From One Mama to Another

Tonight, as I walked Felicity into her gymnastics class, I saw another mother struggling to get her double stroller from the parking lot up onto the sidewalk. I asked, "Hey, may I help you?"

"Oh, I'm just waiting for you to go by so I don't run it into you," she said with that sweet, tired mama voice. 

I grabbed the front of the stroller anyway. "I had one of these," I told her. "I remember how heavy they are." That sparked a conversation about strollers and the pros and cons of the double front and back stroller and the double jogger. As we talked, I smiled and made faces at her sweet red-headed boy in the back (I'll admit, I have a fondness for red hair), and the blond curly-headed girl in the front. The two of them were probably only a year or a bit more apart. 

"How many kids do you have?" she asked as we got deeper into the conversation.

"Five," I responded.

"Oh my, I would have never guessed," she said. Now that I don't have most of my kids with me when I go places, I forget that people might assume that I only have Felicity. 

We discussed ages and spacing and then she said, "I was just in the car crying to my mother-in-law. One of the parapros basically accused me of abusing my child because she went to school with a black eye she got from jumping off a couch. She told me her teacher thought the same thing. What do you do when you figure out that everyone at the school thinks you're abusing your kid?" By the time she finished, she was nearly in tears again.

From the looks of the two little ones she had with her and their lack of marks or bruises, as well as by the mom's demeanor, I could tell she was telling the truth. "I had a kid like that," I let her know. "I figured they were going to call DFACS on me, we were in the ER so much. Bruises like that are a sign the kids are playing and having fun. Mine needed seven staples in his head, impaled himself on a tree, and slammed his finger in the door so hard, he ripped his nail off...in one day. I've experienced it all."

"Wow! I guess when you have five kids, you see your fair share of injuries," she said feeling reassured. 

We chatted a bit more and then began walking towards her car. "God must have wanted us to run into each other today," I told her. "What you're doing is so hard. I'm so glad you're willing to have four kids. Big families are a blessing. You're doing a great job. Keep up the good work!" As we parted ways, she was beaming. 

I still remember those days of struggling with double strollers, diapers, short nights, and toting little people everywhere. I made a promise to myself and to God that I would encourage others I saw in the same boat. I would hold doors open for them and lift their strollers. There were times when people did that  for me that almost brought me to tears. I felt cared for and seen. I begged God to give me the opportunity to bless others in the same way when I could. Today, He gave me that chance and I'm so grateful.