Weddings are blissful. A celebration of young love, the uniting of families, and the scent of fresh flowers. Optimism run high on a sunny spring wedding day. Every future bride dreams of this day. Every past bride knows that behind the scenes, weddings do not come without chaos.
Picture this, I was 26. It was my sister-in-law’s wedding day. One of the very first moments that I was “christened’ into motherhood. Truly, it was a billboard for the lifelong awkward job of motherhood.
There I was, bridesmaid ready, in my strapless gown, full make-up, hair freshly blown and styled. As a new mom of an infant; hair and makeup in one day, it was a rarity. My dress hiked up, straddled in the back of my mother-in-law’s minivan. Uhhmm yeah. Here comes the awkward. We had pulled off in a parking lot because my 4-month-old infant was screaming uncontrollably. I unbuckle my first child. Colicky child. Angel to Satan in 5 seconds child. Assuming I needed to feed her and relieve my engorged baby feeders. I unbuckle her, lift her out of her infant seat and set her right on my lap. My lap. The lap of a satin ball gown for a wedding that starts in less than an hour and is across town. My lap. My lap, that is now splatter-painted mustard yellow from the silent explosion that must have been causing all the ruckus. This is one of THOSE poops. The kind of poop where you cannot possibly imagine how all that shit could even fit inside a tiny baby. My first instinct was to cry, but no. Mascara people, mascara. Crying would get me nowhere. Assessing the situation, I knew I had no suitable change of clothes for her. It was the only fancy dress she owned. I certainly had no change of clothes for myself. Plus, we only had about 45 minutes to get across town in hellish traffic. All my fate rested in my diaper bag.
My only option was to pull my shit together. Literally. God gave us babies, and for this, he gave us baby wipes. And those suckers can clean just about anything. Careful not to destroy the top half of her dress as I cleaned her up, I trashed her diaper and her little dress bottoms that were beyond rescue. Scooped as much oozing poop as I could out of her infant seat into a plastic grocery bag. Wiped out her seat best I could draped down a burp cloth. Buckled her back in. Onto myself, I realized quickly that dark satin is a miracle fabric. Though I probably smelled sour, the dress cleaned up remarkably well. I was shocked, but it seemed we were in the clear. Less than an hour later, I walk down the sandy beach with my husband and baby. Standing in a beautiful wedding. Listening to the vows, I peer down to my princess’ matching linen baby shoes. Soft little Mary-Janes with just a smudge of hidden poo. All I could do was laugh to myself silently.
What set in as a moment of panic, of sheer desperation is now just a funny story. It should have been a vision, a glimpse forward to all the years of awkward I had left to overcome. In the past 10 years of motherhood I’ve been slapped in the face during a swim class, the red-faced victim of countless public tantrums, and even more slipped in public toddler curse words. Small children love to embarrass and make liars out of us. Especially in front of the in-laws. “She barely sleeps. She barely eats.” 30 minutes later said child shovels down a pound of broccoli, and takes a 5-hour nap. All of that awkward fun is only from my oldest. My little one brought me so many moments of creepy awkwardness I wrote a special post titled “I think I’m raising a serial killer”. I’m serious. You should check it out. I even have photos.
Godspeed. Enjoy all the awkward, though it’s debilitating at times, looking back they make for the best memories.
About the Author, Kelli Matonak
Residing in south Florida, Kelli is a mommy blogger and self-proclaimed laughter addict. She enjoys sorting Barbie shoes, perfecting her British accent and snuggling with her Police Officer husband watching The Walking Dead. Her two daughters ages 10 & 4, keep her on her toes and provide hours of entertainment and rejected meals. Kelli also spends her time devouring books, climbing mountains of laundry, exploring Pinterest wins and fails and finding ways to make her family’s life on earth more delightful.
Crazyeverafter.com is a PR friendly Mommy blog, based in South Florida with an international presence. While we continue to grow each day our social impressions and group activity span over 245,000. Crazy Ever After is a satirical blog, a space designed for entertainment. Here we share fun crap to do with your kids, pretty darn great recipes, priceless travel advice, child-rearing venting. Check it out and subscribe for weekly emails!
Property of Crazy Ever After, LLC
I love this story, I can totally see it happening to me. I was in wedding across the country when my little one was just 4 months old. I had to keep sneaking away to pump and not spill on anything!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great story!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh my God! What a hilariously tragic story! Congrats on pulling your shit together!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hahahaha! I think we’ve all attended weddings where our baby has left some sort of stain on our dress. I remember wearing a fancy dress to a wedding and my toddler instantly smeared red sauce on me at dinner.
LikeLiked by 1 person
OMG this is too funny, so glad you can look back and laugh as well!
LikeLiked by 1 person
What a sweet story. Brings back those memories!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh man! I can only imagine!! Glad you can laugh about it now. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love this story! Congratulations on using the mascara to fight those tears away. I would never have thought of that until my face was a mess and it was too late…you are a true hero! x
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh my goodness! This is hilarious and also mortifying LOL. There is never a doll moment with these kids, but boy did you recover nicely!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Love a great awkward mom story, from a fellow awkward mom!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Cheers to awkward moms!
LikeLike
Oh my gosh, I can’t even imagine. You’ve got more grace than me to be able to pull it together after a mess like that!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, man! Hey, it was a beautiful day with beautiful clothes and beautiful people. Something horrid was bound to sneak up, right?! Glad the wipes saved you! – Amy
LikeLiked by 1 person