Noooo, not the one whose kid was losing it in the candy aisle at Target. Not today my friends.
Today I was that Mum who looked like she had it all together.
We went to do our weekly food shop at Trader Joes. It’s hit or miss how that goes, but I usually take the boys because I am a glutton for punishment like that. So we get a cart, my little one ASKS to go in it; nobody arching or screaming that he hates the cart and wants to walk.
We start walking around getting what we need. My eldest is picking out the things I ask him to; no attempting to poke his finger into the meat packets today.
My little one is giggling and pointing out all the different food as we walk past; no screaming for blackberries then trying to climb into the cart to eat them this time!
Today he asks me to buy salmon and sweetly puts it into the back of the cart.
A lovely lady stops me to tell me how well behaved my children are; I resist the urge to tell her usually I have lost it at least once before we hit the frozen foods and sometimes I even consider abandoning my cart and running!
I navigate the cracker aisle without tears or demands for peanut butter crackers (which are like actual toddler crack to my kids!)
I get to the register. Sometimes it all falls apart here. My eldest once rang the staff bell at Christmas time when it was super busy; that was a low point for us. Today they say thank you to the man who offers them a sticker and then wait patiently until I have paid before getting their usual fruit strip.
I just entered the Trader Joes twilight zone.
But here’s my message.
That Mom who seems to have it all together, whose kids are angelic, who is so calm and collected, whose cart isn’t full of lucky charms and potato chips because she didn’t have the energy to refuse – she might not always be that way. Kudos to her if she is, I want her secret, but maybe, just maybe, she is having the best day of her parenting life! We are all just winging it and hoping for more of those perfect days.
