I’ve always been emotional, but since having kids, the smartest investment I could have (should have) made is in waterproof mascara.
If you’re like me and you tear up more than ever at the littlest things, here are 8 situations that will jolt you out of letting the teary floodgates open. Worked for me when I needed to get a grip.
- You feel weepy as the school bus drives away and you reflect on how mature your kids have become, only to realize that’s your kid in the window with his finger halfway up his nose.
- You sit down for family dinner – quite a feat given everyone’s busy schedules. What awesome togetherness . . . until that one kid spills his milk, again. All. Over. Again.
- It’s snuggly book-reading time before bed, sharing a favorite story together. Until someone lets one rip and the others frantically flee from the smell.
- “Someday, they’ll be too old for this,” your heart warns you as your kids nestle into your bed in the middle of the night . . . and you contort your body into a piece of angel hair pasta on the outer 1/8-inch of the bed while everyone else is sprawled out and comfy.
- Picking up socks . . . and undies . . . and food wrappers . . . and toys. You tell yourself you’ll miss this someday, too, but when you think of your husband’s habits, you realize this is a lifetime sentence.
- Your toddler is learning to write his name! (In permanent marker. On the table.)
- You plan family movie night . . . and spend it continuously shuttling snacks and drinks from the kitchen to the couch. (You’re extra-annoyed that you did not foresee that you’d spend family movie night on perpetual snack duty)
- And just when you think of how your boys are going to grow into fine young men, you sit down on pee on the toilet seat.
So, the next time you’re starting to feel choked up and emotional, grab a tissue, use it to wipe up whatever mess is in front of you, and get a grip.
