not trying to raise a brat) I would have gone over to those people and yelled at them. I realize that they have no idea that I am dealing with a child who is not only dealing with a developmental delay, but who has gone without his nap. The methods I am using to calm him may not be conventional, but they work for Jonas and that is all I care about. I cannot believe people would be so rude. There is so much they just didn’t know about. What if he was a child with Autism? Just because the behavior is erratic doesn’t mean that the parents aren’t doing things right. Part of me wanted to give Jonas to them and say, “ok- show me how you’d do it so much better.”

Finally, I see my father in law looking for us. Apparently they had gone down a nature trail and when they realized they had abandoned us, we had already left. Not a big deal, right? Well, to Chris it was a big deal. You see, while they were looking for me, Maggie had a big poop, and it wasn’t the kind that stayed in the diaper. It was the kind that shoots straight up her little back and smears the person who is wearing them in the baby bjorn. Once again, Chris was pooped on, and pretty ticked about it.

The interesting thing is that in both of these instances, Chris was mad at me, not at the person who had defecated on his person. It took me awhile to figure out why this was making him so upset, after all, we have been parents for almost three years. I’m used to getting pooped on in public places. I realized that Chris really wasn’t home much when Jonas was a baby. He was working and going to school full time. Then when Jonas hit toddlerhood Chris was away with military stuff for six months. Then Chris was working round the clock again. Suddenly, he is around more, so he is dealing with the poop and the pee and the vomit. He is just now adjusting. Welcome to parenthood honey. Glad to have you around for the ride.