Today I spent the day with my big sister, nephew and Hippo playing & laughing in the sun. There were snacks, light saber battles, potty breaks and melt downs. My sister seasoned chicken while I cut up a second helping of snacks for the kids in her fully stocked kitchen in the middle of suburbia. The walls echoing the giggles of our boys while they ran back and forth just outside the kitchen window. From the outside looking in, we looked like two typical mommies on any given day enjoying the afternoon on a playdate. It was very normal.
*Insert the needle scratching on the record player*
Normal? There we were, on a Monday afternoon talking about schools, Juice to Water ratios and post natal allergies. Normal. No. No. No! NO! If Brooke from 2007 walked through the door, she would have been completely confused!! Who are these people with the little people and the color coordinated calendars? Why are there sippy cups in the sink and not champagne glasses? My sister’s porsche has been replaced with a sedan that has a convertible carseat in the back. And I…well, I drive…wait for it…a station wagon! Yes, that’s right Brooke from 2007, you’re a mom driving, a station wagon! A station wagon that has two t-ball bats, a bucket of t-balls and outdoor chair for baseball practice in the trunk. That’s right, Brooke from 2007, you are a t-ball mom! You are a t-ball mom who also doubles as team snack mom. And some of your favorite sweaters come from JCrew or The Gap. Not Urban Outfitters or Forever 21. No dear. You like practical, mom belly friendly, maturely chic and durable now. Apparently you aren’t “Forever 21”, after all. Your purse is actually a piece of luggage called a “Mom Bag” that holds things like a pack of gum, a Starbucks gift card, neat cheeks wipes, a gogo squeeze applesauce for after school snack, hand lotion, a toy that doesn’t have an off button and Aquaphor lip balm! On a good day you can find a nice nude lipstick and/or gloss. Maybe. That’s usually in the clutch for special occasions. Remember, your kid and his best friend have sensitive skin. No, I am not kidding. You and your sister spent the day talking about things like pediatricians, school, post breast feeding boobs and pooping. Forgotten are the days of poolside conversations about adventures in dating, and…and…hell I don’t even remember what single/childless people talk about anymore! But you get what I’m saying!
Today when my sister’s husband asked, “When you guys were living together 6/7 years ago, did you ever imagine this life in the near future?”, we answered unilaterally, “No! Never!”. The us from 6/7 years ago would not recognize the 2015 us at all!
As I drove home down the 405 in my little mommy station wagon dressed in sweatpants and a cardigan, with my kindergartener in the back sleeping in his carseat, I tried to remember my life 6/7 years ago and all of the fun I had. But the more I remembered, the more I realized it wasn’t as fun as I thought. Or maybe I realized I have been actually changed by motherhood. I know that I never would have ever thought that I would be a cardigan wearing, station wagon driving, grape peeling mommy. But I really don’t see how I could have lived the rest of my life any other way. The dreams I never knew I dreamed, finally came true.
