"Smoke" Detectors

Being the safety-conscious new parent that I am, I happened to wonder yesterday whether or not our smoke detectors were fully functional. Being the new parent that I am, I didn't have time to check.

Today was not unlike any other weekday. My husband was at work so I got things done as the baby slept and played with her while she was awake. Finally, she fell blissfully asleep and I decided to take a shower. Know where this story is going yet?

First off, as soon as I turned on the shower, she woke up. Not a problem. Ginny has gotten to the point where staring at the shower curtain while I shower is pretty entertaining. And if that fails, there's always a couple of feet around to grab. The showering continued. No peeps from Ginny. Ah, a hot shower on a cold day, is there anything better? Any guesses yet? So Ginny stayed happy right through to the end of my prolonged shower. What a gift! I threw back the shower curtain feeling pretty cocky that I managed to get through a shower. Then my puzzling from yesterday was answered... BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!!!!!! The smoke detector decided that steam is a harmful substance. I was so afraid that this would upset Ginny, I snatched up my towel and hopped out of the shower, heading towards the smoke detector. Frantically I looked for something to disperse the steam from the detector. The nearest thing was a pair of flannel pajama pants. So I was flailing the pants in the air while dripping and holding my towel on with the other hand. BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!! I dashed over to the window and tore back the curtain in order to open the window, not bothering about innocent passers-by on the street. The cool air rushed in and the beeping was silenced. Now I had to face the music and assess the damage done to my peaceful baby. I nervously looked in her direction and...she laughed.

I laughed.

As I stood in my now cold room, dripping wet, I couldn't help but think how spectacular being a parent is.

Plus now I know my smoke detectors work.

Driving

Parenting Lesson of the Day:

When you become a parent, you become a better driver.


False.

Okay I have to give myself some credit. I'm very cautious when making tricky turns, obeying the speed limit, etc. However, this Sunday I was driving home after church with a screaming baby. Desperation set in. My daughter loves to rock and bounce for as long as your legs can possibly stand it, and more. But in the car there's not much you can do. I've taken to jostling her car-seat with my right hand reaching back while driving with my left. Today this would not do the trick. I found myself purposefully driving into potholes and swerving into storm drains on the side of the road. Bump Bump. The crying would lessen. That wouldn't quite do the trick entirely. So I wouldn't slow down over speed bumps. The crying got quieter. I stopped at a red light. Uh oh, it got louder. I start to nervously pump the brake pedal in order to shake the whole car. Only a few chirps from the back seat. By the time I arrived home, she was asleep.

So my semi-reckless driving works occasionally. Only sometimes, I don't need to, and find myself hunting down potholes. One afternoon I was driving and my husband sat in the back with the baby. I swerved a bit out of instinct and he asked me calmly from the back, "Are you trying to put her to sleep?" I was unaware that this had become a subconscious thing. "Oh. Yeah... I am...".

So if you see a car swerving around the road, don't assume they're a drunk driver. They might just be a desperate parent.