Double Duty

I had an eye-opening experience today. Brennan and I met our friend Rachel and her five-week-old son, Mason, at Starbucks and then headed to the mall. While we were at the mall, I offered to watch Mason so Rachel could do some shopping without having to haul a stroller around. Brennan was playing in the play area, and Mason was content in his car seat, so it didn't seem like a big deal. And it wasn't, until it was time to go, and I tried to get Mason back into his car seat (I had taken him out to do some singing and cuddling... how could I resist?). With just a mention of Rachel's name, Brennan had taken off, out of the play area, and down the hall. He said he was going to look for Miss Rachel... Well, I tried to gather my purse, the car seat, the baby, my cell phone, another bag, and Brennan's sippy cup, all while shouting Brennan's name like a crazy person. I was trying to think fast. What do I do first??

After corralling Brennan and getting Mason into the stroller, I quickly discovered how tricky it is to deal with two kids. And Mason was sleeping the whole time! Just going to the bathroom to wash our hands, ordering food at McDonald's, and getting situated at a table, all without waking the baby, felt like a feat. As we left the mall and Rachel headed to a lounge area to feed Mason, I realized that I could never bring Brennan with me into a lounge to nurse a baby for a half an hour. He would run out the door or peek at people under the toilet stalls, or drive me batty in some other way. And I thought having a newborn was tough this last time around! What was I thinking? That was just one child to worry about! I have even more respect now for parents who have several children.