It’s been a while - too long, I know ... although not the longest break I’ve taken from this blog. I just haven’t had much to share that couldn’t be shared on the new blog.
But today is a day that I feel like sharing - venting? ... but not with perfect strangers. And that’s what this blog is for.
So today I was feeling extra industrious and decided to take everyone on a walk to the church, a couple of blocks from my house, to deliver a donation for ADRA Canada and the Haiti earthquake effort. “Everyone" includes myself, 5 1/2 month old Amélie, 2 1/2 year old Oliver and 9 week old Westie pup Maisy.
“This will be fun,” I thought to myself. “What a lark,what a plunge.”
By the time I convinced Oliver to get his boots on while trying to stuff Ammers into her satiny designer sling (she just cannot lay hammock style in it any more), then bring the dog downstairs, tethered to the door while getting my own boots on - screaming “LEAVE HER ALONE or NO WALK!!!” to Oliver all the while, my bloodpressure was already on the rise.
About six steps down our driveway I realized I had left the cheque upstairs on the kitchen island and had to re-tether dog to door and threaten Oliver about the consequences of freeing her before lumbering up the stairs as fast as I could with an almost six month old baby strapped to my side.
Operating under the false belief that we were all good to go now, we set off. Our progress was slow as Maisy tried to sniff every blade of grass along the way, and Oliver got distracted by little pebbles and sticks every two feet. Then, halfway through the park Maisy had to relieve herself. A No. 2. It was as she was going that I remembered the plastic bag I was going to carry for such times. Still in the house. Well, never mind, I decided - there’s a receptical full of plastic bags for dog owners who forget their own. So we cut across the grass to get one, to be responsible dog owners who don’t leave dog $#!+ in the middle of the footpath. And alas, it was empty.
... it’s still lying there, I'm sure, and people are no doubt cursing me out, which I totally understand because I would do the same. Big pet peeve.
But we pressed on. Down the back roads, filled with mudpuddles on the side of the road that I no longer had the patience to wait for Oliver to jump through. Not all of them.
It wasn’t until we started walking along the highway, about a block from the church, that it occured to me that the distance should not have been my biggest concern for our young pup. Insisting that Oliver hold my hand, with the other hand only partially free because of Ammers' bulk, Maisy had a panic attack over the traffic - or more specifically, the big, noisy semis that roared past. She froze. She tried to escape to the safety of a chain link fence. So I had to pick her up and carry her in my somewhat free arm, comfort her shaky self and keep her from licking the baby’s face.
It was then that I noticed spit-up all over Amélie, the sling and me.
Our next hurtle was crossing the four-lane highway. It’s not crazy big and, as highways go, pretty quiet. But when the light turned green and the "Walk" sign appeared, Oliver picked just then to re-adjust the Pooh Bear he was carrying, and as we got about a third of the way across it was obvious that we wouldn’t make it. At least not with the bear. So I stopped, clumsily tried to help with the hand that had been holding his, stuffed the bear under his arm and then grabbed him and hightailed it BACK onto the sidewalk because the light was already green in the other direction and we were holding everyone up.
The next time the light worked in our favour we hustled across without incident, Maisy trembling all the way.
We entered the church, dropped off the cheque, made a pitstop in the bathroom to clean up the spit-up, and then headed home.
The way back was less fraught with misadventure, if not less spit-up. We did avoid the footpath in the park, however, and cut across the grass.
I think we all let out an audible sigh of relief upon arriving home.
I let Oliver watch some Beatrix Potter videos when we got back because I felt bad that my mood had turned so sour in what was supposed to be a fun adventure surrounding a charitable deed. I hope after all that the cheque doesn’t bounce or something.
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2 comments:
This brings back so many memories. This is what walks are all about you know. That is the adventure in the walk. I'm sure it is more fun for the kids than it is for you fortunately.
Well I hope it was fun for them (or at least two out of the three) because I was thinking about how when I was really little and went for walks with Mum she was never such a wet blanket!
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