Me as "Cover MOM"

Yesterday being Mother's Day reminded me of my weekend stint "covering" for my friend, who took her first vacation away, since giving birth the first time, 3 years ago.

The assignment: an insanely smart, active and funny 3 year old, and an adorable non-fussy 6 month old. My duties over the weekend included schlepping the girls to a ballet class (for the 3 year old) then to a library class, and "Auntie Jen's choice" depending on how the weather/how tired I was, and a 3 year old's birthday party the next day. After being prepped and armed with a complete schedule of feedings, sleep times, directions to each off-site location, and general rules of the house, my friend and her husband took off and I began mommy-ing.

I got to the home at around 5:45 the first night and took the hand-off from the nanny. This was the easy night. The girls were already fed, in the jammies, and winding down for an 8pm bedtime. Ahhh. Being a mommy is easy! They both slept thru the night without incident (well, the 6 month old slept until 6:30, when I then changed and fed her- and went back to snoozing) and once morning came around, both girls have that morning-docile quality that makes you want to eat them up. This haze lasted maybe an hour, before I realized "Mommy-time" runs about 20 minutes late.

Now, I consider myself a great multitasker, with a pretty good handle of time management, but when I left myself 45 minutes for a 20 minute car ride, I still managed to get to the 10:30 ballet class at around 10:40. MOMS out there- just getting yourself out of the house with kids in tow, is a feat worth recognizing. If you manage to get yourselves to appointments on time- Gold Medal worthy.

The one drag all weekend? The rainy Sunday. UGH. I love to be outside, and the day before was so gorgeous: walked to the park, played in the sand, and my 3 year old even comforted an older girl on the playground when she got a splinter "It's going to be ok..." she said. Love that girl. But when it rains, your mommy-options are limited. We ended up painting ceramics at "Claytime" (www.claytime.com) which ate up several hours and my cell phone. Lesson learned that day: never potty train a toddler with a phone hanging out of your pocket. It's sure to fall into the toilet. Once I had both girls good and exhausted, we headed home, had our bath and into jammies. THEN- the thunder and lightening started. Oh no. I thought this would be a disaster for the girls, being at home without mommy to comfort them. I went in and checked on my 3 year old and all she says to me is "Auntie Jen I heard a noise". I was so grateful for her lack of fear! I gave her a big hug and kiss and said I'd check on her in 5 minutes. When I went back- she was OUT.

So dear readers, here are some new mommy tricks of the trade, that I found out about LATER. Could have been useful to know, before my weekend was up.

1. Don't drop your cell phone in the toilet. (repeat, I know- but important)
2. Don't play "airplane" with a 6 month old after they've eaten.
3. Dress your toddler in the morning while she's on the potty. This way she can't bolt- running around the living room pants-less
4. A 'jumpy seat' is a 6 month old's best friend.
5. Always use the burp-cloth, even if you think you don't have to.
6. Being in the car is a pleasure. Once you get everyone in the car.
7. Never give a 3 year old a full glass of ANYTHING. It may end up on the floor.