Waiting, I wondered ‘what if’ to every dastardly scenario imaginable

Last updated: 22/05/2015 12:20 by AislingLyons to AislingLyons's Blog
Filed under: MummyBloggers
They bought milk. She is eight, he is six and last week, they bought milk!
 
It started a few months ago. We were up at the shops and I was going to buy the paper.  “Let me, Mum, please!” came the plea from the then seven-year-old.
 
I gave her specific instructions on where to find the paper, gave her the exact change and waited inside the door of the shop while she did the necessary. She did it with great aplomb, returning with the paper, blushing and beaming with pride.The next time I waited outside the shop doors, and the time after that I didn’t have exact change but she managed just fine.
 
The next step to buying the milk was taking showers. The bath with the three of them was a bit of a ‘squash and a squeeze’ so it was time for the eldest to have showers. Showering a fully capable seven-year-old is not my style, so I would turn on the shower, let her get started and then come in for hair washing and ear cleaning.  Next, I came in just for ears and to turn the shower off. After about a month of showers I let her get in, wash, get out, dry, dress and then I dried her hair. Soon I was just blow-drying her hair and letting her do the last few minutes herself.
 
Then she turned eight and one day we were getting ready for showers when I was distracted by Facebook her younger sister. ‘Don’t worry Mum, I will get myself started and call you when I need you.’ Twenty minutes later she arrived back down, washed, changed and with a mane of mostly dry hair! The bathroom was not soaked; her used towel was hanging over the banisters and not in its customary crumpled heap on the ground.
 
We then went from letting her watch me in the kitchen, to allowing her to stir sauce in a hot pan, to showing her how to make tea. She makes her own porridge in the microwave too, getting the jam from the fridge and stirring it in with a spoon. In fact, she made her auntie a cup of tea last week, from filling the kettle to handing over the finished product.
 
So, we needed milk. It was one of those busy school days when we were on the way back from a rushed pick-up and I realised we were out of milk – or would be soon after we got home. So I swung in to Lidl and parked near the door and because timing is everything, the cranky three-year-old had finally fallen asleep. 
 
I needed milk, I wanted to get home but I didn’t want to disturb Whinge-Bob Sleep-Pants.
 
In the olden days of course I would have just left the children in the car and popped in, but times are very different now. They are used to being sent down the aisles to grab milk for me, so I knew that she knew where it was.
 
“Would you guys like to go in to Lidl and buy some milk?”
 
“What, on our own? Yep, sure Mum, no problem, 3 litres, low-fat, right?’
 
“Yes, here is the money and expect to get change.”
 
“Ok, wahoo!”  Out they hopped and in to Lidl they disappeared.
 
There then ensued 10 minutes of me worrying, sweating, questioning my parenting, forcing myself to stay in the car, jumping out of the car and trying to crane my neck to see if I could see in the frosted windows; almost asking strangers who had left the shop if they had seen two children with milk, getting back in the car and wishing sleepy -head would wake; berating myself for not having bought milk earlier and wondering ‘what if’ to every dastardly scenario imaginable.
 
And then there they were, smiling and skipping along, holding hands and giggling. They opened the door, hopped in and fastened their seat-belts.
 
They had bought milk. 
 
Aisling Lyons, is a mum-of-three from Co. Wicklow, with over 20 years experience in the childcare sector. She runs the lovely blog, Babysteps, where she aims to help parents struggling with the little and large problems that parenting young children can bring.
 
Image via Pinterest
 
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