I remember after C was born and I had to leave the house and I found it so very intimidating. I would get overwhelmed with all the things I needed to bring with me, and I’d hurry around gathering all of my supplies. When we went out in public and she would fuss I would start to get anxious as I felt everyone was staring at me. And if she started to cry, I would high tail it to the car. It was such a stressful experience.

Fast forward to this evening. The two older kids are visiting my parents so Baby E and I went to the grocery store. Instead of being a stressful, anxiety inducing episode, it was so peaceful… after all I only had one child to look after! And even when he started fussing and crying (as he was both hungry and tired) it wasn’t at all upsetting. I just distracted him with goldfish crackers and silly little games.

It’s funny how time and perspective change things!