Babies aren’t puppies
22 October 2009
Who knew, right?
When I envisioned myself doing the whole writer/stay-at-home mom thing, my child always played happily at my feet while I worked. Kinda like my dog always did. If I was working and KC, our border collie mix, wanted attention, I’d rub on his belly for about 30 seconds, then give him a rawhide chew. Problem solved. And if I wanted to take an afternoon nap, KC would curl up next to me and snooze for however long I wanted. (Unless the UPS guy dared to knock on our door.)
McKenna’s about to turn two, and I can think of a handful of occasions in which she’s actually played while I worked. At 6 weeks old, she fell asleep on her blanket down in my office. Around 16 months, she occupied herself for nearly 20 minutes with my bowl of paperclips. Taking the paperclips out, putting them back in. Carrying two to the staircase, then coming back for two more. Then yesterday, McKenna took notice of the doll house I put in my office nearly a year ago hoping it might buy me some time every once in awhile. Most days it buys me a minute or so. Yesterday she played for 25 minutes and actually insisted that I stay in my desk chair.
This is why when I’m reading Abbie sections of the Skylar Hoyt books, or when I’m talking about Abbie with students, I feel my heart break for her. I’m 25 years old, married, and both my in-laws and parents help out a ton, yet there are still days (weeks, months) that I feel completely overwhelmed by the responsibility God gave me. And on weeks like this, when McKenna’s not acting like her normal ray of sunshine self, I find myself thinking more and more about Abbie and the challenges she faces as a pregnant teen and, should she decide to keep the baby, a teenage mother.
My point is, other than the fact that babies aren’t puppies, I don’t take Abbie’s storyline lightly. Dealing with Abbie was often a bit like motherhood itself—she was my most demanding character, the most draining, but also the most rewarding. Her big moments are some of my favorite scenes in the whole series, same as McKenna’s big accomplishments are usually the high points of my day. I think (I hope) that love comes across in Out with the In Crowd and So Over It.
Hope everyone has a great day!
Comments
Man, teenagers aren’t like puppies either (well, they are sometimes) I’ve had me a day with one of mine!
Posted by Erica Vetsch on 22 October 2009
McKenna never did the crawling thing :( Though she did often use my leg as a napkin. Still does, actually…
Posted by Stephanie on 22 October 2009
And yet, at that 9-month stage when they’re crawling around with toys in their mouths and using your leg as a napkin, it’s hard to tell the difference . . . =)
Posted by Roseanna White on 22 October 2009