homebodies

We sure did a lot more when Clementine was Perry’s age. I think it’s harder now for a few reasons, but the biggie is now we only have the one car. So to go anywhere I have to take Sean to work and then come back (an hour of car for Perry) then do whatever we’re doing and usually come home again (another hour for Perry) then go get Sean and come home (third hour of car for Perry.) All that kinda sucked before he was born but it’s just awful after. I’ve managed once and we were an hour and a half late to get Sean. (The tardiness was due to several factors. First I was late leaving Walmart, then stopped to nurse Perry, twice, then got stuck in rush hour traffic. By a huge mall, a week before Christmas.)

Perry in the car is like everywhere else that is Not Mama’s Arms: about 15 minutes tops before he is inconsolable. That doesn’t really work when you live thirty minutes from anywhere. We stop so I can nurse and console but it’s exhausting and gets very old for the other kids. And it lasts maybe five minutes.

So that’s the big reason, but a secondary one is nursing Perry. I want him to eat every single time he can. He’s 80-90th percentile for length and head circumference and 15th percentile for weight. I don’t know whether he’s a string bean by nature or because of his feeding troubles, so I just feed him whenever he will nurse. That’s tricky with eight other kids sighing and getting bored.

And the third reason is the autistic toddler. She will not hold still anywhere, so she needs a dedicated minder. Whoever that is won’t be able to do anything but pay attention to Clementine to keep her from getting lost, getting hurt, or breaking something. That gets really tiresome in all but a few environments. She happens to like a moving view, so if she’s in a cart or a stroller she’s content, but you have to keep swimming like a shark or you’ll die. I was the person to do that but now it’s everyone else.

I guess now that I’ve typed it out, having a second car would only help one of the issues. Huh. We can’t afford one now anyway so it’s moot. Maybe by the time we can afford one Perry’s weight gain will be better and Quine will be more biddable and less truculent in public.

The menace to society:

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2 thoughts on “homebodies

  1. We have only had one car since maybe 2013? When our big family van gave it’s last gasp. Since we are finally maybe getting more drivers we are thinking about a second car next year. I’m dreading it.

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