Light At The End Of The Tunnel

Have you ever been so deeply ingrained in something that you couldn't imagine it ending? I mean, you know it will but you just can't fathom it happening anytime soon. Then all of a sudden, it starts to change. Things are different. It gets better. Yep, we're almost there. I know what you're thinking, Amanda is almost sleeping through the night. No, my friends, we are not quite ready to tell that happy story. What I am talking about is spitting up.

All three of my kids were/are huge spitters. You pretty much have to carry a burp cloth (or several) with you at all times because the baby is constantly spitting up. It's not just after she eats, which of course is when it is the strongest, it's all day long. All over me, my shoes, the floor the furniture the carpet, everything. Nothing is sacred.

Andy was by far the worst. He did it the most and for the longest. Sarah was pretty bad, but I think the least offensive of the three, and Amanda falls in the middle. From day one I was covered with spit up. I'm sure in the beginning I would change the baby and change myself and try to make us presentable again, but by the time Amanda came and I was doing laundry for five people I was not going to let a little spit up and the smell of spoiled milk stop me.

So, for the past seven months I have been walking around like a spitty mess. You would think the stuff would come out in the wash, but it doesn't. There are stains on my shirt that I don't bother trying to get out, because she's just going to spit on that shirt again. I just wipe it off and continue on with my day. I'm sure I smell awful, but I can't even smell it anymore. My friends still talk to me so it can't be too bad.

I've been buying new clothes at sales over the last couple of months, but I don't dare to actually wear them. I keep waiting until the spitting phase is over and then I can throw out all my stained post-pregnancy clothes and will pretty much have a brand new wardrobe. How often to you get to do that!

Now I don't want to jinx myself, but I think we may almost be there. Amanda is drooling a lot right now, mainly due to the fact that she is teething, but there is less and less spit up everyday. Of course now is the most dangerous time of all. This is when you don't carry a burp cloth everywhere because it's happening less and less. Instead you go into the grocery store for a gallon of milk with the baby in your arms and your money in your pocket, not even bringing the diaper bag into the store because you just need that one thing, and she spits up all over you, herself, the floor and oh yes, the milk. This is a minor setback, but you still feel duped and chagrined, knowing that you were just a little too trusting of the little booter. Maybe next time. Also, the addition of solids add some color to the spit up. It's not fun to be able to figure out what your kid ate that day by looking at the color of your shirt. Oh, orange, I forgot I fed you sweet potatoes today.

I am looking forward to the day when I can stop frantically asking the older kids to bring me a burp cloth or trying to catch the light on the tile so I can see where to wipe the splatter. This is definitely one of those milestones I am not sad to pass and am glad that very soon it will all be a distant memory. Then I will only have to protect my clothes from paint, marker, glue, glitter and grimy little fingerprints. I can deal with that.