We’re excited to share this guest post from Blanca, an RGV mom of three girls! We love her honest and humorous take on the ups and downs of parenting.
![The Joy of Being a Mother The Joy of Being a Mother](https://riograndevalley.momcollective.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/mother-429158_1280.jpg)
Oh, the joys!
Oh, my! Parenting is by far the hardest thing to do in this world! Literally! If the lady at HEB isn’t staring you down because of your crying child, the one next to her is judging you because you look so young and have so many of them! Well, at least for me, three is more than enough.
I have three girls and— oh, my!— I have to start sipping something special because I worry so much and they are not even teenagers yet. I sit sometimes in the toilet for three whole minutes while they scream their lungs out, right outside the door. I can hear the oldest one dragging a chair to get something from the higher cabinet. Oh, my! My three minutes aren’t long enough!
Oh, the joys of potty breaks!!!
And let’s not forget every single time you are about to sit down to eat breakfast, lunch or dinner. You endure a series of obstacles: the youngest has to be changed (because of course, she pooped the second you served yourself, so now it smells!), the middle child is at the toilet needing help with her shorts because she’s grown so fast (the shorts you got her a few weeks ago are too tight now), and the oldest has already finished eating— and wants more!
Oh, the joys of eating!!!
And as the day goes by, the baby doesn’t want to nap so you think to yourself:
Please, just thirty minutes so I can shower and wear makeup today.
So, you don’t give up. You give it a try anyway. And as soon as you get out that shiny pink box full of makeup, all of them come to you and the makeup just doesn’t make it to your face. Instead, it covers your youngest child’s lips, cheeks, nose and shirt. And your middle child has white translucent powder in her forehead, ears and hair. Oh, and the oldest has a full blown contour face that’s actually on point!!
Oh, my! The joys of makeup!!
Let’s get back to nap time, which only happens when you get in the car and click the seat belt. Oh, my! That thing is magical! But now you have the dilemma of only buying a few things on your list because where are you going to place that sleeping body while you shop? Because you sure aren’t going to carry it for the entire trip.
Oh, and of course having a nice meal at a restaurant is not an option! With a sleeping baby, the easiest and smartest thing is to get drive thru so you can actually eat the food while the baby sleeps.
Oh, the joys of nap time!
And, of course, showering before bedtime is not to be forgotten. The tub becomes a pool and the rules for splashing do not apply. Because that never happens!!!
“One at a time,” I say.
And that always DOES happen because they know Mom is there to hug them quickly while they feel cold.
“One at a time,” I say.
To dress them and, of course, that happens TOO because they know Mom has their favorite PJs ready.
“One at a time,” I sing to them.
While putting them to sleep, and they always DO because Mom has been there all along…
“Today was a success,” I say to myself.
I did not lose any of them. And I laughed so much. At my oldest daughter’s contoured face, my middle child growing up so fast (she surprises me every day!) and my baby who is so cute as she snores in the car, restaurant and store! …And then, of course, she wakes up as soon as we get home.
Oh, the joys of parenting!!!
![Blanca joys of parenting](https://riograndevalley.momcollective.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Blanca-225x300.jpg)
Meet our guest, Blanca Flor Rocha from Edinburg:
This gal is simply ordinary. Seven years after I eloped, I now lead a life packed full with appointments and tight schedules. After at-home chores and a full-time job, I still find pleasure in writing. After a long day, I can sit and laugh at myself or things around me. My three beautiful daughters and hardworking husband keep me quite busy, along with the 120 students I get each year! All require individual attention, and that, I say, qualifies me as extra-ordinary!