Sometimes Sundays are Hard...

Last Sunday was pretty tough.

We've been trying to sit in the back of the cultural hall lately

so that Scarlett has room to roam and isn't too distracting.

But this week we had family in town so we took a risk and sat smack

in the middle of the cushy seat section, squished in the middle of the row.

Big mistake.

Before the opening prayer even finished I could tell that Scarlett

was itching to run and explore and would not be contained for long.

Then the Bishop announced the unthinkable.

There were to be three baby blessings.....THREE!

(Cue scary music)

Baby blessings are the hardest because I want more than anything for perfect

silence so that the sweet new mama can hear and focus on her precious

babe's blessing.

So I panic if Scarlett even makes a peep.

Blessing number one started and peep she did.

Not enough to warrant immediate dismissal,

but enough to be embarrassed and worried and plan out my escape route.

Shockingly, we made it through all three.

And then the Sacrament was starting to be passed

and she passed the point of no return.

We made it a whole 20 minutes into the meeting.  Not too shabby, huh? ;)

Every Sunday I look longingly across the aisle at the sweet little boy

about Scarlett's age who is always just snuggling his mama and looking around quietly.

Scarlett was given very different qualities.

She is fun and happy and sweet,

as well as energetic, fearless, curious, and independent.

I wouldn't change her for the world, it just makes for a very busy and active life :)

Anyways, as I made my way out to the foyer, like either Chris or I do every Sunday,

I quickly realized with horror that it would not be our quiet, less stimulating sanctuary that it normally is.

Again, THREE baby blessings that day.

So not only were all the foyer seats jam packed with visitors,

but even the hallways were lined with people.

And here was a very stressed out mama who just wanted a little alone time

to compose herself and try to calm her baby down.

Rather, I felt like I couldn't escape the public eye and ended up chasing a screaming

child who was trying to escape around every corner.

Add to that, a sweet older man told me (for the second week in a row by the way)

that Scarlett looks like a boy.  Innocent intentions, but that was just icing on the

not-so-delicious cake.

Of course, I forgot my phone in the chapel, so I wasn't able to text Chris

to come save my sanity.

I got so overwhelmed that I came to the conclusion that the only logical option

was to walk home in the cold, trying unsuccessfully to hold back tears.

ADD to that that my primary lesson was supposed to be about feeling the Spirit during Sacrament,

and I was feeling anything but.

I write this because I feel like so often, especially at church, I'm trying to come

across as the perfect mom who's got it together.

But most of the time, especially with an energetic child, that's just not the case.

She's going to run around, she's going to have melt downs, and there's really not

a whole lot that I can do about it.

But I look around and think "Why can't I do this?  Everyone else is handling mommy-ing JUST fine,

so what's wrong with me?"

But I'd like to think that we all have days that overwhelm us, which makes for a perfect situation

that Satan can convince us that we're not doing a good enough job.

I'd like to think I'm not the only one that has these days.

So to my fellow mommies out there having a bad day,

know that you're not alone!

It's a tough job that we have, but we're all figuring it out and doing our best, right?? :)

And after we think we can't give anything more,

our little one gives us a hug or kiss or comes running to you

when they're hurt, and it makes it all worth it.

None of us are perfect, and neither are our kids, but we still keep

trying cause we love them more than life itself.